What if we have to get artificial intelligence (AI) robots to play baseball because boys won’t work? Hope, luck and chance are the best strategies for boys who won’t work.

When I was playing baseball in Little League all the way up to Travel Ball as a teenager, I was among the most talented.

Talent is what you do well and habits are things you do well repeatedly without thought. Skills are things that you do well repeatedly without thought while under stress.

Talented players compete in Travel Ball. Players with good habits showcase it at the collegiate level and skills pay the bills for professional players.

The main reason I didn’t have the long MLB career I dreamed of was because I didn’t humble myself enough to understand that talent is the floor and not the ceiling. Too many boys today are failing to develop to become the best versions of themselves on the baseball field because they are repeatedly told that they have so much talent.

My mentor Skip Nelloms recently told me that there are two types of stress:

• Eustress is moderate or normal psychological stress interpreted as being beneficial.
• Distress is extreme anxiety and bad for the body.

I’ve been a part of the development of more than 40 MLB players for 20-plus years because eustress is a part of my training. Those clients include Jason Heyward, Dexter Fowler and Peter Alonso.

When it is time for us to practice we practice, but when it is time to train we train.

There is a difference between practicing and training. Practice is when you build habits and training is when you convert habits to skills. I will go deeper for you in future blogs because there is a season for everything and a method to my business.

The new MLB rule changes are in response to fans demanding more action. In the year 2040, if men cannot play baseball with a high level of skill, fans will want MLB to replace them with AI.

Your thoughts?

Meet the MBP website

I am really excited about the launch of the new MBP website.

Prospects will be rated off of Swaggy Chains:

5  Pro Prospect Grade

4  Mid Major – Power 5 Grade

3  D2 – Mid Major Grade

2  D3 – NAIA Grade

1  Developing as a prospect

This new rating system by MBP is going to let players know where they stand and it is going to be elite hitting practitioners like me that will bear the responsibility to partner with boys to help them to become skilled hitters so that they don’t have to be replaced with AI.

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.