[00:00:04] Speaker A: Welcome to the ABCA's podcast. I'm your host, Ryan Brownlee.
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Next up on the ABCA podcast is the 2025 ABCA Division 1 Assistant Coach of the Year, Coastal Carolina pitching coach Matt Williams. In his second season with the Chanticleers, Williams led Coastal to their second appearance in the College World Series Championship Series.
Williams spent four seasons as the Associate Head Coach pitching coach at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. Under Williams tutelage, the Flames advanced the NCAA tournament in both 2021 and 2022.
In his first full season at Liberty in 2021, the Flames were 41 16, setting a school record for winning percentage. At the Division 1 level, Williams spent a season as an international scout and one season as a minor league pitching coach with the San Diego Padres.
Williams spent five seasons at UNCW helping the Seahawks to three NCAA Regional Championship games. The 2018 team had a 3.50 ERA while setting the strikeout record for the second time. In his guidance, the 2015 team had four hundred and ninety three strikeouts, bringing a record that stood for twelve seasons.
Prior to UNCW, Williams worked eight years as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator in junior college power Spartanburg Methodist, where he helped the pioneers to make four trips to the NJCA World Series in Grand Junction, Colorado. In 2013, the Pioneers reached number one ranking while going 48 and 15.
Each year's pitching staff ranked in the top 25 nationally and during his eight year stint, Williams helped 34 pitchers move on to play at the Division 1 level. Let's welcome Matt Williams to the podcast.
Here's Matt Williams, ABCA Division 1 Assistant of the Year after leading Coastal to the College World Series Championship series, but also D1 baseball assistant of the Year. Coaching stops at Spartanburg Methodist, uncw, Padres, Liberty and South Carolina. Matt, thanks for jumping on with me.
[00:04:27] Speaker B: Yeah, Ryan, thanks for having me.
[00:04:29] Speaker A: Was that your first time in Omaha as a coach?
[00:04:32] Speaker B: It was, it was, it was a lot of fun.
[00:04:34] Speaker A: What'd you take coming out of there?
[00:04:37] Speaker B: I mean, that's, that's a tough question because you get out there, I mean, unfortunately we're there for a while but like you can definitely get wrapped up in the moment of trying to win games. But like I did have my family there. I mean that was pretty cool. I mean, I think the experience, my kid's 4 years old, to have him out there was, was a very cool moment to see him hang out with the guys or ride a bus back after we won. That was a very cool moment.
[00:04:59] Speaker A: And you went to Grand Junction as a player and a coach at Spartanburg Methodist, correct?
[00:05:03] Speaker B: Yeah, I did. I was fortunate. I went once as a player and four times as a coach. So Grand Junction was, was a lot of fun. But Omaha, it's definitely a different level.
[00:05:14] Speaker A: Yeah, Grand Junction and Lewiston and Enid I think are like many Omaha's, they're not to that scale, but I think they run things right. I think there's a lot of crowd engagement. I think all three of those places do a really good job of getting people involved. I figure though, I consider those mini oma.
[00:05:29] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. I mean I think the people at Grand Junction do a tremendous job of putting that thing on each year.
[00:05:33] Speaker A: And you've had success everywhere you've been. What. What do successful programs do that maybe unsuccessful programs don't do?
[00:05:41] Speaker B: I think it's just the attention to detail that the staffs bring and the. The day to day process. I mean, I think those are. Are some big things that I kind of hang my hat on as far as being in programs that I've been in that have had success.
[00:05:55] Speaker A: And I view Coastal as that way as it's a culture of preparation.
[00:05:59] Speaker B: Yeah, obviously. I mean, it starts at the top of Kevin Schnall. I mean, he's unbelievable as far as preparation. I mean, he does a great job with our staff. I mean, we meet a lot to make sure we're all on the same page. So, yeah, preparation is definitely key.
[00:06:12] Speaker A: And I saw you guys at UNCG at a midweek game, and I tell people that all the time. I'm like, if you want to learn how to handle pre game, go watch Coastal because it's just another practice when you guys are going about your business pre game. It's just another practice for you guys.
[00:06:25] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, we get after it every day, whether it be a game day or whether it be a practice day.
[00:06:30] Speaker A: Coming out of the fall, did you feel like your pitching staff had a chance to do what you guys did?
