If anyone has any questions regarding JuicePlus+ checkout my website www.teamzingerjuiceplus.com. Have a great day and thanks for breathing.

We first met Stephen last winter when he played for the A’s in the Arizona Baseball League. He helped lead his team to the Southern Division Championship over the favored Orioles and also the AZBL Championship over the North Division Champion Dodgers. He is extremely versatile on the field due to the fact that he can throw well with both hands and hit from both side of home plate. This is almost unheard of for a player to be able to do both of these things and it will give his high school coaches a lot of flexibility with their lineup when they have Stephen on their team.

I also had the pleasure of working with Stephen this summer at our Baseball Camp up in Flagstaff, AZ. He was voted the MVP of the camp due to the fact that he was the strongest performer in the criteria we use to select our most valuable players- Attitude, Leadership, Talent & Work Ethic. He excelled in all categories and was a great example for the younger players who attended.

His future goals include playing baseball at the collegiate level and also serving our country in the military. Like most kids his age he enjoys playing video games and spending time out on the diamond honing his baseball skills. He is a wonderful young man and I look forward to seeing him grow into one of our future leaders.

A lot of things come into play for an outfielder when a ball is hit. How deep am I playing, which direction is the wind blowing, remember to run on the balls of my feet so my eye balls won’t jump up and down, will the guy next to me hear me when I call it or just trainwreck me ala Jeff McIntosh at Cactus High circa 1991. No bad feelings buddy. I just couldn’t walk for 2 days after you drove your dagger-like kneecap into my quad muscle and flattened me in left center. A lot of things come into play and when doing drills it’s best to start out simple by throwing baseballs, not hitting them.

What I have listed below is an excellent drill for you to use for your players to work on taking good angles to fly balls. Once they get good at this you can increase the difficulty by throwing the ball over their opposite shoulder so they have to snap their head around in order to catch it. This will simulate a windy day or simply losing sight of the ball on your route to it. All you need are a couple of cones and balls.

Fly Ball Angle Drill (2 cones)
1.) Place a cone or object down for the starting point.
2.) Space out 2 cones 30 feet apart from the start point at a 45 degree angle.
3.) Partner points to one of the cones and the player opens up that hip and drop steps in the direction of the cone.
4.) Player sprints past the cone and then while in stride looks over their shoulder for the ball.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

“If it had not been for the wind in my face, I wouldn’t be able to fly at all.”

- Arthur Ashe

IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE:

• President’s Greeting: Fall Plans & Summer Wrap Up
• The Dog House: AZBL Mascots
• Nutritional News: Postgame Recovery Drink
• Student-Athlete of the Week: Stephen Kaneko
• Coaches’ Corner: Fly Ball Angle Drill w/ Jeff McIntosh shout out
• Weekly Poll Question: Which AZBL Mascot are you voting for?

A WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT:

I hope everyone had a wonderful summer. We just got back from a Southern California vacation ourselves and I have to tell you 75 degrees on the San Diego beaches was a great rejuvenator after 10 straight weeks of Summer Baseball Camps. Speaking of the camps we had a blast with your kids. Inside Pitch was an awesome host for our 10 indoor camps and our Flagstaff camp was outstanding. In all we had 245 players attend our 11 camps! We are looking forward to our Thanksgiving & Christmas camps later this year.

Here is what is hot at Cactus Athletics. As you know we have the best instructors in the state so we wanted to start promoting them more. You can now go to the Instruction Page on our website and select a coach that is in your area. We have instructors in Peoria, Glendale, Phoenix, Cave Creek and Scottsdale. Click here to check it out- INSTRUCTION.

The other huge thing we have for you is the Fall Season for the Arizona Baseball League. Registrations for the league has already began and tryouts begin on Sept 8th. Everyone who registers for the league will be placed on a team. The tryouts are more for our coaching staff to divide the teams evenly. Currently Brett Caradonna, Joe Pomierski, Spencer Grace & Troy Farnsworth are slated to be head coaches in the league. Combined they have over 25 years of professional playing experience! Click here to check it out & register today!- ARIZONA BASEBALL LEAGUE.

We would also like to promote a free event that is going on at the Inside Pitch Indoor Baseball & Softball Facility on August 28th. There will be free hitting, contests, prizes and much more. Fred is the GM over there and we have had a great friendship and working relationship over the past four years. I highly encourage you to attend. For more information please click here- INSIDE PITCH.

That’s it for today. For those of you who are interested my wife Taleen is due with our 2nd son in the middle of October and our son Connor will turn 2 in September. Everyone here is great on our end including the mutts. We will be sending our next newsletter before the Labor Day holiday. Have an awesome week and give our love to your families.

“We are ready for the season to start! Vote for your favorite mascot today!”

