Jay and Ken wrap up 2025 with a look back on some of their favorite episodes and guests, as well as an overview of their impressions of the first year of the From the Coach's Mouth podcast as a whole. As always, they do divert into a couple of pet topics too. The guys will be back in the new year with more great guests and insights into the game of…

High-level cricket coach Prashant Patel stopped by the From the Coach's Mouth studio to talk with Jay and Ken about his career as a cricket (and for a brief time soccer) player in the UK and the US, how he got his start in coaching the sport, the steps required to become a youth sports coach in the UK (it's a lot more difficult than the US), and ho…

Jay and Ken take a look at many of the ways the game of fastpitch softball has changed, what has been behind those changes, and whether they think it's for better or worse. Among the topics they cover are the proliferation of practice/training facilities, technology, pitching rules, turf fields, and more. It's a fun look back - and forward.…

The always fun Linda Lensch of Greased Lightning Fastpitch stops by the podcast to talk about how she got involved playing fastpitch softball with (and against) many of the legends of the game, how she got started in coaching, how she got into competitive rowing at the international level, some of the amazing players she coached, and why she still …

Join Ken and Jay as they speak with 2015 USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year and Women's College World Series champion Lauren Haeger about her career as a pitcher/first baseman at Florida and later in the National Pro Fastpitch League. She also shares some thoughts about pitching mechanics and the importance of a great changeup.…

This week Jay and Ken speak with Lake Forest College Head Coach Joe Kinsella about how this former football player came to become the coach of one of the most successful Division 3 women's softball teams. He talks about how he got started in coaching, what he looks for in recruits, how he builds a winning culture, and what he feels his greatest acc…

This week Jay and Ken offer up their top 10 things coaches shouldn't do while coaching. Some are general, some are position-specific, but all are good advice drawn from their own mistakes or those they've seen others make. Jay also offers a bonus plea to coaches about their attire when coaching. It's a fun and informative conversation so check it o…

Jay and Ken were honored this week to be able to speak with former longtime SIU Carbondale head coach and current John A. Logan Community College volunteer assistant coach Kerri Blaylock. A member of four halls of fame, including the SIUC and NFCA Halls of Fame, Coach Blaylock shared how a chance phone call got her started on the career she loves, …

Talk about a catch! National Fastpitch Coaches Association CEO and Hall of Famer Carol Bruggeman joins Jay and Ken to talk about how growing up in a small town in Iowa gave her the foundation to achieve big dreams and big jobs. She talks about her time as a player and her coaching journey, including serving as an assistant coach to the legendary Ca…

Rutgers University pitching coach Nick French joins Jay and Ken to talk about how he got started as a pitching coach by coaching his high school classmates when he was 14, the importance of data and analytics in developing pitchers, what it was like coaching the USA Softball Men's 23U team in international play, and some of his takeaways after coac…

Jay and Ken talk about the similarities and differences between coaching youth players v college players, including expectations. They then touch on the use of plyo balls (good and bad), and the challenges of coaching as well as being a multi-sport athlete. They finish with a general discussion about the need to trust the process rather than expect…

Jay and Ken talk to Jon Gwizdala, former pitcher with USA Softball's Men's team, former head coach at Jackson College, and current assistant coach at Davenport University, about his playing days, his coaching journey and philosophy, and what he looks for when recruiting players.

This week Jay and Ken dig deep in the value and strategies for the changeup, what pitchers need to do to maximize its effectiveness, some things to avoid when developing the pitch, and how to determine if a pitcher's changeup is where it should be. They also talk about September 1 and what it does - and doesn't - mean to players looking to play in …

Virginia Tech standout pitcher and AUSL star Emma Lemley joins Jay and Ken to talk about her early career as a four-sport athlete, her journey to and time at Virginia Tech, how she worked with Josh Johnson, and what she learned from her first season in the women's professional league. Emma also gets specific on pitching, talking about the importanc…

Join Jay and Ken as they speak with former D1 player and former Johnsburg (IL) High School head coach Katie McKay Phillips about her recruiting journey, her record-setting playing days at Charleston Southern University, and her transition to coaching travel and high school softball. Katie also talks about the challenges of balancing coaching, holdi…

Jay and Ken offer advice to parents, especially parents of younger travel ball players, on keeping games and tournaments in perspective, and thoughts to coaches on keeping the game fun for their players. They also talk about the trial of the orange safety base in college, the loss of scholarships and even entire college programs, the effect of NLI …

