Wade Cantrell and Phil Jackson
ORGANIZATION: Pleasant Hill Baseball Association, Pleasant Hill,
California
REPRESENTATIVE: Wade Cantrell, head commissioner
Pleasant Hill Baseball Association began incorporating Positive
Coaching into the culture of the organization before PCA existed.
In the past three years PHBA has intensified this effort to
integrate Positive Coaching into every aspect of its operation. All
coaches and league administrators attend Positive Coaching
workshops. A coach mentoring program has been established.
"Honor the Game" banners are displayed at games, coaches and
parents sign PCA codes of conduct, and each season starts with a
Positive Play Day to reinforce the message. A "team coordinator"
for each team communicates with parents and fans in the stands
during games to maintain appropriate spectator behavior. Strict
penalties are given to individuals ejected from games.
The results have been dramatic. Ejections from games have fallen
from about 25 per year to four in 2001. PHBA has increased in
popularity, from an average of 1400-1500 players per year to an
estimated 1700 in the upcoming 2002 season. Post-season surveys
have shown a high level of satisfaction with coaches. PHBA teams
have also excelled in terms of the scoreboard with an 8-year-old
team advancing to the PONY West Zone World Series in 2001.
PHBA has achieved these results in spite of normal turnover in
league leadership for youth sports. Its culture has taken on a life
independent of the individuals who started the effort.