From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Jarrett wrote:
I am the student who is doing the project on the effect of pressure on wanting to get to the big leagues. I had one more question. I was wondering if you played completely for the love of the game or for the chance at money. I am just starting my first year of baseball and am
extremely excited . Do you have that ambition? Also how do you deal with bad days not only on the field but family? Thanks!

From the Baseball Pro:
I play solely for the love of the game. You see while in the minor leagues you barely make enough money to eat, let alone buy big houses and cars. But that might not be the case for those in the major leagues. So for me, yes, I do play for the love of the game.
Your Baseball Pro, Steve Holm

From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Jernard wrote:
Hey, I’m center fielder in 11th grade school and want to get scouted to play division 1 baseball. I know I have the talent and potential. It’s just my coach really doesn’t promote me and really doesn’t put me out there. So my question to you is how do I go about getting scouted? Do I contact coaches my self or is that too eager so please give me your input.

From the Baseball Pro:
If there is a school that you want to play at, you should write their coach and tell them that you are interested. Another thing that you could possibly do is to see if that school has a summer baseball camp. If you were to attend that camp and show them how good you are and that you were interested in their school then they would probably be interested in you.
Your baseball pro, Steve Holm

From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Jeff wrote:
Hey, I was wondering if it was possible to start my baseball career after missing my senior year because of injury and not being able to play at the college of my choice because of their recruiting policy. I’m a good player and could easily play at other colleges, but I would
rather graduate from the school I am at now. Is it possible if I am still in top shape and on top of my game playing in different leagues in the summer spring and fall that I would be able to get noticed at tryouts for perhaps a Minor League team either during or after college? I’m almost 21 and I feel like it’s not too late to start, but at the same time I really got screwed in my situation missing getting scouted senior year in high school… Baseball has always been my passion, and I know I am good enough to compete at higher levels. What should I do from here?

From the Baseball Pro:
If I were in your shoes, I would look into attending a junior college around your school. I am not an expert on the rules of athletes and transfers but I think that a junior college would be your best bet because the classes would transfer back to your current school. Also you would be still able to take a few classes at your school as long as you were enrolled in the minimum at the junior college. This would be my suggestion to you to start the process. See if this would be feasible or even allowable.
Your baseball pro, Steve Holm

From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Ben wrote:
I am working on getting some statistics on how many kids playing little league actually make it to high school, college, and professional teams. I was just wondering if you had any of this information. Thanks and any information would be of a great help.

From Host Mom:
For this type of information, I suggest you contact Little League itself at http://www.littleleague.org/ to see if they have the statistics. There is also Pony League at http://www.pony.org which is active in our area. You may be able to find some information doing a Google search and searching for statistics. The numbers do get smaller as the player moves up the chain. We had 300 Little League players, ages 5-15, but there are under 20 players on the high school baseball team.
Host mom, Jean

From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Juan wrote:
My question is: Pitch Out.
Is there a situation when a pitcher is REQUIRED to place the ball down the pike when the coach give the sign for a pitch out? If a Pitch Out is called, the coach on defence is holding a runner on first base or intentional walk. The coach on offence has options:
#1 hit and run.
#2 bunt to advance the runner.

From the Baseball Pro:
If the coach ever calls a pitchout you must do it. There are very few things that a coach can control once the players are on the field. Calling things like a pitchout is one of them. So if you were to disregard it and the runner were to steal upon that play, you might be on for a little talk once the inning is over.

Your baseball pro, Steve Holm

From Ask the Baseball Pro:
Stacey wrote:
My son plays 10 year old competitive baseball. During any tournament, he can be found at any position except 1st base. Is being a utility player ok at this age or should he ask his coach to put him in a particular position and leave him there? His team is really good and he is just very versatile and can play any position well. Thanks for any advice you can give me.
From the Baseball Pro:
It is very good for you son to play all the positions he can. I was a short stop all the way through college. In fact I was a Division I baseball All-American in 2000 as a short stop. Yet when I signed my first pro contract the first thing I did was put on catcher’s gear. So no matter what position you play today you might not be playing that position tomorrow.
Your baseball pro, Steve Holm