Contemporary Authors

• 60,000 Hitting Lessons: Hit It, Fix It, Coach It: A Hands on Baseball Guide for Parents, Coaches and Players Second Base Publishing (Lisle, IL), 2007

1. 60,000 hitting lessons : hit it, fix it, coach it; a hands on baseball guide for parents, coaches & players LCCN 2008270478 Type of material Book Personal name Perconte, Jack. Main title 60,000 hitting lessons : hit it, fix it, coach it; a hands on baseball guide for parents, coaches & players / written by former Major Leaguer Jack Perconte; [foreword by current Major League manager Mike Scioscia]. Published/Created Lisle, IL : Second Base Publishing, c2007. Description 185 p. : ill. ; 26 cm. ISBN 9780979356209 0979356202 CALL NUMBER GV869 .P47 2007 Copy 1 Request in Jefferson or Adams Building Reading Rooms

• Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook - 2017 Second Base Publishing , Lisle, IL
• Raising an Athlete: How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport - 2009 Second Base Publishing, Lisle, IL
• The Making of a Hitter: A Proven and Practical Step-by-Step Baseball Guide - 2009 Second Base Publishing, Lisle, IL

• Amazon -

  Jack Perconte has dedicated his post-major league baseball career to helping youth and their parents through the complicated world of youth sports. Combining his playing, coaching and parenting experiences he continues to help create better sporting experiences for both athletes and their parents. He has dealt with coaches as a parent and parents as a coach while raising three kids and details much of these in his books. Jack gives coaches the coaching philosophy and coaching strategies that keep the fun in the games and the stress out of it. You can follow or reach Jack Perconte at http://baseballcoaching.tips Jack has run 11 marathons, one a year for the past 11 years.

• Wikipedia -

  Jack Perconte
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  Jack Perconte
  Second baseman
  Born: August 31, 1954 (age 63)
  Joliet, Illinois
  Batted: Left
  Threw: Right
  MLB debut
  September 13, 1980, for the Los Angeles Dodgers
  Last MLB appearance
  October 4, 1986, for the Chicago White Sox
  MLB statistics
  Batting average
  .270
  At bats
  1441
  Hits
  389
  Teams
  Los Angeles Dodgers (1980–1981)
  Cleveland Indians (1982–1983)
  Seattle Mariners (1984–1985)
  Chicago White Sox (1986)
  Background[edit]
  John Patrick "Jack" Perconte (born August 31, 1954) is a former second baseman in Major League Baseball who played from 1980 to 1986. At the age of 26, on September 13, 1980, he debuted with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His most productive seasons were with the Seattle Mariners during which he hit a combined .281 and stole 60 bases in 68 attempts.[1]
  His uncle, Frank Perconte, is famous for being a soldier of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during the Second World War and being a main character in Band of Brothers.
  In addition to his Major League baseball career, Perconte has authored two books - "The Making of a Hitter- A Proven and Practical Step-by-Step Baseball Guide" and "Raising an Athlete- How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport". Jack turned to writing to further help athletes and parents have enjoyable baseball and sports’ experiences. Jack’s two websites give advice on baseball and parenting.
  As of 2009, Perconte was the Director of Baseball Operations at Velocity Sports Performance in Warrenville, Illinois, where he oversaw the baseball program and ran training camps.

• Hardball Times - https://www.fangraphs.com/tht/tht-talks-with-jack-perconte/

  THT talks with Jack Perconte
  by Arne Christensen
  September 14, 2011
  Jack Perconte had several solid seasons playing second base for the Seattle Mariners in the mid-1980s, and several more seasons of big league baseball in the ’80s. He also starred with the Dodgers’ AAA farm team, the Albuquerque Dukes, from 1979 through 1981, including their 94-38 1981 squad, for which Perconte hit .346 and stole 45 bases.
  Perconte returned to Albuquerque in 1987 for his last season of pro ball, then opened Jack Perconte‘s Sports Academy in Naperville, Illinois, near Chicago. He ran the academy for two decades before becoming a private baseball coach. He’s written two instructional books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete, and written extensively online about baseball and how to teach it. Since this is the 30th anniversary of that great ’81 Dukes team, I caught up with Perconte for a conversation about his time playing in Albuquerque, on one of the most dominant AAA teams of recent decades.
  ******************
  What was AAA ball like circa 1980, both in Albuquerque and around the Pacific Coast League?
  Every step up in minor league ball gets better as far as stadiums, fan interest, living conditions (hotels), pay, and travel conditions. Albuquerque was one of the top places in all of those areas so it was fun and exciting. Many of the other cities in the PCL were cool places to visit—Phoenix, Hawaii, Vancouver, to name a few—so that was also exciting to be in the PCL. Additionally and of course, you realize that you are only one step away from your dream in triple AAA ball, too.

