Words matter. These are the best Gabe Kapler Quotes, and they’re great for sharing with your friends.
Confidence, it turns out, is as vital to a players success as is talent.
I believe in my heart that the name of the game in baseball – from an offensive perspective – is getting on base and not making outs.
I am extremely connected to and proud of who I am culturally, where I come from, my parents and their parents.
I had my share of failures at the plate as a MLB player, but I was always pretty confident against left-handed pitching.
Watching Clayton Kershaw in the very first game of the 2014 season, I realized that he’s not overpowering; he’s deceptive. It’s the sum of his parts that makes the Los Angeles Dodgers ace baseball’s most successful pitcher.
Not only do squats build muscle in the quadriceps, hamstrings and calves, they also allow for the release of testosterone and growth hormone providing a highly anabolic environment for all other areas to grow when trained.
When a ball is struck with more velocity and at the right angle to create the most distance, you end up with a bomb.
As a base runner myself, the moment I reached second base I began to fantasize about the potential contact at the plate. Every time I met a catcher in front of the plate throughout my career, the response I received from my teammates when returning to the dugout was a true hero’s welcome.
Attempting to predict shoulder and elbow issues due to extensive innings early in a pitchers career is an inexact science.
For MLB players, sitting around aimlessly waiting to heal is never a good idea.
I was forced to earn some extra glue and made the hysterically shortsighted decision to pose for photos in very tiny and colorful swimwear for a fitness magazine, that would become the fuel to many a comical fire in my clubhouse environments over the years.
If you’re looking for a MLB example of a guy who was dominant as a youngster and regressed as an additional cautionary tale, Atlanta Brave Steve Avery fits the bill.
Green base ballers don’t want to be viewed as unhealthy. Young players are constantly judged and evaluated on every layer of their being.
If I’m going to hand over my classic Italian sports car, and you’re going to be driving it down Pacific Coast Highway with the top down, while I watch, I want to be certain that I’m adequately compensated for the pain of that vision.
Tall pitchers create leverage and angle, often inducing more groundballs and sometimes swings and misses.
Oft-injured MLB players should consider taking a full year off near the middle of their careers.
Hip flexibility is genetic to a degree, and the most gifted hitters have won both the genetic and mechanical lottery.
If Coors Field is the flashy youngster, Wrigley is a wise and weathered, tattered, beat up old man, but rich in charisma and character.
Culturally Jewish, I was – and am – proud of my heritage, but don’t practice religion.
I was stronger than Robinson Cano is, but he consistently strikes the baseball with substantially more force than I did.
I knew after being drafted in the 57th round that I would be swiftly replaced if I wasn’t able to play through a considerable amount of pain in the minor leagues, and ultimately until I established myself as a productive, stable member of MLB.
By branding myself authentically, the eyeballs will come.
So for me, my vice and big challenge is coffee intake. I drink black, organic coffee, but I drink way too much.
You can grow old without growing up.
When I was 8 years old, I was struck by a car and broke a few ribs.
Wrigley, beyond its status as a baseball icon, has an undeniable positive energy all its own, which penetrates all who enter its gates.
After a Double-A season in which I was named Minor League Player of the Year by several publications, I grabbed some positive media attention. Being the emotional, entrepreneurial capitalist that I was, I decided to try to strike and start an online fan club.
The New York Yankees signed Masahiro Tanaka, and the baseball world has yawned.
When scouts evaluate players for power, they are not simply watching to see if the ball clears the wall. They’re laser focused on the flight of the ball, its trajectory and the speed with which it leaves the bat.
Throwing on a hoodie and headphones and getting lost in a long run is pure freedom for me. I embrace the trance, the intense sweat and, of course, the endorphin release.
I’ve been privy to many athletic environments, both amateur and professional.
The stress of not allowing yourself life’s guilty pleasures from time to time is as unhealthy as the act of indulging.
I despise wasting a meal.
Lower stress equals a calmer approach at the plate. Calm equals a still head, allowing us to see the ball better. Confidence and relaxation; the hitter’s Holy Grail.
No sir, I don’t have a crystal ball, but I do have common sense.
As I think back years later as to what a Game 7 is, what stands out most is how unpredictable it is, even for the athletes closest to the environment.
When designing a workout program for high level performers, factors such as body type, previous training experience, and even pain tolerance come into play.
Young and wiry pitchers allow for the opportunity to add muscle, which often leads to improved velocity.
Being on the losing end of perfect games sucks. I tried not to make a habit of it during my career, but I couldn’t help myself.
Despite my strict, healthy diet when mired within my regular routine, when I venture in a explorative fashion for a meal, it’s all out, no-holds barred, dessert, and drinks, the whole nine.
In 2006, I woke up every morning and dreaded the ballpark. I knew how difficult it was to even prepare my body to go out and play.
Teammates in all sports love to be acknowledged.
Independent of the strength implications, baseball, like most athletic events, is a game of feeling capable of handling the current challenge.
I won’t step foot inside a new eatery without some strong recommendations or after consulting a site like Yelp or Urban Spoon.
We all have rooms in our homes that could benefit from a good spring-cleaning.
In 2005, when I felt my Achilles snap, I knew instantly that it wasn’t just my anatomy that had changed, but my life as well.
Athletic toughness is extraordinarily difficult to quantify.
The Rays organization pays close attention to what’s going on mentally and emotionally for its players.
David Price gives the best high-fives in all of baseball. They sting the hands and deliver noteworthy affirmative vibes.
Rehabbing any significant injury is a substantial challenge independently; braving the process twice makes for even longer odds.
This is why sports will always be the greatest of dramas; the most exciting entertainment known to man. Nobody can predict the outcome and the script is ever in flux.
After an injury left me unable to perform my usual routine, I focused on the best upper body workouts to keep myself fit and strong.
Elite baseball mechanics feel different in the bodies of MLB players than they appear on film.
Letting the ball travel is an important mental cue. It’s simply about making an attempt to see the ball and to slow it down. It’s a relaxation technique used to avoid being jumpy and attempting to hit the ball directly out of the pitchers hands.
I vividly recall the physical sensation and emotion of playing defense behind my teammates – pitchers dominating opposing lineups, throwing up zero after zero as the innings progressed.
