texastigger

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The dick move is he negotiating it and accepting it (at least informally) while still coaching for a championship.

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Evidently this was a done deal several weeks ago...

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Schools don’t offer NIL deals bunch

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That was yesterday...

"In Florida, Chip LaMarca one of the leaders for the original NIL legislation announced yesterday he is introducing a change to the FL law. The new bill strikes language in the original bill that prohibited schools from “causing compensation to be directed” to athletes.

This will put Florida on an even playing field with schools from other states with less restrictive NIL rules - We're looking at you A&M and Texas."

LINK

Never saw any actual support posted for the $250K claim, but here it is. Horns With Heart is going to pay linemen $50K per year starting in August '22. They are just one of many such orgs setup for UT. As a businessman I don't see how any of this makes sense given that most people have no idea who these players are, especially the linemen. With that said, you would expect boards to want to see some form of ROI, unless these backers just have more money than good sense.

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I hear what you are saying and it makes sense and I know exactly what you are talking about. I know several former baseball players that are "financial advisors" and I use that term loosely. I just know how closely schools like A&M and Notre Dame stick up for their alums (I was offered a full-time job after just interviewing at Notre Dame). It definitely changes the conversation if you're all in though.

And thank you regarding my son. He's still young but is posting some crazy EV numbers. We're just fortunate to be nearby a prominent training facility here in TX which allows him to train with some very elite coaches and players. It gives me a chance to see what it's like on the other side of the equation and it makes you realize just how fortunate you have to be to make it the Show.

If you're throwing who you know into the equation then that would definitely take LSU out of the equation don't you think? I can't think of too many advantages offered by the good old boys club of LA as compared to a Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Stanford or even Vandy. Look, I love LSU, but I think my degree from Vandy has opened a few more doors.

Baseball is a fickle sport and the chances of a kid getting drafted are slim, with the percentages of making it to the show and getting paid even more remote. Hence making the network that you speak of that much more important when it's time to find a real job.

My son is fortunate to train with some big time coaches and he works with several MLB/MiLB players in the off-season. Most of the MiLB guys struggle financially, and I guess seeing that firsthand can really change one's perspective.

I've heard McDonnell since day one, even before Mainieri officially announced his retirement.

Negative

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It's a metric that only tells you how hard a ball is hit WHEN the hitter makes solid contact. It does not assure that he will square it up on any consistent basis. That's number 1: But, also, I didn't say that high exit velocity wasn't an indication of solid contact. That is what puzzles me the most about your last paragraph. I merely pointed out that you don't have to try to swing out of your shoes, if you allow the pitcher to provide the velocity and simply time your swings well, which, ultimately, is what it all comes down to. If the exit velocity is consistently high, THEN that tells you something about the quality of the hitter. But you don't need a radar gun to recognize quality contact. That's why the metric is useless, to me. Hayden Travinski hits the ball really hard in practice. I can't remember if he even had a hit in a game. Exit velo is just something for people to fawn over like pitchers who throw 100 MPH, but couldn't hit the ocean standing on a surf board.

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I agree with 95% of what you are saying with the exception of the importance of pitch speed - it matters but not that much, hence the example. And yes, you definitely don't need a radar gun to gauge quality contact. In my experience, EV is a tool that a hitter can utilize to get instant feedback on a variety of metrics (in a training environment), which may or may not carry over to the game.

I am fortunate enough to be around some very elite hitting coaches almost every day with my son, and they always say execute the swing (i.e. barrel the ball) and the results will come, which is really common sense. The kids and pros we are around just use EV to measure their execution as it is easy for them to look at the metric instantly at our facilty.

Ultimately if a kid has a high EV it means they are doing something right with their mechanics. Now, if they don't execute in a game then that's on the kid and the coach...

Next time I'm in BR we'll have to meet up and discuss over a beer or two.

They have those stats and one of which is barreled balls for hard contact. Avg exit velo for the MLB last year was 89.1. Avg max exit velo was 110.5. Barreled ball % was 9% on average, which ties directly to max velo. Regardless, if Crews is putting up those numbers then he is elite.

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NO! That is the way he holds the bat. He does not change the way he holds the bat as the count changes. Because he is not 9 years old...

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This. Not necessarily relevant to the thread about how Bregman holds the bat, but he always appears to be a bit "choked up" and yet he only swings a 33" bat - it's just his comfort zone. His swing doesn't change with 2 strikes, but his approach does.

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Here’s what I’m referring to, quote off the net;
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From J.D. Martinez to Josh Donaldson, hitters throughout the big leagues have been honing a new approach at the plate, hunting for big flies and eschewing worm burners. It’s a change rooted in the latest metrics, which say balls hit in the air tend to be more valuable than grounders — particularly since the home run surge of 2015 started turning a higher percentage of fly balls into home runs than ever. So, over the last two years, batters have adjusted their swings accordingly, sending ever more balls skyward.

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You're definitely not wrong. I'm sure their are hitting coaches who focus on that and know that the analysis points to it. I'm just saying that some people focus on it more than others. Here in TX, select ball is filled with ex-MLB/ex-minor league guys. My son's last coach was in the Pirates org for years and he focused on teaching a "nike swoosh swing".

Current hitting coach has never once brought that up and you'll hear him say over and over that the results will come with proper hand path. He will also tell his players if you don't have consistent HR power you better learn quick to drive it in the gap - but the swing doesn't necessarily change.

I have zero expectations of my kid playing at a higher level, but I am fortunate to be in a position to afford him the best of coaching and the science of hitting has definitely changed from when I played. And I would think that since he is 12 and is coached on plate discipline that our Tigers should be taught the same.