  What was it like to play AAA ball all through the 1981 major league strike? Did it help create a winning atmosphere on your team, because the Albuquerque players knew they weren’t going to go up to Los Angeles, and you could concentrate on winning the PCL title? Obviously, stability is extremely rare on a minor league team, and I imagine being together almost all year helped the Dukes.
  I believe it did help because with nowhere to go (no big league call up possibilities) everyone just settled in and played ball. We were so loaded with talent that we probably would have won no matter the circumstances, but because of the strike, we received some notoriety from the Los Angeles and national press. Additionally, the Dodgers and other ball clubs sent out scouting personnel to see us that wouldn’t have been available if the big club was playing – people like Tommy Lasorda made the rounds so we felt like we were being showcased more than we normally would have been.
  Do you have a lingering bond with the players and coaches from the ’81 team because of how good the Dukes were? Fans focus on the majors and titles won there, but how important is it to have that AAA title in the memory bank?
  Once you play with any team, win or lose, a bond is created; because of how good we played and the success we enjoyed, there is a special memory of those Duke teammates. I think the memories are probably more special for players like me who only had marginal success at the big leagues and for the teammates that never made the big leagues. Players that went on to long-time major league careers may not look back on the minor league Duke team as quite so memorable. Additionally, and this may sound trite, but the chemistry on the team, including with our manager, was tremendous. We got along very well and were good friends on and off the field, and many of us even to this day.
  What’s your memory of the atmosphere in Albuquerque? Was the city unusually attached to the team? Did you have a sense of following a winning Dodgers tradition that extended down to the minors?
  Very fond memories—great place to play with supportive and knowledgeable fans. It was definitely a Dodger town and after the great Albuquerque Duke teams of the early ’70s with Lasorda and those great teams, we definitely felt the Dodger pride and tradition.

  Was there really a “Dodger Way,” as emphasized by Lasorda and others: did you guys on the Dukes feel you had a winning edge because of the system of training, discipline, and camaraderie the franchise had in place?
  For sure—from the time you became a Dodger, you knew that it was a privilege to be a Dodger. We immediately received a handbook of the Dodger way to play baseball. It all began with Spring Training at Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida where you began to feel a sense of the Dodger history and tradition. Many of the all-time great Dodgers would be around instructing and giving moral support so you could not help but feel the winning edge, so to speak. Upon leaving the Dodgers I also noticed that the caliber of people the Dodgers drafted were quite high, too, which definitely helped in the areas of discipline and camaraderie.
  On a side note, it is so sad to see that it seems like all those things you mentioned and the winning edge have drifted away from the Dodgers over the last many years and especially now with the current state of the franchise.
  Could you talk a bit about the Dukes’ 1-0 exhibition game win over the Dodgers after the strike ended? It sounds like a memorable unofficial game that really did count for both teams—almost a one-off franchise World Series.
  We (Dukes) were so psyched up for the game because, first it was just a neat thing to play in Dodger Stadium where many of the guys hadn’t played before and maybe never would and two, because of our success that season we felt like we could definitely play at their level. Even though we won, it almost felt like a loss because we knew they were rusty from the long layoff and a 1-0 win was not enough of a win. I believe we sensed that they treated it more like a spring training game and not a real game, as we did. Ultimately, we were hoping for a much more dominant outing and I know, personally, I came away with even more respect for the big league club after that game because they played well despite a long break.