In this episode Jay and Ken talk about the importance of rest/taking time off after the season for both physical and mental rejuvenation. They also talk about the importance of setting goals for coaches as well as for players, and get into some of their favorite pitching drills among other topics. It's a great way to put a wrap on the 2025 season a…

Helen Pena joins Jay and Ken to talk about her journey from D1 pitcher to Head Coach at Ball State University and how this Californian ended up in the Midwest. She describes the qualities she looks for in players (and prospective student athletes), her program's Six Pillars of Success, how she established a strong culture at Ball State, and the val…

Lots of things can happen through a long season to shake a player's (or a coach's) confidence. And once you're in that hole it's hard to dig your way back out. But with the season now either over or almost over it's a good time to look at improving the mental game, and mental toughness specifically. In this re-release, mental toughness coach (and t…

We are back with a brand new episode! In this one, Jay and Ken talk all things tryouts. They offer their thoughts on questions players and parents should ask, what to look for in a team, how to determine the right level to play (including why sometimes for younger players taking a step down to increase their playing time might be the best option), …

Jay and Ken are both on vacation this week (although not together if you were wondering) so we're going back into the archives to Episode 2 and their conversation with Coach Sheets (Jeremy Sheetinger), head baseball coach at Georgia Gwinnett College. If you need a little energy boost here at the end of a long season give this episode a listen! You …

Rock Valley College head coach Darin Monroe stops by to talk about his program's unprecedented 8 consecutive NJCAA Division III national championships and what it took to take a team that had struggled to reach .500 and build it into a national powerhouse that is now playing at the Division II level. Coach Monroe also shares his thoughts on the cha…

Motor Preferences Experts co-Founder David Genest joins Jay and Ken to talk about his background in baseball coaching and sports science, and what led him to start his company along with Maryland head baseball coach Matt Swope to bring motor preferences to North America. He then explains what motor preferences are, how they are being applied in top…

On this week's podcast Jay and Ken are joined by pitching instructor Darren Dubsky. While he is a Hall of Fame pitcher in his own right, with more than 1,000 wins and 12,000+ strikeouts in his playing career, he also has the distinction of his most famous student being a name most women's fastpitch enthusiasts will recognize - Jordy Bahl. Darren sh…

NFCA Hall of Famer and Master Coach program instructor Cindy Bristow joins Jay and Ken for a lively conversation about how she got started in fastpitch softball, her coaching journey, and her thoughts on a variety of topics related to coaching softball. She talks about how her natural curiosity keeps her pursuing and learning new information, her t…

Emory University Head Coach and former Tennessee Lady Vols star India Chiles joins Jay and Ken to talk about how she got started in softball, playing for the NCAA Division I National Championship, how she came into coaching after a career as a Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nurse and later a salesperson, and what she did to create a winning c…

Private instructor and former Detroit Mercy pitching coach Pam Savich joins Jay and Ken to talk about how she made the transition from player to coach, what players and parents can do to help their chances of playing in college, why the leap from standout high school player to college player is so challenging, and the importance of good mechanics t…

University of Toledo pitching coach Kyle Brady joins Jay and Ken to talk about his days as a collegiate and minor league baseball pitcher, how he became involved with fastpitch softball designing arm care and overhand throwing programs, which led him down the pitching path, and his work in support services as Duke University and later a coach at UC…

This week Jay and Ken talk about a wide variety of topics related to recruiting. It begins with a discussion about the D1 Transfer Portal - why players go into it (sometimes against their preference), whether it's a good thing, what the risks are, how it affects recruiting of incoming freshmen, and more. They then get into how college coaches appro…

University of Wisconsin - River Falls Head Coach Ethan Giese joins Jay and Ken to talk about his coaching journey, from being a high school coach in La Crosse, Wisconsin to a DIII and DI college pitching coach to his current position. He then shares his thoughts on the importance of continuing education no matter what field you go into, how he's bu…

Jay and Ken keep it in-house to share some advice on coaching issues. Included is a discussion about the importance of giving young players experience at "higher skill" positions (such as pitching), even if it might cause a few extra losses today, in order to help them develop for the future. They also talk about building a team culture, how to run…