[00:06:35] Speaker B: No, I did not. I mean, obviously when I got here, there were like nine guys that weren't healthy. So I think getting guys healthy now, I mean, Kevin. Kevin told me a lot that Jacob Morrison was going to be a guy. I mean, he told me all along and I just hadn't seen it. And as. As we got into it, I got.
[00:06:55] Speaker A: To see how competitive he was.
[00:06:56] Speaker B: And then the other guys started getting healthy. And then once the.
Once the winner kind of rolled around, you started seeing a, like, okay, we got a chance.
But I mean, I didn't even know. I mean, like early on, early in the season, you still didn't know we were going to be that good.
[00:07:12] Speaker A: I think all coaches deal with. With some sort of injuries along the way. How did those nine guys get better back? What was their process to get back?
[00:07:21] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of them have been hurt the year before, whether it be some elbows, Tommy John, or whether it be some shoulder stuff. I think the big thing was getting with our strength coach, our athletic trainer, setting up a plan for those guys and just trying to make sure we did the right thing by them. As far as Getting them ready for the season.
[00:07:40] Speaker A: With that many guys being down in the fall, how did you set roles for the pitching staff?
[00:07:45] Speaker B: We didn't. We just went out and tried to set a mentality of attacking. I mean, I don't think it was a role. I mean I think we had an idea. Some guys that may start. Cameron Fluke was a guy with a good arm obviously at last fall now obviously look what he's turned into.
Riley Eickhoff was a guy that had a ton of experience. I mean he had pitched on Friday nights. We also had a guy that had Transferred in, Cullen McKay, who had pitched on Friday nights in the accident.
And it was just, it was just more of establishing a culture of like let's, let's be aggressive, let's attack the plate.
[00:08:18] Speaker A: Your typical fall schedule or the 12 month calendar, is it different for everybody or is it. It's similar depending on, on maybe new guy or old guy pitching loss. Yes.
[00:08:31] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean it's definitely different. I mean it's going to be an individually based plan for each guy.
Like this fall, Cameron Fluke, he's not pitching this fall.
He'll do some bullpens, that type of stuff. We have a couple other guys. Ryan lynch, who had a tremendous year last year, he's not pitching this fall. Dom Carbone, another guy who's, who's not pitching this fall. We have seven, seven freshmen. So it's going to be, it's going to be good to get those guys out there. When we actually start scrimmaging, where's the.
[00:08:57] Speaker A: First place you start with? Freshmen? They got a lot, they got a lot on their plate. So where's the first place you start with? Freshman?
[00:09:04] Speaker B: It starts with the catch play and just establishing what good catch play looks like.
I think a lot of guys go out, they just play catch and they don't really concentrate on what they're doing. I think getting those guys to focus on their day to day catch play is huge.
[00:09:21] Speaker A: Same throwing program every day?
[00:09:25] Speaker B: I wouldn't say same throwing program. I mean like obviously the distances are going to vary from guy to guy and just kind of where they are in their throwing program and like are we getting off the mound today? Like that kind of stuff. But yeah, I would say overall from week to week it looks very similar.
[00:09:41] Speaker A: That seven day schedule for a freshman, what's that look like? How many bullpens, how many outings live right, right now?
[00:09:49] Speaker B: We haven't started our fall yet.
We, we actually start on the 17th. We'll have our first scrimmage we go down to the Citadel. Our fields under construction right now.
We got new turf, new grass and the new turf on the outside. Our bullpens are getting redone. So we've kind of worked around some things with that. But as far as like once we started our bullpen schedule, that's kind of rolling every three or four days with guys getting, getting them on the mound, touching the mound.
So as far as a seven day schedule, they're probably getting two in a week right now.
[00:10:25] Speaker A: A bullpen standpoint, what's a realistic standpoint for a freshman? This will be the most they've thrown on a daily basis. How do you handle and manage that workload for a freshman? Because they've thrown, but just not at that volume for consecutive days.
[00:10:39] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, you're absolutely right there. I mean, every freshman comes in and think they got it figured out. Then all of a sudden a couple months in, it's starting to hit them a little bit.
But I would say just, just encourage them to play catch. Each day is imperative. I mean, I think we got to do that because obviously when the spring rolls around, it's going to hit them in the face again because they've never, never done that.
