COACHES CORNER
Chris Newell has had a long, successful career in baseball. Since 1997, he has been a player, scout, and manager at all different levels of the game. After playing at Northwest Missouri State University, he played two years of professional baseball, winning a Golden Glove in minor leagues. After going back to school at the University of Michigan and getting his degree in sports management, Newell made his managing debut with the Kalamazoo Kings in the Frontier League, in 2003 becoming the youngest manager in professional baseball. Since then he went on to manage in collegiate summer leagues, at Oakland University as associate head coach, and now is the manager for the Birmingham-Bloomfield Beavers of the United Shore Professional Baseball League. Last year he won the USPBL championship, in their second season. While managing, Newell has been providing private instruction to baseball players of all ages. He has seen 184 players into college ranks and 44 drafted or signed professional contracts. In 2008, Chris Newell watched one of his players, Mike Cervenak (all-time hit leader at UofM) make his Major League debut with the Philadelphia Phillies. In this interview, we will learn more about the ins and outs of his successful career and how the different aspects of it have affected his management.
Grace Dolot: How long have you been providing private instruction to young athletes?
Chris Newell: Since 1999
GD: What is the age range of athletes that you see for private instruction?
CN: 7-30 year olds
GD: What are the similarities and differences between personal instruction and coaching?
CN: You have to find out if they [athletes] are visual learners or not. Each kid is different so you need to find out what works for them and go from there.
GD: Do you feel as if you can be more influential on the athlete in one role or another?
CN: Not necessarily, but the best way to help is to develop a trust and friendship with each player.
GD: As a player, how many different coaches did you have?
CN: I had 9-10 coaches for my career
GD: How did coaching changes affect your ability to play?
CN: Coaching changes did not affected me in a traditional sense. But it helped me to get to my goals and motivated me.
GD: Did different coaches have different ways they wanted you do do things?
CN: All my coaches just wanted me to play how I knew how to play, because they knew my approach to the game and team were there.
GD: As a coach, what do you find as the best approach to motivate players?
CN: Best way to motivate my players is to communicate with them, be honest with them, and show the utmost confidence in them — especially when they are struggling.
GD: In USPBL, players are often traded between teams and players enter/leave frequently. As this happens and new athletes join your team, do you see changes in their game at all?
CN: Not much, but sometimes. Last year I traded for a kid on one of the other teams. When I brought him in, I told him I needed to make a few subtle changes to his game in order for him to become a better individual player, in turn helping the team get better — it worked out.
GD: What are the difficulties you face with new players?
CN: Difficulties I face with a new player are trying to figure out if they will be a good fit for the team in the long run.
GD: Has being a player changed the way that you coach a team? If so, how?
CN: Being a former player has certainly helped me as a manager because I know how hard the game was as a player, so I understand that same struggle the players go through, as a coach.
GD: What are the differences between coaching collegially and professionally?
CN: There is a bit of a difference between college and pro-ball. Biggest difference is that players going into college have not bee taught the game the right way yet, meaning the intricacies.
GD: Do you prefer one over the other?
CN: I prefer pro over college
GD: What has been the most rewarded part of your career: private instruction, coaching, playing, or scouting?
CN: The most rewarding part of my career is being around players and helping teams achieve their goals, both on and off the field; specifically, the friendships that happen after their uniforms come off.