Moving through life, the baseball podcast Donald Lutz

The guys try a new “mini special” format with a shorter length and more informal tone (if that’s even possible?!) They talk about Lutzy’s line of batting gloves from his new DTL3 brand and introduce the “Velcro breath”. Then, they cover the importance of breathing and awareness in baseball and in life. Lastly, Frank talks about breathing in context of playing live music and the parallels with playing high-level baseball.

“New Velcro breath from DTL3 – it’s the pause the refreshes!”

Lutzy and Frank welcome former Reds teammate and 13-year MLB and MiLB veteran Ryan LaMarre to the podcast. Ryan talks about his decision to walk away from the game and how perseverance and resilience helped him overcome injuries and evolve his approach both on and off the field. He also shares some fantastic stories about pitching at Fenway Park (as a position player), hitting an “oppo taco” at Yankee Stadium and his interactions with some of the game’s greatest players like Big Papi, Mookie Betts, Aaron Judge and others. In this episode:

- Ryan talks about deciding to walk away from the game
- The uniqueness of the Yankees’ player evaluation and development program
- Ryan and the guys talk about hitting metrics and the idea of chasing the process instead of homers
- The events that led Ryan to consider retirement
- Playing with the Red Sox and how their superstars interacted with Ryan
- Ryan tells stories about playing for the Red Sox, shadowing Big Papi and working with Mookie Betts
- How watching the Astros AAA team’s batting practice led to working with a new hitting coordinator that helped revolutionise Ryan’s swing
- Zero to hero – how Ryan’s new swing helped him make the Twins’ opening day roster
- Ryan talks about simplifying his swing, loading the hips and bat path
- Pitching at Fenway after not pitching for almost a decade
- A special mound visit from Dustin Pedroia
- Giving up moon shots at Yankee Stadium on Sunday Night Baseball
- Ryan reflects on his career and the importance of keeping perspective
- Frank shares his instrumental reimagining of the Mos Def and Vinia Mojica song “Climb”

Lutzy and Franky are super excited to welcome their good friend Ray Chang to the show. Their former teammate in the Reds organisation and current head of baseball operations for MLB China, Ray shares stories and perspectives from across his career, including:
* We hear the story of how Ray got hurt right before his call up to the show
* The guys discuss how failure in baseball builds resilience in life
* Mental preparation on game day, whether you’re in the lineup or not
* How Ray’s two strike approach became his 0-0 approach
* Ray talks about facing Shohei Ohtani in the recent WBC
* The story of the game where Ray played all nine positions, including a scoreless inning on the mound
* Ray tells his side of the “teaching Lutzy how to field a ground ball” story
* Lutzy tells the story of visiting Ray in China and hitting bombs off kid pitchers
* Ray talks about coaching in China and building their development programs
* Frank shares his new song, “Mālie”

The guys talk about their differing approaches to two-strike hitting over the years, advice they got from various Reds coaches (and the game itself), and what the last day of a minor league season was usually like. Plus, they answer the question, “What’s fun for you – winning or simply competing?” In this episode:

• Frank’s two-strike hitting approach throughout his career
• Some simple advice from Ken Griffey, Sr.
• Knowing your situation, knowing your approach
• Advice on overcoming the fear of striking out
• How the game itself helps us simplify
• Advice from an early coach that helped Lutzy shape his approach at the plate
• The cat, the mouse, and Eric Davis
• What’s fun for you?
• Lutzy’s key to beating the game
• Minor League “getaway day” stories
• “Is there value in grinding through a season on a bad team?” or, “No mud, no lotus”
• Frank talks gratitude
• The world premiere of Frank’s excellent new song “To Night, from Morning”

Season two of Moving Through Life, The Baseball Podcast kicks off with Lutzy and Frank diving into what it means to be a grinder in baseball and how sports philosophy can help nurture your relationship with the game and life. In this episode:

• What is a “grinder”, anyway?
• Frank talks about his grind through the ups and downs of his 2011 season.
• Lutzy talks about the things he wishes he’d learned earlier in his career.
• Frank talks about his role as a mental skills coach for the Reds and how sports and performance philosophy can help you be in tune with the game and the people around you.
• Lutzy talks about the grind of breaking his finger at the end of the season and the lead up to his retirement.
• Frank shares his new song, “Opal’s Moon”.

Lutzy and Frank stretch it out as they welcome former teammate and longtime friend Steve “Death Turkey” Selsky. Steve shares his unique journey to the pros and his draft story as well as a very different kind of journey – working through the adversity of injuries. The guys cover some great topics around making the best of every opportunity, flipping negative situations and working through setbacks. They also talk about the different coaching styles that helped them at different levels of the Reds farm system and how letting the game be your coach can sometimes bring the best results. At more than an hour and a half, this episode has loads of great stories and fantastic insights around resilience and being adaptable. Lastly, Frank shares his excellent new song, “Hide and Seek”.