USA Softball of New Jersey Hall of Famer Linda Lensch joins Jay and Ken to share stories about the glory days of Women's Majors softball, including her time as a player and later player/coach with the renowned Linden Arians and how she came to form the New Jersey Divas. She also talks about her time participating at the national and international l…

The importance of continuing education for coaches cannot be emphasized enough, so Jay and Ken were thrilled to speak with none other than Dr. Joanna Lane, Director of Education and Program Development for the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) and the host of the organization's popular podcast, The Dirt. Joanna talks about her early his…

Jay and Ken speak with Kate Wheeler, Sports Development Representative for OnForm, about her playing career at Wagner College, a D1 school on Staten Island in New York, and her coaching journey, primarily at the D1 level including six years as head coach at Brown University. She shares what's different about coaching athletes in the Ivy League and …

Hillsdale College head coach Kyle Gross joins Jay and Ken to talk about what it's like to coach softball at one of the top academic schools in Division II of the NCAA. He shares his journey from being a law enforcement officer to coaching travel ball and high school softball in Ohio, how he came to become a college coach, and some of the things he'…

Hitting and mental game guru Rob Crews, owner and CEO of Complete Game, shares his approach to high-level hitting and philosophies about how to build hitters (and players generally) who can produce under pressure. Rob talks about the importance of going beyond mechanics to integrate the visual, mental, and emotional elements so hitters can make adj…

Virginia Tech pitching coach Dr. Josh Johnson, one of the rising stars of NCAA Division 1 coaching, joins Jay and Ken to talk about his career as pitching coach, private instructor, and former player with the US Men's National Team. Josh also branches off into topics such as his philosophy for pitch development, how many pitches he believes a pitch…

Jay and Ken have a lively discussion on a variety of topics. Included are some thoughts on whether school teams should seniors after three years in the program, coaches insisting pitchers learn new pitches instead of improving what they have, whether team coaches would be better served by working with the 4-5 hitters at the bottom of the lineup ins…

Jay and Ken speak with Jon Gwizdala, a member of the US Men's National Team and head coach at Jackson College in Jackson, Michigan. They talk about Jon's career as both a fastpitch softball and collegiate baseball player, his experiences in men's fastpitch (including winning a Bronze medal at the 2022 WBSC World Cup, the first time the US Men's tea…

Jay and Ken are joined in this episode by 2015 WCWS champion pitcher, two-time NFCA All American, and former professional fastpitch player Lauren Haeger. Lauren describes her early years and the challenges she faced to get pitching time, her highly successful high school and college careers, her four years in the National Pro Fastpitch League, and …

Mental toughness is something every coach and athlete will say is essential to being a top performer. But there are far fewer who work at it actively - or even know how to. In this episode Jay and Ken speak with Shawnee Harle (www.shawneeharle.com), a 2X Olympian and Mental Toughness Coach who has her own business, Winning Matters, about how she he…

JD Koziarski, head varsity softball coach and athletic director at Horizon Science Academy McKinley Park in Chicago, joins Jay and Ken to talk about how he and his wife Wendy launched their softball program from scratch. He describes how the program has expanded from one JV level high school team to a program encompassing players from the 10U throu…

Jay and Ken are joined by Anna Nickel, pitching coach at Pacific Lutheran University and senior marketing manager at GameChanger. Anna talks about her playing days in rec and travel ball, her journey from Juco pitcher to the D1 level at USC Upstate to the National Pro Fastpitch League and how and why she transitioned into coaching. She also shares …

Morgan Gerak, head coach at Northern Kentucky University, joins Jay and Ken to talk about her journey from travel ball to a 5-year career as a pitcher and outfielder at Northwestern University to becoming an assistant then head coach. She also discusses the culture at NKU and her approach to working with each athlete as an individual.…

Georgia Gwinnett head baseball Coach Sheets joins Jay and Ken to talk about why coaching at GGC is his dream job, why he loves coaching at the NAIA level, how he built his program into a powerhouse that won a National Championship and competes for it every year, and his philosophy about coaching the person, then the student, and then the athlete. C…

Jay and Ken interview Rick Pauly of PaulyGirl Fastpitch about his career as a men's player, how he got started in coaching, his coaching experience at the rec, travel, high school, and college level, and his High Performance Pitching certification program. We also go into his thoughts about working with pitchers and which teams he thinks listeners …