Sinjin Todd

When I stepped up to the podium at the ABCA convention in January, I looked out at a sea of coaches hungry for the secret sauce. Everyone wants the drills and the strategies that'll win championships. But here's what I told them: We're not in the player development business, we're in the people development business. So I show the players I care about them as people. In Pittsburgh, we had a talented outfielder, Starling Marte. First time I called him in, I asked what he thought my expectations were for him. "Forty stolen bases, twenty home runs, hit .300, gold glove..." The numbers just kept piling out of his mouth. When he finished, I said, "Starling, you do that, you'll be MVP of the league." He looked confused. "You don't want that?" "Starling, here's what I want: Be the best teammate you can be. Be the best father you can be when you're at home. When you put on that uniform, it's time to go with your boys. The numbers will take care of themselves." I've learned the hard way that players don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. So ask yourself: Are you developing players, or are you developing people? Because if you get the second part right, the first part has a funny way of taking care of itself.