But if we can continue just to play catch each day and stack good habits, I think good things are going to happen. As far as them, I'm very aware of what they've done prior to coming here and managing, trying to manage that load.
I don't know that we'll have a freshman go more than, I would say 35 pitches all fall.
Just we're trying to bring them along, but we're trying to bring them along slowly.
[00:11:32] Speaker A: Is that innings or just pitches?
[00:11:34] Speaker B: Total pitch. I mean, like we're not going to get the 35 pitches in an inning with a guy, but I mean to two innings. Two innings, 35 pitches is probably going to be the max that any of those guys throw.
[00:11:43] Speaker A: Hey, that's a great point though, because some coaches don't understand that, that you're not letting them throw 35 pitches in a row in an inning.
[00:11:52] Speaker B: No, definitely not going to do that. I mean, we're going to either hopefully get them out or we're going to have to roll an inning when we get somewhere around that 25 pitch mark. So your guys, especially in the fall.
[00:12:02] Speaker A: So your guys that are down and not competing this fall, how are they handling it then? You said they're throwing bullpens. What's their bullpen structure look like? Guys that aren't throwing competitively well.
[00:12:11] Speaker B: I mean, I'll give you Fluky for an example. I mean, he's. He's basically in a catch play mode right now, really getting the arm going.
He starts his bullpen schedule Nov. 7, he'll be off the mound for the first time. And for him, it just is a slow build up to our first game. I mean, obviously, I would say right now he's penciled in to start game one. I think that's pretty safe to say.
But just. Just keeping him healthy, making sure he does what he needs to do from a throwing standpoint. But also for him, it's getting with our athletic trainer and spending time with Tanner. It's getting with our strength coach, Mike Thompson, and spending time with him.
I think. I think the more he can be with those guys right now, it's going to prepare him for later on in the spring.
[00:12:55] Speaker A: How do you keep those guys engaged, the ones that aren't competing? Is it more like a mentorship role because you have so many freshmen?
[00:13:04] Speaker B: I mean, yeah, for Fluky especially, I mean, obviously those guys come in and they know who he is.
I think he's been big as far as, like, just little things that we may want our young guys to understand. He talks to those guys.
I think all of our older guys have done that.
Just being around them each day has been really good for those guys.
[00:13:25] Speaker A: I used to tell guys, if you want to be good at this level, pick a guy or two that's older, that's good on the field and also good in the classroom, and try to surround yourself with those guys.
[00:13:35] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, especially when you have, like, we have some good players who, who. Who are really dialed in with their routine. When you start looking at Fluke, you start looking at Hayden Johnson. I mean, those two guys, like, when I got here, just to see how bad they wanted it, it was pretty cool. So, like, if you're a young guy coming in our program, those are two dudes you want to model yourself after for sure.
[00:13:57] Speaker A: With those freshmen. Then what will dictate in the spring if they go out and pitch in the summer at all?
[00:14:03] Speaker B: You know, I mean, summer ball is great, but you got to be careful because like you said earlier, those guys are throwing this much for the first time in their life. They're getting hit with running programs, they're getting hit with lifting programs, arm care programs. I mean, it's just a lot of new stuff. So just.
It can be tricky. You want guys to go out and compete, you want guys to get better, but the volume of throwing is a lot more than they've ever seen. So you just got to watch each individual case. And if you need to send a guy out, you send a guy out. I mean, we sent a guy out this fall or this past summer. Scott Doran, who was a freshman, he, we thought he had a really good fall his freshman fall. So last fall he had a tremendous, I guess, 15 innings he threw for us in the fall, and he only threw about 18 to 20 innings last spring. Now, he had some appearances, but the competitiveness in him wanted to go out. He had a place in the Cape. He went to Harwich.
He wanted to go out, prove to himself he'd get hitters out.
He did that. And, and now just balancing him this fall because he wants to come back here, prove he's ready to roll.
We have to do a really good job of balancing things like that.
[00:15:17] Speaker A: I think summer's a good reminder for some guys that they're good. Like, they need, they need that reminder. There's a lot of pressure on guys in the spring. There is. It's just the way the spring set up. And even though it's the Cape, it's still way more laid back. Like you can get in that routine. And I think some guys need summer ball that they need some reminders that, hey, you're good.
