Dugout wisdom

Coach and Athletic Director, August, 2003

By Jim Murphy. Pp. 169. Monterey, CA: Coaches Choice, $19.95, paper-bound.

A strength & conditioning coach by profession and a researcher by nature, Jim Murphy has been tracking down the best minds in baseball to determine the mental and philosophical principles of winning baseball.

You hear from such giants as Sparky Anderson, Skip Bertman, Rod Dedeaux, Mike Hargrove, Tom House, Art Howe, Jerry Kindall, Gene Mauch, Ron Polk, Tom Trebelhorn, Davey Johnson, and Dusty Baker.

"To me, you can go out and take ground balls and hit, but if you don't touch the mental part every day ... it's not happening. You have to motivate every day. It's the most important thing I do." Rod Delmonico, U. of Tennessee.