Why good coaching matters more than ever

Photo credit: Tim Sims

I love summertime baseball because it is when the best players ages 5-18 come together to compete in various tournaments and showcase tournaments across the country.

I was at the 7U baseball tournament of my godson, Tucker, recently. You could feel the energy in the stands. The kids were having fun, and there was a focus on winning the game from both teams, which included the parents, players and coaches.

This is important for the future of our game. If we don’t teach our kids how to compete to improve and compete to win, they may go to other sporting activities like the World Chase TagAmerican Cornhole League, and Pillow Fight Championships to learn.

While I am glad these sports are thriving and increasing in participation numbers and fan support, I don’t want to lose baseball players to them because we are not doing a good job of coaching.

Before the word coach was used in sports, it was strictly used as a means of transportation. There was a horse, a coachman to stir the reins used to direct the horse and the coach, who sat where the passenger rested until they reached their destination.

Good baseball coaching is going to have an intentional phased approach for development because luck, chance, love, hope and prayer is not enough.

As May heads into June, my players remain committed and disciplined to put a period on another productive year of development. Then it is time to start over again in August, where we will try new things to determine what works and what doesn’t.

Why it’s time to start ‘Breaking Barriers’

The month of May is making me feel good and there is no maybe about why it is happening. I owe it to myself to live a life of joy and purpose and so do you.

May be making me feel like it is time to bloom.

I am blessed to serve as the Chief Visionary Officer and the Head of Baseball Development for LEAD Center For Youth. At LEAD, we have a phased approach to development and May is the start of the Application Phase.

I created this approach so that everybody can be regulated emotionally from the LEAD staff, our Board of Directors, the parents we get to partner with and their children that we get to serve. This phased approach is how I govern my life. It works for me and has been working for LEAD since we were established in 2007.

May be making me feel loyal.

Loyalty is the core value for the month of May for us.

Core Values
  • August, February – Excellence
  • September, March – Humility
  • October, April – Integrity
  • November, May – Loyalty
  • December, June – Stewardship
  • January, July – Teamwork

To us, loyalty means doing the right thing, even when it is not popular to do it.

One of the signature things we do during the May-July Application Phase is our annual “Breaking Barriers Classic.” “Baseball has the power to overcome differences. We have to do all we can to make the world better than how we found it.”

The Classic includes our LEAD Ambassadors who are all African-American and an all white opponent. Prior to the start of the game, each team must select a captain and use prejudice, stereotypes and bias to make selections in order for the two new teams to be equally combined. The teams play seven innings of self-officiated baseball giving each of them to bond and expand their perspectives.

Maybe making me feel blessed that God has chosen me to lead in Atlanta using baseball as a vehicle to develop Major League Citizens.

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.

Fighting the good fight

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

Being an African-American man in America presents challenges to me every day and being an African-American baseball coach definitely requires strong mental health.

Baseball was invented in September 1845 by a group of New York City men who founded the New York Knickerbocker Baseball Club. The sport soon became an essential part of the American identity. While other sports were enjoyed by many, the sport of baseball aspired to become a sport that unified all people.

The number of African-Americans playing Little League and Major League baseball is on a steady decline. I believe this is a social justice Issue. I also believe that baseball is a microcosm of America.

I fell in love with the game in summer 1984 when the Chicago Cubs were beating everybody and went on to win the National League East (they ended losing to the Padres in the National League Championship Series). There were several African-American players on that team. Gary “Sarge” Matthews was my favorite.

I was fortunate to be drafted by the Cubs in 1994 and 1996, and “Sarge” became one of my hitting coaches there.

My mental health is very important to me, and every day as an African-American man, I am fighting to receive the benefit of doubt, respect and trust.

When I started my professional baseball coaching career in 1998, I spent lots of time trying to do the impossible—giving 110% effort to prove to my white peers that I was a good coach. I tried to dress like them and talk like them. I found myself at times frustrated about who I was becoming.

My mental health is very important to me, and every day as an African-American man, I am fighting to receive the benefit of doubt, respect and trust.

I am an African-American man and I have learned to love who I am. Having good mental health is a really good thing and I will give my life to protect it.

Toni Morrison said, “The function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do. Somebody says your head isn’t shaped properly so you have scientists working on the fact that it is. Somebody says you have no art, so you dredge that up. Somebody says you have no kingdoms, so you dredge that up. None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”

Before racism becomes about people, it is all about power, so for me to have good mental health with regards to combating racism, I need:

  • Support and affirmation from my wife, Kelli, our daughters, Mackenzi and Mackenna
  • To remain connected as a committed and consequential change agent employed at LEAD Center For Youth
  • Interactions with people that are not of the African-American race that agrees with me as well as those with people that disagrees with me
  • A caring, compassionate and competent therapist
  • My Life Group at my church, Elizabeth Baptist Church

Is racism real or non-existent to you?

Are you an African-American baseball coach fighting racism? How do you fight it?

Are you a white coach who has helped an African-American coach fight racism? How have you helped him?

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.

Creating your personal mission statement

May is “Mental Health Awareness Month.” In 2020, I became an avid runner. The pandemic gave me more time to take care of my physical health. Running long distances has never been one of my favorite things to do, but I made a commitment to run in the 2020 virtual AJC Peachtree Road Race and discovered that while I was racking up the miles, I was getting in good physical shape and my mental health was improving.

I was able to listen to books and podcasts. Best of all, I had a lot of crucial conversations with myself.

Running brings me joy and some sore knees, but it’s worth it. When my mental health is good, I am more patient, caring and I feel peace.

What do you do to improve your mental health?

If social media existed when I was a teenager in the early ’90s, I believe that my mental health would have suffered, as I was trying to be seen by Travel Ball, college coaches and pro scouts.

Even as an adult, I have to guard my mental state by not comparing myself to other coaches and community leaders. My best defense is my personal mission statement. I have my own game of life to win.

My personal mission in life is to be significant by serving millions and bringing them into a relationship with Christ starting with my wife, Kelli, and our daughters, Mackenzi and Mackenna.

What’s your personal mission statement?

Why do you need one?

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.

Understanding the difference between teachers and technicians

I’m more of a teacher than a technician. However, I can do both. As a teacher, I create a system that allows technicians to facilitate drills that all my students develop.

When something is systematic is has three parts:

  1. All the stuff
  2. All the stuff sequenced
  3. All of the stuff being sequenced and simple to execute

There are seven parts to the swing and it takes 3,000 reps to convert a habit to a skill. That’s 21,000 reps.

  1. Stance/Load x 3,000 reps
  2. Timing x 3,000
  3. Tempo x 3,000
  4. Tracking x 3,000
  5. Approach x 3,000
  6. Contact x 3,000
  7. Extension/Finish x 3,000

The Tennis Ball Drill is one of drills that allows you to focus on all seven parts with each rep. I challenge you to get 3,000 reps within the next 30 days.

When thinking about the difference between a teacher and a technician, think about the relationship between a doctor and a nurse. Both are important and need each other in order to be successful.

I want to learn from you. What do you think the difference between a teacher and technician is?

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.