NUTRITIONAL NEWS: Postgame Recovery Drink

by Jon Huizinga
Hey guys. Playing sports is very taxing on your body and it’s important that you always stay hydrated. This includes drinking fluids before, during and after athletic events. What we have for you today is an awesome postgame recovery drink. The main ingredients include coconut water, goji concentrated juice & aloe vera.

If anyone has any questions regarding JuicePlus+ checkout my website www.teamzingerjuiceplus.com. Have a great day and thanks for breathing.

STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Stephen Kaneko

by Billy Horton
Stephen, a 14 year old from Mesa, AZ is our Student-Athlete of the Week. He is a 9th grader at Desert Ridge High School and he carries a 3.4 Grade Point Average. His favorite class is History and he is also very talented with his hands. He is a phenomenal sketcher and is also ambidextrous. We found this out first hand on the field.

We first met Stephen last winter when he played for the A’s in the Arizona Baseball League. He helped lead his team to the Southern Division Championship over the favored Orioles and also the AZBL Championship over the North Division Champion Dodgers. He is extremely versatile on the field due to the fact that he can throw well with both hands and hit from both side of home plate. This is almost unheard of for a player to be able to do both of these things and it will give his high school coaches a lot of flexibility with their lineup when they have Stephen on their team.

I also had the pleasure of working with Stephen this summer at our Baseball Camp up in Flagstaff, AZ. He was voted the MVP of the camp due to the fact that he was the strongest performer in the criteria we use to select our most valuable players- Attitude, Leadership, Talent & Work Ethic. He excelled in all categories and was a great example for the younger players who attended.

His future goals include playing baseball at the collegiate level and also serving our country in the military. Like most kids his age he enjoys playing video games and spending time out on the diamond honing his baseball skills. He is a wonderful young man and I look forward to seeing him grow into one of our future leaders.

COACHES’ CORNER: Fly Ball Angle Drill

by Billy Horton
The fly ball. It can be a pitcher’s best friend in a spacious ballpark or their worst nightmare if they have guys playing behind them who don’t have a clue. One of the biggest mistakes I see as a coach is when a player takes a bad angle to a fly ball. It happens much too often at the younger levels and it can really turn a simple base hit to right field into a circus. I have observed too many sharply hit singles that turn into triples because the outfielders run sideways instead of taking a deeper angle to the area where the ball is hit.

A lot of things come into play for an outfielder when a ball is hit. How deep am I playing, which direction is the wind blowing, remember to run on the balls of my feet so my eye balls won’t jump up and down, will the guy next to me hear me when I call it or just trainwreck me ala Jeff McIntosh at Cactus High circa 1991. No bad feelings buddy. I just couldn’t walk for 2 days after you drove your dagger-like kneecap into my quad muscle and flattened me in left center. A lot of things come into play and when doing drills it’s best to start out simple by throwing baseballs, not hitting them.

What I have listed below is an excellent drill for you to use for your players to work on taking good angles to fly balls. Once they get good at this you can increase the difficulty by throwing the ball over their opposite shoulder so they have to snap their head around in order to catch it. This will simulate a windy day or simply losing sight of the ball on your route to it. All you need are a couple of cones and balls.

Fly Ball Angle Drill (2 cones)
1.) Place a cone or object down for the starting point.
2.) Space out 2 cones 30 feet apart from the start point at a 45 degree angle.
3.) Partner points to one of the cones and the player opens up that hip and drop steps in the direction of the cone.
4.) Player sprints past the cone and then while in stride looks over their shoulder for the ball.

WEEKLY POLL QUESTION:

Options

• Group Package $199 per player for (6) one hour lessons
• Individual Package $299 for (6) one hour lessons

REGISTER HERE FOR HITTING INSTRUCTION

Options

• Group Package $99 per player for (5) thirty minute lessons
• Individual Package $150 for (5) thirty minute lessons

REGISTER HERE FOR HITTING INSTRUCTION

Options

• Junior Level (10-18 yr old) Individual Package $299 for (6) one hour lessons
• Junior Level (10-18yr old) Group Package $199 per player for (6) one hour lessons
• Adult Level (18 yrs & up) Individual Package $399 for (6) one hour lessons
• Adult Level (18 yrs & up) Group Package $299 per player for (6) one hour lessons

REGISTER HERE FOR GOLF INSTRUCTION

Options

• Group Package $199 per player for (6) one hour lessons
• Individual Package $299 for (6) one hour lessons

REGISTER HERE FOR HITTING INSTRUCTION

Instruction Options coming soon. Jon is still playing and will be back home in mid September

REGISTER HERE FOR PITCHING INSTRUCTION

Options

• Group Package $99 per player for (5) thirty minute lessons
• Individual Package $150 for (5) thirty minute lessons

REGISTER HERE FOR HITTING INSTRUCTION