In this episode, we talk all things recruiting with Indiana Wesleyan University Associate Head Coach and Twitter thread king, Ian Macdonald. Coach Macdonald’s career includes coaching stops at Grove City College, University of Charleston, and Indiana Wesleyan University. Wherever he has been, success for his team has followed.

In addition to coaching, Macdonald is known for his work educating players and families about the recruiting process on Twitter or through his website, collegebaseballrecruiting.net. Coach Macdonald is one of the leading voices on the college baseball recruiting process. His online course, Foundations of College Baseball Recruiting, launched a few months ago and aims to empower recruits with the tools to make informed decisions about the recruiting process and college baseball. 

Accurate, thorough, thoughtful, and well-organized, Coach Macdonald's content is a must for any serious college recruit or parent. Coach Macdonald’s commitment to transparency and equity in the recruiting process is admirable, so it’s great to finally have him on the KPB Podcast to pick his brain about all things recruiting. You won't want to miss this episode!

Coach Macdonald's Website: Foundations of College Baseball Recruiting Online Course

Coach Macdonald's Twitter: Ian Macdonald (@sowhatnextpitch) / Twitter

We are excited to welcome Coach Darren Siler to the podcast. Coach Siler is the head baseball coach at John Carroll School in Bel Air, Maryland where he has led his alma mater’s baseball program since 2016.

The 2018 John Steadman High School Baseball Coach of the Year and Maryland State Association Baseball Coaches Coach of the Year brings a wealth of baseball knowledge and experience to the podcast.

Coach Siler has played and coached baseball all over the world. He has coached extensively in Europe, where he served as a Portuguese National Team Assistant Coach and Academy Development Coach. While in Europe he also coached several club teams to European Cup Qualifiers and international tournaments in Belgium, France, Czech Republic, Spain, Germany and Italy. Most recently, he traveled to Cuba, Dominican Republic, Japan, and Italy for coaching stints.

Stay tuned as we pick his brain about sending players to the college level, how his international baseball experience influences running a title contending program, and tell some funny international baseball stories.

Episode 2 of our new season of the KPB Podcast is a conversation with Alec Smith, who has a long track record of coaching baseball at all different levels in the Sacramento Area. Smith is the founder of Best Speed Baseball Academy, co-founder of Adi-Speed National Team, a three-time varsity head coach, and also spent 4 years as a junior college assistant coach with Cosumnes River College. Countless players from Smith's programs have gone on to play at all college levels and have success, which opens the door  to an insightful conversation where we pick his brain about leading players and families through the recruiting process and what recruiting looks like from his unique perspective.

This episode kicks off a new season of KPB Podcast episodes where we sit down with coaches most familiar with the recruiting process. We are excited to kick the season off with Jim Maciejeski, athletic director and head baseball coach of the Mauldin Mavs in Mauldin, SC. Coach “Mach” has been coaching for 17 years, including the last 12 as a head coach. He is also in his 3rd year as athletic director at Mauldin High. In addition to his high school coaching, Maciejewski has spent 5 summers with USA Baseball as a member of their scouting Task Force, and most recently working with the 13/14 year-old Athlete Development Program and 15U National Team Trials. He’s sent numerous players on to the college ranks and has a number of former players playing professionally, as well. Above all else, Coach Mach is a student of the game and runs an outstanding program for his players.

A targeted email to a program of interest remains one of the best ways to get recruited. Yet, many recruits mess up this valuable opportunity to create a meaningful connection. Why? Most players don’t have the patience or do the prep work required to knock the email out of the park. 

If you have the patience to listen to this short episode, you'll learn how to email college coaches the right way. In just 8 minutes, you'll walk away with the blueprint for writing an email that will lead to your recruitment. Have a listen, follow up with the links below, and give yourself the best chance at getting recruited from your intro emails!

Additional Articles and Resources:

Contacting College Coaches: How to Write an Intro Email

This Podcast Episode in Thread Format

How to Create A Successful DIY Recruiting Video

You May Also Be Interested in: 

How to Use Social Media to Get Recruited

In this episode, are excited to be joined on today’s podcast by Colorado Rockies Data and Game Planning Coordinator and former Big League infielder, Doug Bernier. A California native, Bernier’s baseball career included success at every single level. After college baseball stops at Cuesta College and Oral Roberts University, Bernier started an incredible 16-year professional baseball career, which included 4 seasons in the Majors and over 1500 professional games. Bernier and his wife, Sarah, generously give back to the game through Pro Baseball Insider (probaseballinsider.com), an organization providing free instruction for aspiring ballplayers given directly from professional players. In addition to talking with Doug about how he maintained consistency and focus during the ups and downs of the better part of 2 decades in professional baseball, we pick his brain about his days as a professional scout and now a coach with the Rockies Big League squad. You won't want to miss this one!

We've been sensing a great deal of panic among recruits and parents who have become fixated on the recruiting shutdown and D1 baseball's prolonged dead period due to COVID-19. In this episode, we try to put those fears to rest and explain why now is the time to plan and prepare, not panic. This episode follows a round-table discussion put on by our friends at the 3-2 Count Foundation exploring this new age of recruiting from multiple vantage points. We strongly suggest you check out the video here after listening to this episode! 

We are excited to be joined by Sacramento area native and Philadelphia Phillies Catcher Andrew Knapp on the KPB Podcast for this fun episode. A former standout for the California Golden Bears, Knapp quickly rose through the minor league ranks, making his Big League debut on April 6, 2017. Knapp comes from a baseball family as his father Mike played 10 years of professional baseball and his younger brother, Aaron, is currently playing in the minors. This will be Knapp’s fourth season with the Phillies, and he comes back to Philadelphia after a strong second half where he hit .271 with a .346 OBP. More importantly, he is one of the truly good guys in baseball. Knapp has been a huge supporter of KPB and uses his platform to give back and do good for his communities. In addition to talking about his path to the Big Leagues, we talk about his time in college, his routines and preparation, as well as some light-hearted questions like, what would you change if you were commissioner? And, what three teammates would you bring with you if you were stuck on a deserted island? 

You won't want to miss this great conversation, which comes with yelling children in the background (podcasting is hard when quarantining with kids!) and plenty of gems to get you better!

In light of disruptions to normal academic schedules, the NCAA Eligibility Center has modified initial eligibility requirements for D1 and D2 bound players. Among the changes we discuss in this podcast are:

• No standardized test requirements for 2020 graduates
• Implications for PASS/FAIL grading implemented this spring and summer
• Importance of a 2.3 GPA (D1) or 2.2 GPA (D2) in 10 core courses (7 math/english/science) prior to start of senior year

Listen in for more information of check out the NCAA article directly HERE.

When you are sitting at home all day, every day, it's easy to get discouraged or get into a funk. Even with limited resources, you can still use your time in self-quarantine to get better and stay on track to play college baseball! In this podcast, we discuss 6 areas where you can continue to improve that will help you with your dreams of playing at the next level. Listen in to learn about improving in the following areas:

1. Academics
2. Strength & Conditioning
3. Skill Development
4. Mental Game
5. Recruiting
6. Strategic Planning 

The D1 Council ruling just came out and it's good news for college baseball players, particularly seniors. We discuss:

1. The D1 Council giving every college baseball player from this year an additional year of eligibility

2. The ability for seniors to have their scholarship renewed for the additional year (at the discretion of the school, who may also reduce or eliminate the scholarship for the returning player)

3. The elimination of D1 baseball roster limits and the ability for programs to exceed 11.7 total scholarships as a result of only senior scholarship renewals for the 2021 season

Plus what it means for current players and recruits! Listen in now!