"We are like dwarfs sitting on the shoulders of giants. We see more, and things that are more distant, than they did, not because our sight is superior or because we are taller than they, but because they raise us up, and by their great stature add to ours." - Sir Isaac Newton

Great teams set high standards and live to those standards. Nick Saban said, "If everybody doesn't buy into the same principles and values of the organization and the same high standard you're never going to be successful." It means commitment and accountability.

Dan Lanning shares what separates good teams from great ones - and it starts with the players. "Your best teams are what I would call player-led teams." "I walk into a team meeting the other day - the coaches aren't in the room...They're talking to the team about the things we gotta do better." "I think that speaks to the character of the players on our team." That's what real culture looks like. Players holding each other accountable without being told to. "Sometimes you're afraid to be a leader because you're like, 'Well, I still make mistakes.'" "The reality is - I make mistakes. The coaches make mistakes. The players make mistakes. What we gotta do is own 'em - but still be willing to call people out and get better." You don't have to be perfect to lead. You just have to be willing to do what's right and what's best for the team. Own your mistakes and hold the standard.

"One day Gates Brown wasn't in the Tigers starting lineup, so he grabbed two hot dogs from the clubhouse. Manager Mayo Smith told him to pinch hit. He stuffed the hot dogs in his jersey to hide them from his manager. "I always wanted to get a hit every time I went to the plate. This was one time I didn't want to get a hit. I'll be damned if I didn't smack one in the gap and I had to slide into second-head first, no less. I was safe at second with a double. But when I stoop up, I had mustard and ketchup and smashed hot dogs and buns all over me. The fielders took one look at me, turned their backs and damned near busted a gut laughing at me. My teammates in the dugout went crazy." Gates Brown was then fined $100 and when Mgr. Smith asked him what he was doing, the hitter came clean: "I said, 'I was hungry. Besides, where else can you eat a hot dog and have the best seat in the house?'" “I took a little English, a little mathematics, some science, some hubcaps, some wheel covers.” Gates Brown when asked what he had majored in back in high school. Signed from Mansfield Reformatory in Ohio by scout Pat Mullin. The location form, “The Shawshank Redemption.”

@ClintHurdle13 "And if we obey God, we must disobey ourselves; and it is in this disobeying ourselves, wherein the hardness of obeying God consists."  Herman Melville MOBY DICK Chapter 9 "The Sermon"

“Somewhat typical for Ted Williams was his decision to give away the six tickets he was allotted for each of the three World Series games at Fenway Park. Ted had his wife go to Kenmore Square before the games and give the tickets to the first six GI`s she saw. He felt no need to tell the press about the token of appreciation for the fans." "The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams". Ben Bradlee Jr.

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Elbow slot? External rotation of humerus? “On around?” This is a critical move that’s highly debated. Here’s my take on it.

"Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things a man needs to believe in the most. That people are basically good; That honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; That power and money, money and power mean nothing; That good always triumphs over evil; And I want you to remember this, that love….. True love never dies. You remember that, boy. You remember that. Doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. You see, a man should believe in those things, because those are the things worth believing in." "Second Hand Lions" Robert Duvall. "The Fastball" James Daly.

Matthew McConaughey reveals the three words his dad said that changed his life “I said dad, I don't want to go to law school anymore. I want to go to film school and after about a 5 second pause, he goes, ‘Are you sure that's what you want to do?’ I reply yes sir” “Another long pause. Then I hear, ‘Well, don't halfass it’” “I remember just beaming, hopping up just like Yes! My dad not only said okay. The way he said don't halfass it, it was also, okay. Let's go big boy. Own that shit. Get some leverage. Get some horsepower behind where you're going. Go do it” “I remember to this day and I've learned this later I think from becoming a father, part of what I believe happened to him and why he said that to me that way on that call was the way that I asked him. I wasn't really asking. It was, ‘I don't want to go to law school, Dad. I want to go to film school.’ I didn't stutter. He heard his son saying this is what I want to do” “What I think happened to him in that moment is what I think any father, any parent loves. You raise your kids in a certain way and you give them a guideline, a ladder to climb and here's the guidelines and if you do it this way, you're most likely going to have some success in life and it'll work out for you and then when we do it that way, we can be proud parents” “But what do we really want to happen when our kids are out of the house and they're on their own? We kind of want them to call one day and go, ‘I'm breaking out. I'm going my own way.’ And as a parent, we go, as much as it may scare us, we're going, ‘Yes!’ I gave my kid the confidence and the courage and the foundation to say they're going to go their own way” “In a way, I think every parent honors and loves that moment. I heard my dad, when he didn't hear me stutter, when he heard me directly say what I said. I wasn't really asking him. Even though I was out of respect asking him, the way I said it, I wasn't asking him and I think he felt that” “Don't halfass it”