[00:15:38] Speaker B: Absolutely. And I think that for him, I think he went out and he had a really good summer and he's coming back here in a really good spot.
[00:15:45] Speaker A: Do elite pitchers want to be coached?
[00:15:48] Speaker B: I think absolutely. Guys want to be coached. I mean, I think Fluke is probably the best right hander in the country, and he wants to be coached every day.
When I go on, the other day I went on the road recruiting, he's like, oh, you're not going to be here. And I'm like, I had a miss today. So, yeah, they want to be coached.
[00:16:05] Speaker A: Is it easier to coach pitchers now or harder?
[00:16:10] Speaker B: I mean, I wouldn't say harder. I think you just got to evolve.
I think just evolving with the times. I mean, the game has changed since I started coaching.
I mean, I look back at some of the stuff I did when I was younger and I kind of laugh at myself because, like I said, the, the game's changed.
[00:16:30] Speaker A: What tech do you feel is important, if any?
[00:16:33] Speaker B: We use trackman as far as bullpens and, and the stadium.
We have an analytics guy here on staff who's unbelievable. Matt Pepin.
He's in all our bullpens. He's. He, he does stuff. He gets Stuff out to the individuals.
Those guys are aware of what Trackman is and what it does and that type of stuff. So I would say for us, Trackman.
[00:16:55] Speaker A: What are some things that he might suggest that maybe, you know, somebody's not in that world, maybe doesn't see? Which is fine. Like, you've got to have a blend of both. But what are some things that he sees that maybe some other guys don't see?
[00:17:07] Speaker B: No, he, he's awesome because, like, he, he doesn't really do the baseball side, like talking about mechanics and stuff like that. He's all about numbers and like, he, he, he can know grips. He, he knows that kind of stuff. Hey, we might want to try this. We might want to try that. He and I talk all the time. I mean, we're together constantly. We talk day to day.
And he does a tremendous job of just suggesting, hey, this pitch pairs with this, or, hey, we got to do a better job with his arm angle, like that kind of stuff. He's, he's good.
[00:17:40] Speaker A: So with those new guys coming in, when will you decide to make any mechanical adjustments, if any, with them?
[00:17:46] Speaker B: Well, I think, I think first, like, getting, getting to know them throughout the high school process and kind of what makes them tick. And once they get here, just kind of watching them and getting to know them and like, helping them understand, like, language that we're going to speak. That type of stuff, I think is big.
First couple days, I'm probably not going to say much at all. I'm just going to step back and watch him play catch.
And the more I do that, I see, like, how they're moving and that type of stuff. We kind of get into some things, but keep it fairly basic to begin with.
[00:18:21] Speaker A: What do high school youth and travel coaches need to hear about coaching pitchers?
[00:18:27] Speaker B: You got to lay out a plan. I mean, the guys need a plan. I mean, we try to let our guys know each week on Sunday night what the week looks like.
And if they can know what, what a plan looks like, they have a better job. We always want guys to go out and perform, but we don't want to tell them until a day or two before they're going to pitch. And that really doesn't make sense. Those guys can't prepare. I think the preparation part, especially when it comes to starting pitching, is very important. But even our relievers in the fall, I mean, they know when they're going to throw, they know when their bullpens are going to be. They know what the week looks like. Obviously you get into the spring, it becomes a little bit different.
But those guys start to figure things out from a throwing standpoint through the course of the fall.
[00:19:13] Speaker A: At what point did you know you wanted to get into coaching and be a pitching coach?
[00:19:18] Speaker B: Well, I was fortunate. I was around baseball my whole life. My dad coached for 41 years so that I think once I got done playing, I knew I wanted to be a coach. He was a pitching coach, then he became a head coach.
So, I mean, I would say I was probably helping him try to do lineups when I was 14 years old.
So, yeah, it started at a young age for me.
[00:19:44] Speaker A: You ever take for granted the amount of baseball games you watched before you were an actual player?
[00:19:50] Speaker B: I look back, I watched a lot of good players and a lot of good games.
I was very fortunate in that side of things to be able to be around good people.
[00:19:59] Speaker A: Do you feel like the game's slower for you in game because you've watched that many games?
[00:20:05] Speaker B: I don't, I don't know if it's like watching games definitely helps.
