YBMcast

On today’s Keep Klimbing podcast, Brett Graves talks about building your pitching arsenal based on your strengths and what you do best. Every pitcher is different, and understanding which pitches best fit your abilities is key to long-term development. Brett, as always, Keeps Klimbing by using his own experience to help you understand how to continue working to get yourself better. In this episode...

On this episode of Baseball 101, Coach Dave Wiggins welcomes a diverse group of voices to break down what a truly effective strength and conditioning program should look like for baseball players and teams. Joining the discussion are Nathan Yamnitz, Director of Business Development at TrainHeroic and owner of Performance Zone Fitness, along with Nick Moten, right-handed pitcher, Westminster Christ...

We have Francis Howell HC Tony Perkins here in studio to talk about the upcoming MHSBCA Clinic this weekend in Lake of the Ozarks. We will be discussing who is going to be inducted into the MHSBCA Hall of Fame, along with what it takes to be a good head coach in high school baseball today. Coach Perkins is always having a great conversation with his many years of experience and will share his view...

We have Willard Head Coach Scott McGee joining us today as we turn our attention to Southwest Missouri baseball. We break down All-State players to watch, take a look at potential district shakeups, and discuss how talent across the region could impact conference and postseason races. We also preview the upcoming MHSBCA event taking place this weekend and dive into the broader topic of coaching de...

On this episode of The Hitting Zone, Mitch Thomas is joined by Dylan Black, Head Coach of Festus Post 253, and Jeremy Partney, Assistant Head Coach, for a deep dive into American Legion Baseball — what it looks like today, how it has evolved, and why it still plays a critical role in player development. They walk through what a Legion baseball season truly looks like, from tryouts to the final gam...

On today’s Keep Klimbing podcast, Brett Graves talks about building your pitching arsenal based on your strengths and what you do best. Every pitcher is different, and understanding which pitches best fit your abilities is key to long-term development. Brett, as always, Keeps Klimbing by using his own experience to help you understand how to continue working to get yourself better. In this episode...

On this episode of Baseball 101, the one and only Coach Dave Wiggins steps into the host’s chair. Joining him is the new Head Coach of Troy-Buchanan High School, Joel Krato, as the two dive into what it truly takes to build and sustain an effective offense—no matter the level of play. With Coach Krato’s experience moving from Class 1 at Community R-6 to Class 6 at Troy-Buchanan, and Coach Wiggins’...

Today we have the head coach of O’Fallon Township High School joining the show to talk about Illinois baseball and the incredible tradition in southwest Illinois. The Panthers program has enjoyed sustained success — since 1991 they have posted 18 seasons with 20+ wins, 10 seasons with 30+ wins, and they haven’t had a losing season in over three decades. Now in his second season, Coach Dave Causey...

We are joined by Head Coach Brian Ash of Southern Boone High School and Kevin Moulder of Prep Baseball to highlight some All-State players from 2025 in the central part of the state. Along with that discussion, we take a look at private schools and championship points — and how those points may move programs from one class to another. We lead the show with a timely topic coming out of the ABCA thi...

Shane Eames steps back inside The Hitting Zone to close out the third part of this important series — this time turning the focus to the Volunteer Coach. Volunteer coaches have long been the backbone of youth baseball, but is that role disappearing? Mitch and Shane dive into the tough questions surrounding today’s coaching landscape: ⚾ Is the volunteer coach becoming a thing of the past? ⚾ Why h...

Velocity-focused training — often referred to as the “velo phase” — has become a major component of modern pitcher development. While these phases can lead to meaningful velocity gains, they also come with increased physical demands and potential injury risk if not properly managed. In this episode of Keep Klimbing, Brett Graves breaks down what athletes, coaches, and parents need to understand ab...

Mitch Thomas from The Hitting Zone Podcast joins Baseball 101 to talk about developing basic practice plans for a 9U baseball team. Being prepared and organized helps you develop the trust of the players — and most importantly, the parents. This is not something we truly prepare for as dad coaches, but we have embarked on this endeavor to help ten to twelve nine-year-old boys learn the game of bas...