John Wooden coached basketball at UCLA for a living, but his calling was to impact people, & with all those national championships, guess what he was found doing in the middle of the week? Grabbing a broom & sweeping his own gym floor. You want 2 make an impact? Find your broom

“You get up every day, you’re entitled to nothing. You could have talent but if you don’t have discipline and you don’t execute, you don’t focus. What do you get? Nothing. Nothing is acceptable but your best,” -Nick Saban Winners assume nothing and give everything.

Successful people believe in themselves and their potential. They know it takes courage to believe in a future that hasn't been created yet. Jimmy Johnson said, "You treat a person as he is, he's going to stay as he is. Treat a person as he were what he could be and should be - he'll become what he could be and should be." "I didn't dream. believed we were going to do it."

Becky Hammon said, "Being resilient is both a character trait and a learned skill. The tough part is - you only develop it by going through hard stuff." There's no shortcut - everyone wants to be the person who can handle adversity. But few are willing to embrace the adversity that builds that capacity.

Hitting is messy, and so are people. One thing works: Earn their trust first. Nobody lets you coach them until they trust you. Not credentials, not titles, not wins. Trust. That's where coaching begins. @Pirates

It's not about your favorite drill. It's about what the hitter needs. Build your tool box so you can be as adaptable as possible to the needs of different hitters.

Play because you love the game. Work hard relentlessly to get better because you love winning.

"Rogers Hornsby could run like anything, but like this kid? Ty Cobb was the fastest I ever saw for bein’ sensational of the bases, but he was not a long hitter. There’ve been a lot of fast men but none as big and strong as Mantle. This boy could pick up all the marbles in this circuit.... Batting, home runs, runs driven in. Nothing is beyond him. Nothing. With his combination of speed and power he should win the Triple Batting Crown every year. In fact, he should do anything he wants to do. He could be the No. 1 player of our league. He’s gonna be around a long time, if he can stay well, that fella of mine." Casey Stengel.

If coaches are pushing you hard, be thankful – it means they care. Be worried when they STOP!

Everyone teaches the mechanics or the mental side. Nobody teaches how to flip the switch. When I started coaching, it was all swing, barely any mental. Ten years in, I'm talking about the mental side 70% of the time. The movements and positions matter, 100%. They always will, and they'll help the mental side too. But it goes both ways. The mental side makes your movements play better. More conviction, more belief behind them. I used to figure if I cleaned up the swing, the rest would handle itself. It doesn't. I've got guys with perfect mechanics who fall apart when the game speeds up, and guys with uglier swings who keep producing because they know how to handle themselves between the ears. The switch is the part nobody trains. Everybody drills the swing. Almost nobody drills when to push and when to trust it. And the best ones don't flip it by accident. They know which mode they're in and they pick it. Grind in the work. Trust in the box. That's the separator. Not the talent. The control over which side you're on. > Save this where you'll see it for a reminder. > Send it to a hitter who needs to learn how to flip the switch And make sure you're following.

I'm not at my best in heavy traffic. Actually, I'm not at my best while waiting for anything. But here's the one that stung. We were at the Key Royale Club for Bingo. Someone called a premature number. Maddie was watching. And I muttered something under my breath that wasn't exactly Sunday morning material. Maddie yelled out, "What the hell, lady?" because she had just heard her dad mutter it. In that moment, Karla didn't yell at me. She didn't lecture. She grabbed me by the ear, looked at me with those captivating brown eyes, and said five words: "Model the behavior you hope to instill in others." That line hit me like a fastball at my ears. All those years as a manager. All those talks about character, discipline, how to handle adversity. How to represent yourself with respect. How to stay composed when things go wrong. And my daughter was watching me lose it over Bingo. I wasn't modeling anything except frustration. I was teaching her that the rules change when nobody important is watching. That your values are situational. Here's what this taught me: Your kids won't always listen to what you say, but they're always watching what you do. Model the behavior. Every time. Because someone who loves you is watching.