I would say just the preparation piece to be able to have an idea of what you think may happen. Obviously baseball is a funny game. I mean, anything can happen, but you try to prepare for everything before, before you get in the moment.
[00:20:22] Speaker A: How do you manage your excitement in game? That was difficult for me at times. I would get caught up, especially early. I would get caught up in the moment sometimes as a young coach and got better as I got older. How are you able to stay present?
[00:20:35] Speaker B: I mean, I think I work for a guy Spartman Methodist, Tim Wallace, unbelievable guy. And he always told me, just be as calm as possible because like you, you don't want to get too emotional because the players kind of take on what you do. So the more, the more even kill you can be, the better the the player is going to end up being.
[00:21:00] Speaker A: Is a Division 1 pitching coach the best and worst job in baseball?
[00:21:04] Speaker B: Say it's the best job.
I would. I wouldn't say it's the worst. I mean, there's been some places I've been and have been a little tougher than others, but no, it's. It's an unbelievable job.
[00:21:14] Speaker A: I give you guys a lot of credit. I think it's the quickest way up, but it's also probably the quickest way out for some guys too. Like when you look at the history of pitching coaches at our level, you know, whether they deserved it or not, I just think it happens. And I think you guys have the toughest job you're trying to coach a bunch of guys, but you also have to recruit, you're trying to develop. I think it's a really difficult job. I think the ones that can do and I think you're a good example of that. You're a very good recruiter, you're a good evaluator, but you're also very good pitching coach and good end game manager. Like I think that's a special breed. I don't think we see as many of those. I think it's a special breed for a Division 1 pitching coach that can do all those things.
[00:21:50] Speaker B: Well, yeah, I love the pitching side. I love the day to day interaction with players, but, but also like the recruiting side. I mean I like to go out and see players because obviously you want to get players you want to work with and to be able to see those guys I think is very, very valuable. So I try to spend as much time as I can on the road. Not taking away from the players that we have in our program also allows.
[00:22:15] Speaker A: You to have a better relationship with them when they get on campus.
[00:22:18] Speaker B: Absolutely. I mean, I think the more conversation you can have before they get here, you kind of know, you kind of think you know who they are. Obviously when they get here you really start to know who they are. But like just, yeah, getting to know them I think is, is valuable.
[00:22:30] Speaker A: You have any other options coming out of high school besides Spartanburg Methodist?
[00:22:35] Speaker B: No, not really. I mean I was, it was kind of weird because Tim Wallace is from my hometown and Spartan Methodist has always been, always been good. I knew that's where I wanted to go at a younger age.
I was always kind of headed that direction. I felt like from my 10th, 11th.
[00:22:52] Speaker A: Grade on you've had an opportunity to work with multiple head coaches. What makes a good head coach for an assistant coach?
[00:22:59] Speaker B: I think guys that allow their assistance to do their job, guys that allow assistance to be themselves, I think, I think that part is huge. I mean, I think, I mean I look back at Tim Wallace, I mean he, he threw me, he threw me out there and let me go recruiting and obviously I knew it was a really good program and I think I wanted to keep that standard very high. So I took that very serious at early age, like getting out, finding players, but also from the pitching side, the day to day stuff, just making sure each guy was prepared. And I mean Kevin here, he's unbelievable.
He kind of lets me go do my thing from a pitching side of things.
I think he's still figuring out. I mean he Was a catcher, so he knows, he knows some pitching stuff, but he doesn't dive too much into the mechanics and stuff like that. He kind of lets me, lets me do my thing. So I think just letting guys be themselves is, is huge.
[00:23:55] Speaker A: Coach Wallace ever have to correct you on anything?
[00:23:57] Speaker B: Oh yeah, he definitely corrected me.
[00:23:59] Speaker A: I think that's part of being a good head coach too, is you're going to have to correct your assistance at some point on, on some.
[00:24:05] Speaker B: Yes, yeah, yeah, no doubt. I mean, he definitely, he definitely let me know how to do some things for sure.
[00:24:11] Speaker A: Recruiting blueprint still the same for Coastal. It seems like has always done a good job of mixing in juco guys, but also high school guys. Now transfers, but guys from all over the place too.
[00:24:22] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I think it's, it's a blend of things right now. I mean we, we could have done a lot more in the transfer portal from pitching side of things last year, but we like the culture of guys that we had coming back and we only did two transfers from the portal. We brought in seven high school guys. No juco guys last or for this class.
