2017-18 PITCHING & CATCHING ACADEMY PROGRAM
Important Information
- Start Date: Monday DEC. 4, 2017
- End Date: Thursday FEB 22, 2018
- Days: Tuesdays & Thursdays
- Time: 4:00pm-5:00pm
- Price: $250/month (ONLY $150/month if you do both the Hitting/Lifting & Catching/Pitching Academies)
- Commitment Date: Wed NOV 15, 2017
- Initial $250/$150 Payment due: November 30th
About the Program
This program allows pitchers to throw live bullpens, and catchers to catch live bullpens. Doing this all throughout the winter will go along way to helping each individual improve. However, we don’t want catchers to just be stuck catching bullpens for hours upon hours without the opportunity to also get in some specific drill work and focused instruction. We also don’t want pitchers to just aimlessly throw bullpens and not perform the throwing drills and mechanical work they need to, to allow them to become the best version of themselves on the mound.
This program has been specifically structured to allow for each catcher to have the opportunity to catch one live bullpen to work on implementing the techniques and mechanics he has been working on in the drill/instructional portion of the program. Aligning with that, each pitcher will get to throw bullpens to catchers where they can really work to develop the feel and execution of each one of their pitches. They will have coaches working with them for each one of the reps that are taken during this bullpen session (both on the pitching side of it, and on the catching side of it).
At the same time additional coaches will be running the video analysis, throwing drills, catching drills, workout circuits, and other nuanced skill work and mental training to get the most out of each session. Each player is going to have a lot of personal attention and they can expect to work their tales off for the full session each day. The returns and improvement that each individual will see will be impressive.
Please note: This is our premiere winter training program for pitching & catching and it is not designed for the casual player, which is why this program is INVITE ONLY. Players who have demonstrated exceptional work ethic, and passion for the game will be invited.
Pitching Academy
The Pitching Academy program will revolve around a throwing program. This program will be similar to that of the Texas Baseball Ranch, famous for working with Trevor Bauer and Justin Verlander. We will focus on arm health, mechanics, mobility, and velocity.
Arm health, stamina, and strength are important. We will break down their individual video and use comparative analysis to identify mechanical flaws that could be leading to poor command, a lack of velocity, less break on off-speed pitches, and any other gap in performance.
From there we start changing their muscle memory by using a wide variety of drills specifically designed for each player.
Each player will be prescribed a number of different drills working on the issues specifically unique to them. During this phase, players will begin to use a technique called blending. This is basically blending the drills with the game time movement pattern, with a particular area of focus. This helps to get the drill sets to actually transfer into the game. There is no sense in beating drills to death all winter if athletes are simply getting good at doing the drill itself. There must be transfer from the training into the performance on the field. Blending will go a long way to helping ensure that is the case.
This will be the second half of reprogramming the muscle memory and has been found extremely effective.
Adding velocity to an inefficient movement pattern simply amplifies the inefficacy, and heightens injury risk. Additionally, your body inherently tries to protect itself. If players are moving incorrectly, the body will purposefully try to slow it down to avoid injury.
This will be one of the most important parts of the program the students will go through as they teach their body to throw harder than ever with less pain. Students will be able to gain 5+ mph on their velocity after finishing phase 4.
Catching Academy Details
These sessions will focus entirely on shaping you/your player into the greatest catcher possible.
There is no question that catching is the most demanding and most sought after position in baseball. Becoming an outstanding defensive catcher will open doors towards your future that are unobtainable to many.
In this program we will work to perfect every aspect of your catching game from the bottom up. Going far beyond the physical level of play, becoming a dominant catcher entails many aspects of leadership and comprehension for the game that is hard to find at the high school level. Our program will work to make you understand all of the intangibles within the game’s most demanding position.
Becoming someone that your team and coaching staff can depend on behind the plate will make you an irreplaceable asset amongst your program. The demand for outstanding defensive catchers is second to none and can make hitting abilities irrelevant compared to the other 7 positions on the field. We continue to have coaches at all levels seeking out plus-level catchers to lead their team.
Our program will teach you the best ways to simplify many of the difficult tasks involved with all of the dynamic roles that the catcher fills. It will help you to become more efficient and grow a further understanding for the best ways to execute the task at hand in any situation.
