I love asking the question,
What is the biggest separator between good and great _____?
You can fill in the blank with pitchers, hitters, fielders, high school players, and college players. Today, we fill in the blank for pitchers. We’re joined by Indiana Hoosiers’ Pitching Coach Ty Neal to break down why work ethic is the biggest separator he sees, what exactly good work ethic looks like for a pitcher, and how he scouts high school pitchers.
Two quick highlights from the video below:
- There needs to be a level of talent in place, but a huge aspect to having a great work ethic is how you perform, push, and motivate yourself outside of games.
- When Coach Neal is recruiting high school pitchers, he looks to see if they have a pre-game routine because that is the sign of a pitcher who works hard and understands himself. If you’ve been with Next Level Ballplayer awhile, you know we are HUGE believers in routine! If you’re a serious player and you don’t have one, start one now.
Coach Neal has been a top recruiter and developer of talent at every step of his college coaching career. He is currently in his 8th year with the Indiana University baseball program, and he has mentored 18 pitchers who have been drafted in the top 10 rounds of the MLB Draft. I don’t have to say how impressive that is, but I will anyway. That’s impressive! Ty is not only the pitching coach but also the recruiting coordinator for the Hoosiers.
Many thanks to Ty Neal for taking some time before a game to talk with Next Level Ballplayer.