But we are out on the juco market right now trying to, trying to get some guys. So yeah, I think it's still a blend of all three for Coastal right now.
[00:24:52] Speaker A: How has your pitch calling evolved over the years?
[00:24:56] Speaker B: I mean, obviously when I was in junior college, we had some really good arms and we were able to throw some fastballs by people a little more often. I think now really, really starting to dive in and get to know each individual over the past, I would say five years and, and what their best pitch is and throwing the best pitch.
So I would say it's, it's evolved from that side of things.
[00:25:20] Speaker A: What does a preseason look like for you? So basically after Christmas time, what's that look like before season starts for you?
[00:25:27] Speaker B: Yeah, it's, it's. It's a slow buildup. I mean, you got to make sure those guys are ready for long haul. If you push, if you push the gas too early, you're going to get yourself in trouble. You're going to get your staff in trouble, you're going to get guys hurt.
So I think we try to do a really good job of just a steady build up and make sure our guys are prepared and having that constant communication with each individual.
Everybody's going to feel different after they throw, especially coming back from that Christmas break.
You hope everybody's done what they need to do over the break, but you really got to be careful Pushing the gas.
[00:25:59] Speaker A: How many times will they have been off the mound from December to when you guys get back to school or November. So say Fluky, like, how many times will he have been off the mound from November to when you guys get back?
[00:26:11] Speaker B: Fluky is a decent bit. I mean, he's going to get some bullpens in. I mean, it's a slow, steady build up for him. I can't tell you the number right off the top of my head, but I mean, he'll be ready to throw some live outings in January that build up, face live hitters, make sure he's ready to go that, that first weekend, that weekend scrimmage. He'll probably be at a spot where he can go three innings and around 45 pitches.
I like to do about eight bullpens before we face a live hitter. I know some guys are shorter than that, but like for me, just from a comfort standpoint, knock out those eight bullpens, one or two live hitters, and then throw a guy out there for an inning and kind of found that. Find out how they, how they do. So it's, it's a steady build up to around 45 pitches. And then we pull it back because the adrenaline gets going and, and they, they go one inning, 15 pitches, 16 pitches, whatever, and start to build up again from that side of things, from a competitive side.
[00:27:08] Speaker A: So his last outing against your guys, how many pitches are you hoping to get to? Then that first outing against somebody else, how many pitches are you hoping to get out of him that first Friday when you guys start in February?
[00:27:18] Speaker B: I would say 75 pitches. Max would probably be where he would be.
Typically what I like to do is the 45, 55, 65. But I mean, we talk about pitch counts all the time. I think the up downs are the big thing.
So even if I have to roll an inning for him to get back out there for that fourth or fifth inning, then, then we're going to do that just to make sure he gets the up downs.
[00:27:41] Speaker A: Also, we added that for position players, too. I think the position players need the up down.
[00:27:47] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:27:47] Speaker A: Especially being, you know, you guys have the benefit. You can be outside, but those of us that were inside, we had to simulate getting up and down in the gym just so they were ready. Because I think people forget about the position players. That's important for the position players too, because you're getting up and down, you're throwing in between innings, you're sprinting on and off. I think you have to acclimate that for the position players too. For the.
[00:28:08] Speaker B: I never really thought of it that way. For sure.
[00:28:10] Speaker A: Yeah, you had to get created in cold, in the cold weather because you had to try to emulate what you're going to see first time out because it might be the first time you've been outside.
[00:28:18] Speaker B: That's smart.
[00:28:19] Speaker A: Who's had the best pregame routines, pitching wise that you've seen?
[00:28:25] Speaker B: Well, I thought, I thought the guys last year did a really good job with, with routines. I would say all three of those starters.
I would say there was a kid I coached in pro ball named Joey Cantillo who's with the Guardians right now. Joe, Joey's.
It was probably at the end of the day a little too much. I'm sure he's narrowed it down at this point in his life. He was 19 back then. Now he's a big leaguer. I think he's probably narrows routine. But yeah, I would say those guys.
[00:28:55] Speaker A: What'd you learn from scouting and coaching professional baseball? What'd you take out of that?