The current player market within Colorado has a serious deficit of these plus-level catchers. Our goal is to change the norm within Colorado high school baseball scene and mold you into the most valuable player possible. The traditional saying is: “A pitcher is only as good as his catcher”.
It’s amazing the impact that one player can have on an entire program. Think of it this way, you can have the best pitcher in the world, but without a solid catcher behind the plate his abilities are extremely limited.
It’s like having a world-class race horse and no jockey. The horse can have all of the potential in the world but without his jockey to show him the way he is no more than a wasted talent.
- Correct situational awareness
- Correct receiving techniques
- Efficient foot patterns for all aspects of receiving, blocking and throwing
- Proper throwing techniques to all bases
- Blocking the baseball
- Game management
- Pitch calling
- Fielding bunts
- Plays at the plate
- Reading hitters
- Advanced game strategies
- Dozens of drills (individual specific) to reinforce proper foot work and glove work to take home and continue to progress beyond our weekly sessions
Coaching Staff
The Catalyst Cardinals coaching staff (From left to right):
– Kevin Kouzmanoff (6 year MLB veteran)
– Corey Slinkard (General Manager)
– JT Putt (Cardinals Coach)
– Scott Payne (Cardinals Coach)
– Jaime Gonzalez
– Rob Herman (Cardinals Coach)
[Not pictured: Troy Slinkard aka. The Guru]
J.T. Putt
Coach Putt is the head baseball coach for both Colorado Academy and the Catalyst Cardinals 16U teams.
In 2016 the CA finished 14-6 and the 16U Cardinals squad capped off the season with the Colorado Classic State Championship.
Previous coaching experience –
Prior to joining Catalyst, Coach Putt coached with the Lightning of Parker. He has been the head coach at CA for the past 3 seasons, improving the teams record each year. He has also assisted with the Catalyst Cardinals 18U team for the last 2 summers.
Playing Experience –
High School: Coach Putt played his high school ball at Mullen High School where he was 1st team all conference, 1st team all-state (5A), and 1st team all-Colorado (all classifications). He was also voted team MVP his senior season, leading the Mustangs in average, home runs, RBI, and OBP. He then played in the Top 40 All-Star game, held at Coors Field. Keeping academics as a priority he earned first team academic all-state honors.
College Central AZ CC: Coach Putt attended Central Arizona College. He was invited to the ACCAC all-star game, and helped lead the Vaqueros to a 43-21 record & a District II Championship. He was also named the accounting & 2nd year student of the year. He then signed at UNLV where he was for a year before accepting a scholarship to play closer to home at Regis University.
College Regis University: In his time at Regis he was voted team captain while also receiving NCBWA All-American, and Academic All-American honors. He tied the program’s single season doubles record his junior year, when he led the Rangers in batting avg. (.426), doubles (23), total bases (149), slugging pct. (.756), on-base pct. (.491), and stolen bases (17). He also earned All-RMAC First Team, Daktronics All-Central Region Second Team, and American Baseball Coaches Association All-Central Region First Team honors. He graduated Summa Cum Laude and was distinguished as the most outstanding student in business administrative sciences.
Professional: Post college he was fortunate enough to play professionally in the United States, Australia, and Europe.
Professional: Played for the Las Cruces Vaqueros along side fellow Catalyst coach, Rob Herrmann. He played both 3B and the OF for the Vaqueros, hitting .296 and slugging .507 to give him an OPS of .939. He also had a .432 on-base percentage. In Australia he played for the Henley & Grange Rams. He would then move to a suburb of Paris, France to play for the Templiers de Senart, helping lead them to the league championship tournament.
Scott Payne
As the head coach of the Catalyst Cardinals 18u squad over the past two summer seasons, Coach Payne has amassed a 58-22 record, giving the Cardinals a .725 win percentage.
In 2016 the Cardinals 18u squad finished the year with a 1.909 Team ERA, a .315 Team Batting AVG., and a .933 Team Fielding Percentage.
With Payne at the helm, 9 seniors have went on to play college baseball in competitive programs over the past 2 summers.
