Short-term goals help Red Sox in short season
Where has the time gone?
Regina Red Sox head coach Mitch MacDonald has pondered that question, marvelling at how quickly the 2017 Western Major Baseball League season has flown by.
“In my experience, most seasons have been like that,” the former Red Sox slugger noted. “Coming from the coaching side now, it almost seems bizarre how much work and effort there is put into things for the season to seem like it goes by in about five minutes.”
MacDonald’s team carried a 23-12 record into Monday night’s home date with the Moose Jaw Miller Express. Entering that game, Regina was a half-game back of the first-place Swift Current 57’s (24-12) in the Eastern Division.
“I think guys are playing well,” the Red Sox second-year field boss said. “They’re doing everything that we’ve expected of them. They’re taking care of their bodies well and playing well for each other and for the team.”
The Red Sox are poised to exceed their victory total from last year, when they finished third in the division at 26-21.
“Everyone has done a better job, to put it in a simple way,” MacDonald said. “Myself and the coaching staff have done a better job this year, I think. The guys in the locker-room have done a better job of executing between the lines this summer.
“I think it’s just as simple as that, with the execution and with myself and my staff being a year older. Having another year of experience under our belts has allowed us to maybe do some things to help out in areas where we weren’t last summer.”
A productive off-season of recruiting has also been beneficial.
“We do a fair amount of scouting on guys to make sure that we know more or less what we’re getting,” MacDonald said. “Obviously, when guys get here, things can change a little bit and some guys will perform unlike you expected, but for the most part we’ve been pretty happy with what we’ve gotten out of guys. We can’t complain.”
MacDonald works closely with his brother Geoff (an assistant coach), director of recruiting Rob Cherepuschak and assistant director of recruiting Rye Pothakos.
“We’re real pleased,” Mitch MacDonald said. “Our whole coaching staff has liked what we’ve seen out of our guys. They’ve stuck together and they’ve stuck with it.
“We’re kind of in the middle of the dog days right now and they’ve been buckling down, sticking with it, and still going out there with a full effort. As long as teams are doing that, it’s tough to complain as a head coach.”
How does the coach handle the dog days?
“It’s just a matter of making sure that guys have attainable goals that maybe happen each week or each game so they have something tangible in front of them at all times that they’re trying to work towards,” responded MacDonald, whose team’s regular-season finale is July 30.
“I find if there’s too broad of an overview, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of a season, so you try to have short-term goals that guys can attain. More or less before they know it, the season’s half over or it’s the middle of July like it is right now.”
The Red Sox host the Fort McMurray Giants Tuesday and Wednesday. Both games are slated for 7:05 p.m., at Currie Field.
They’re taking care of their bodies well and playing well for each other and for the team.