[00:29:00] Speaker B: Well, I think the scouting part, I mean just I spent some time in Latin America and like be able to see, see those guys and see how they move. I think it was really good for my eyes.
The biggest takeaway I would say is like even if you watch TV now, everybody does this game differently. There's no right or wrong delivery. I think you got to figure out what's right for that guy and try to lead him to the spot. But I think allowing the kid to be the kid is big.
[00:29:30] Speaker A: You talked about grip changes and some of that is with Trackman and some of the data.
What do you feel like are the biggest. What do you usually switch to? So say you got a high school kid, what are you usually switching on their arsenal that maybe they weren't using in high school?
[00:29:47] Speaker B: I mean it really depends on what a lot, a lot of how they move and what the trackman says. I mean we'll do some different grips. I mean the biggest thing right now is getting these freshmen to actually grip the ball like we showed them. I mean we had a couple guys that will show them a grip and they try to get to it in their glove and they actually don't get to it.
So I think just, just harping on that and making sure they actually get the right grip has been, has been a big thing. If we do make a grip change.
[00:30:14] Speaker A: What about withholding runners helping them? They've probably never had to hold runners very well up to this point. Well, they probably haven't Had a lot of guys on base.
[00:30:22] Speaker B: Yeah, well, fortunately this fall got five left handers. Five out of seven are left handed, so hopefully we'll be able to control the running game there. But just, just making sure in bullpens we got, got them on the clock and making sure they're aware of their times, I think has been, been a big thing this, this fall.
[00:30:39] Speaker A: Yeah, because that's part of the adjustment too, is time in between pitches. Correct.
[00:30:43] Speaker B: Yeah, that's, that's definitely one. The pitch clock. That's one thing we'll do. We'll, we'll go about 18 seconds in the fall so they understand all of a sudden they get those two seconds back in the spring they got a little bit more time, but we want to make sure they're definitely moving.
[00:30:57] Speaker A: Have you enjoyed that? Have you enjoyed the clock?
[00:31:00] Speaker B: I mean, it is what it is. I mean, like, I'm not changing it. So we just, we just adapt.
I think there's some good and I think there's some bad, but. But overall it's, it's been fine.
[00:31:10] Speaker A: Any tweaks on gameplay, stuff that you would tweak?
[00:31:15] Speaker B: Nah, I mean, I'm, I'm good right now. I mean, they, they do stuff with the delivery all the time. You can do this, you can do that. But I think we're in a good spot from a delivery standpoint as far as like how you can set up on the mound. I think that's, I think that's a big thing. I mean, some umpires say you can't do this, some say you can.
I think right now, I think we're, we're in a decent spot from that side of things.
[00:31:35] Speaker A: Feel like roster management's good for the game.
[00:31:38] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, we got 34 this fall and I think.
[00:31:41] Speaker A: Pretty cool.
[00:31:42] Speaker B: Yeah, 34 has actually been pretty cool this fall.
[00:31:45] Speaker A: A lot of guys have told me that they've actually enjoyed it. You know, sometimes with injuries and missed classes, like you got to wiggle a little bit. But a lot of guys have said they've enjoyed it.
[00:31:55] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I think the one thing, I mean, when you start looking at it like we played deep into the year and we got a couple guys that aren't pitching. Obviously you lose those arms from guys getting at bats in the fall, so that part can be challenging. I mean, I know we want to see our guys get ABS and kind of find out who we are as a team.
And when you start subtracting guys, that's, I would say that's the one downfall of it.
[00:32:15] Speaker A: Yep. All right, you gotta answer the fail forward moment. You got anything professionally or personally that you feel like was maybe a setback at that point, but you look back now, 12 months, five years down the road, that, that it actually helped you move forward? I have a, I have a ton of them. Yeah.
[00:32:31] Speaker B: I would say when I, when I was younger, I didn't have my degree when I first started coaching and I thought I was going to get good enough at coaching college baseball without a degree. And I was definitely.
My eyes were opened when I tried to get a job and I couldn't.
So that was one thing that fortunately Coach Wallace allowed me to get my degree there and work for him and ended up spending eight years at the junior college level.
So I would tell all athletes out there, finish your degree as soon as you can.
[00:33:03] Speaker A: You don't have your masters?
[00:33:05] Speaker B: No, I don't. I don't want to do any more school.