Previous coaching experience –
Prior to joining Catalyst, Coach Payne worked as the roving infield instructor with Cheyenne Post Six in Wyoming and was part of 4 consecutive Legion State Championships.
Playing Experience –
High School: Payne was a 4 year starter for Cheyenne Post 6. As a player for Post 6 Payne was part of 4 consecutive State Championships and 2 regional runner-up teams. Payne was selected to the All State team in both his Junior and Senior years. Payne was also selected as a captain his senior year prior to signing with Mesa CC.
College Mesa CC: Payne played multiple positions in the infield for the Thunderbirds accumulating only 8 errors in 2 seasons. In his sophomore year Payne hit .327 and was selected as the team MVP, invited to the ACCAC all-star game, and was named a team captain before being offered a scholarship to attend Regis University.
College Regis University: Payne finished his career at Regis University graduating with a Health and Exercise Science degree with a Thematic Emphasis on Kinesiology. Payne played second base for the Rangers finishing with a .308 batting AVG.
Corey Slinkard
Corey grew up in the small mountain town of Evergreen, Colorado, where he picked up his first baseball at 5 and learned to play catch in the front yard with his dad. At the age of 10 Corey was an all-star hitter and standout pitcher on his team Lakewood Destroyers. The next three seasons on Lakewood they placed, 3rd in league, then 2nd, and then 1st. Before club teams existed, there was one all-star select team in the state called Colorado Thunder. The head coach, Gary Stehle, approached Corey during his 12-year-old season and offered him a spot on their team. With a combination of the 12 best players in the state, the Colorado Thunder dominated the competition in Colorado for several years losing only one game in the state during a two-year reign.
The summer going into 8th grade was a magical year for the boys. Not only is finishing the season with an 80-12 record impressive enough, but winning the Super Series National Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma was icing on the cake. There were 60 teams from around country that qualified for this tournament, in the last inning of the game Corey threw out a game saving play at the plate from center field! After the 3-2 victory, the Colorado Thunder was announced as being the first Colorado team to ever win a Super Series national tournament, as well as having played the longest winning series ever by a team in super series history.
Building on that baseball experience, Corey later became a 4-year varsity player at Mullen High School, where he received three perennial all-conference awards and went on to play baseball at the collegiate level in Arizona at Cochise Community College. Corey ended up graduating from the University of Colorado at Boulder where he received his Bachelors of Arts and Sciences with a degree in Environmental Science with a specialization in water.
With college under his belt it was time to take his knowledge of baseball and fitness to the next level along side partner JT Putt. Together they open Catalyst Sports during November of 2013, and have been successfully running the business together ever since.
Rob Herrmann
Coach Herrmann started with the Cardinals as an assistant for the 18u summer program in 2016 and was absolutely instrumental in the overall success of the program. He was a welcome addition bringing a wealth of knowledge that he had aquirred from catching at the professional level all over the world.
Under Coach Herrmann’s instruction the 2016 Catalyst Cardinals team only gave up 21 stolen bases in 308 innings of play. In addition to that, as a team the Cards only allowed an impressive 8 past balls all season.
Previous Coaching Experience –
Prior to coming on with Catalyst, Coach Herrmann headed up multiple international high school squads including the 18u Australian Capitol Territory National Team, the 18u French National Team, the 16u Tuggeranong Vikings, the 1st Division Tuggeranong Vikings, the Languedoc Rousillon All-Stars, and the Montpellior French Baseball Academy.
Previous Playing Experience –
College: Rob earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Fredonia State University, specializing in Sport Management. As the starting catcher with the Blue Devil baseball team, he was honored as an All-Conference selection all four years of his career, as well as a two time ABCA All-New York Region pick.
Professional: After graduating, Rob spent five years playing pro baseball in the US, Australia, and Europe. His career included two All-Star seasons of independent professional baseball in the US, while playing in the winter for the Tuggeranong Vikings in Canberra, Australia.
He spent the next season playing for the Paderborn Untouchables in the German Bundesliga, followed by two seasons with the Montpellier Barracudas of the French Elite League.
He was an All-Star in all three European seasons, and was invited to catch for the International Stars team at Prague Baseball Week in 2012 and 2013, leading his team to back to back championship titles.
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