Today, Dave Wiggins and Diego Solares join Baseball Talk in a look at the quality of baseball in Metro St Louis. From both sides of the river, we take a general look at the overall landscape of high school baseball — across different classes and with players making an impact at every level. We also share our thoughts on which programs may have a legitimate shot at winning a state championship in b...

Today we are bringing the discussion to the KC Suburban Conference with some highly talented pitchers. But talent is only one ingredient — we are going to talk about the impact of leadership from these players and how important it is for them to take that role on their teams. We will be looking at teams that we believe have opportunities to win a conference or district championship and put themsel...

Coming in to close out the 2025 season, Brett Graves delivers another powerful episode of Keep Klimbing. In this episode, Brett takes time to reflect on his journey — the lessons learned along the way, the challenges faced, and what it truly takes to develop a champion’s mentality. From learning how to handle both failure and success, to navigating the pressure that success brings, Brett breaks do...

t is always great to have Tom Rhoads, the Missouri American Legion Baseball State Chairman, on the show. We have Tom in studio to discuss the initiatives for the upcoming 2026 season and what’s new around the state. Along with a great group of zone commissioners, Missouri Legion Baseball is growing its footprint with the unique brand of baseball that has always defined Legion Baseball as the origi...

The last episode of the year for Baseball 101 is a subject near and dear to all of us, and that is our relationship with Jesus Christ. For many years, there has been an organization bringing the good news of Jesus to athletes within high schools all across this nation. Today, Coach Darin Cissell brings to the podcast Brett Graves, Malach Radigan, and Erik Arneson, men who have made a meaningful im...

We wanted to look at area pitchers that we believe could carry their teams to a conference and/or district title. When players are discussed at the high school level, the conversation often centers on projectability to the next level, particularly college baseball. Here on Youth Baseball Midwest, we want to flip that lens and evaluate these pitchers based on their legitimate chances to lead their...

We open the conversation with a look at the strength of Missouri baseball and who currently has control over the state. With Willard High School head coach Scott McGee joining the conversation alongside Kevin Moulder from Prep Baseball, we bring strong perspective as we finish the 2025 season with a bang. We also roll out the not-too-early Class 4 Top Ten for the upcoming 2026 season, breaking dow...

Welcome to The Hitting Zone, where we take tough topics and crush them out of the park! Today on The Hitting Zone Mitch Thomas invites the host of Baseball Talk Brian French on the show to discuss the growing trend of reliance on the bat rather than the quality of the swing. Technology has come a long way in the construction of metal bats to composites. Has youth baseball become too reliant on the...

Today Brett welcomes one of his Mizzou teammates who is also a pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers Rob Zastryzny who was 2-1 with a 2.45 ERA in 26 games. Commanding the strike zone as a pitcher is key to success, but learning how to command your pitches at the maximum output can be a very difficult task to master. So we have these Brett former MLB pitch and Zastryzny current MLB pitcher here to brea...

This week on Baseball 101, Coach Darin Cissell welcomes Kyle Crookes, Head Coach at the University of Central Missouri, one of the most successful Division II baseball programs in the nation. Coach Crookes brings years of experience and championship-level insight as he and Darin break down what it really takes to get noticed and succeed at the D2 level. You’ll hear: ⚾ What D2 coaches look for whe...

You have to go all the way back to 2015 for the last state championship to come out of the Mississippi Valley Conference, when Highland defeated Nazareth Academy 7–6. In 2025, both Triad and Highland finished tied for the conference title — but it was Triad who broke through, making a Final Four run and securing 3rd place in the Class 3A State Playoffs with a 3–1 victory.  So what will 2026 look l...

Today’s show breaks down what kind of pitching it takes to win a district title in the always-tough Class 6 Districts 7 and 8. We also dive into the big disparity in Class 5, where District 8 features four programs that could all be top-ten teams in the state. Who has the inside track? Which staffs have the depth to survive district week? And what do the not-too-early KC Suburban Power Rankings fr...

Jefferson Community College Head Coach Zac Bone steps up to the plate on this episode of The Hitting Zone Podcast. Today, Mitch and Coach Bone break down why junior college baseball is such a strong and often underrated path for student-athletes. They discuss the opportunities JUCO provides, how it differs from Division I baseball, and why the JUCO route can be the perfect fit for many players loo...