[00:33:06] Speaker A: It saved me, honestly. I know everybody's path is different, but my master's allowed open doors up for, for me just, I would go back and do that part again.
It helped me on a lot of different levels. I did a lot of research from a master's too on p. Performance stuff. So just in a roundabout way that actually helped my career move forward because I'm glad I got it. I took a year and a half off after I graduated and I was at jmu and I actually went back and I'm glad I did it at that point because I think the further you, the longer you wait.
I get a lot of guys credit. There's guys that are our age that are getting their doctorate and I give a lot of guys credit that, that can go back. I just, I'd never be able to do that.
[00:33:47] Speaker B: Yeah. My brother, my brother's got his doctorate and I tell him, keep going, buddy. So he's, he, he's, he's a lot smarter than I am, I guess.
[00:33:55] Speaker A: With a now 5 year old. What do your mornings look like?
[00:34:00] Speaker B: I mean, some mornings I'm out of there before he, he gets up.
But I mean if I, I try to spend a little time with him in the morning because I know at night it can get a little, a little hectic from time to time, whether it be recruiting or whether it be making calls, that kind of stuff. But I try to spend as much time with him as I can in the morning.
[00:34:17] Speaker A: How have you been able to balance that over the year? I think it's really hard for Division 1 recruiting guys, assistant coaches to try to Manage the family balance piece.
[00:34:26] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I'm very fortunate. My wife is unbelievable. She does a great job with him and getting him to. Whether it be a game or whether it be a road game.
So I'm able to spend. Spend a good amount of time with him. Obviously, you love to spend more, but we have. We have a group of guys here that also. I have to help get better. I mean, that's. That's my job. And I think he's starting to understand. Daddy does baseball. When Daddy goes on the road for a couple days, it's baseball.
But. But she. She's great. She. She kind of runs the house and makes everything go.
[00:34:59] Speaker A: Make it a little easier for you because you saw it from your dad's perspective.
[00:35:03] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure. I mean, for sure. I mean, I mean, he came home later at night. He was a high school coach to begin with and then a junior college coach for the last 10 years. So, yeah, seeing. Seeing him do that and seeing. Seeing what my wife does now and what my mom did. Like, my mom did it with three, my wife's doing it with one.
So it's. It's kind of funny. I don't know how my mom did it, but she. She juggled it.
[00:35:27] Speaker A: What are some final thoughts before let you go?
[00:35:30] Speaker B: Oh, man, I just look. Look forward to getting going this. This season.
I think we got a great group of guys again.
Hopefully we compete as well as we did last year. And I mean, ultimately, let's. Let's try to get back to Omaha.
[00:35:46] Speaker A: I love that you guys are still dealt with. Freshman, by the way.
[00:35:50] Speaker B: Yeah, I think. I think you got to.
[00:35:51] Speaker A: I think freshman, it's. I think it's guys that want to do it. I think it's the.
[00:35:56] Speaker B: They're a bit big part of the game. I mean, we try to go out and do the freshman as much as possible and make sure we're getting the right guys here that fit the coastal culture.
[00:36:06] Speaker A: Appreciate you, sir. Thank you very much. I know you're busy with recruiting right now, so I appreciate you taking the time. Thanks, sir. By the way, early 7am this is like an early morning radio call. This earliest, earliest ABC podcast recording of all time. So I appreciate you making the time for me.
[00:36:20] Speaker B: Appreciate you doing it at seven.
[00:36:22] Speaker A: Coach Williams is an elite recruiter and developer of pitchers at the Division 1 level. It's a rare combination to be great at both traits. You can see why he's had the success he's had at every stop along his coaching journey. Thanks again to John Litchfield Zach Hale and Matt west in the ABCA office. For all the help on the podcast, feel free to reach out to me via email rbrownlebca.org Twitter, Instagram or TikTok, coachbeyonder, scoreabca or direct message me via the MyBusa app. This is Ryan Brownlee signing off for the American Baseball Coaches Association. Thanks and leave it better for those behind you wait for another.
[00:37:15] Speaker B: And the.
[00:37:15] Speaker A: World will always return as your love.
[00:37:21] Speaker B: Is never for yearning and you know that way.
[00:37:29] Speaker A: Wait for another.
[00:37:35] Speaker B: Day.