  How Should the Giants Handle Barry Bonds’ Number Retirement?
  by Britni de la Cretaz
  Bonds' storied career and past indiscretions force us to consider how we balance acknowledging the game's greats with seeing the greats' flaws.
  Did you feel like an outsider in ’81 when you got called up to L.A.? Or when you watched the team play in the playoffs? I guess maybe being around guys you’d played with in the minors made it more comfortable to be in the majors. And the strike must have affected the atmosphere with the Dodgers.
  As a September call-up in 1980 I felt like a member of the team, even though I was extremely nervous when playing. It all changed in 1981—after the summer strike the Dodgers decided to call Steve Sax up from double A ball to the “Bigs” instead of me. Because of that situation and knowing I would not get much of a chance to play, I did feel more like an outsider. Having said that, “Any day in the big leagues was a blessing and I wasn’t complaining.”
  I don’t recall the strike affecting the atmosphere. By the time I got to L.A. that year, it was business as usual with everyone trying to win a pennant. As far as watching them in the playoffs, I was pulling for them because of the friendships and what it would mean if we won, which they did. I have a World Series ring to show, even being just a small part of them, so in the end I feel so fortunate the way things turned out, even if I had a few bad feelings at the time.
  What were the biggest differences between the minors and MLB you noticed in 1981 and 1982? In terms of both the game and the conditions around the game—travel, housing, media attention?
  That is a complicated question to answer in my situation because I went from the Dodger organization, which was the elite back then, to the Indians where times were quite bleak. The big leagues are the big leagues and so the money, travel, housing, and media attention are of course better, but with Cleveland back then there was a situation where they did not have many winning years in their recent past, an old out-dated stadium to play in and anemic crowds for most games. It was the big leagues but did not feel all that special at times. Of course, to make matters worse, I played like a minor leaguer when in the majors that year so my spirits were quite low for that season. Once again, one can never complain when in the big leagues because of the “coolness” of it all, but it turned out to be a very long year for me and the team.
  It’s very unusual to be a very good performer over three straight years for a very good PCL team. What was your frame of mind as time went by and you didn’t get much of a chance with the Dodgers? Apparently Davey Lopes was blocking you in L.A., so you just had to be patient.
  Looking back, I can’t say that I dwelled on it much – Davey Lopes was a great player and I felt like my time would come, if not with the Dodgers than somewhere else. I believe playing for such great teams in Albuquerque certainly helped me stay focused. We won a ton and winning keeps a player happy for the most part. As mentioned though, when the Dodgers brought up Steve Sax instead of me, my attitude changed quickly and I felt slighted and like I wanted to be traded. That trade came in the off-season.
  When you came back to Albuquerque in ’87 and won a PCL title to close out your career, how did it compare with your previous time with the Dukes? During ’87, were you conscious of it being a potential last hurrah for your career? And then in ’88, what was your feeling watching the Dodgers win with players from both the earlier Dukes teams and the ’87 team?
  In retrospect, that year was a Godsend in many ways. First, that championship was so exciting because we were not the most talented team as our earlier Duke teams were. The ’87 team was composed of a lot of career minor leaguers or “has beens” like me, so to win the championship was unexpected. Second, by the time the playoffs came around, I knew it was the end of my playing days for me—to go out with another ring was so cool. Third, I met some people that season that helped me get my future job (a baseball academy) going, so that was fortuitous, also.
  I am always happy for friends when they win and are successful and I was for the 1988 team, especially because I know how much work goes into being the best.
  Finally, what made Del Crandall such a good manager for you? And how did his managing in the minors compare to his managing in the majors?
  Del showed a confidence in me that other managers did not. He often told me, “You are my second baseman, so just relax out there.” The one thing I often lacked was confidence, so that was an enormous help. I do not believe he changed from the minors to the majors. Like any manager, if you do not have the best players, it is very difficult to win.

• Lookout Landing - https://www.lookoutlanding.com/2010/3/26/1391871/an-interview-with-jack-perconte

  An Interview With Jack Perconte
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  By Jeff Sullivan Mar 26, 2010, 12:34pm PDT

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  Ten years ago today, the Kingdome blew up. (On purpose.) I'm not going to sit here and write a heart-rending tribute, because the Kingdome was an awful, awful place, but it was a meaningful place - to me, because of names like Edgar Martinez, Rob Ducey, and Trace Armstrong, and to you, because of other ones. It's with that in mind, then, that I'm attaching an interview with ex-Mariner Jack Perconte, done and sent to me by Arne Christensen, who you can read at 1995 Mariners. Perconte spent two years in Seattle, and as far as long-time Mariner fans go, his is a name that will forever be associated with the dreary sarcophagus that the M's, Seahawks, and Bacon Bowl all used to call home.

  -----

  Jack Perconte is familiar to older Mariner fans as the solid-playing second baseman who joined Alvin Davis, Dave Henderson, Jim Presley, and Ken Phelps in the Seattle lineup in 1984 and 1985. His Mariners career was shortened by the arrival of Harold Reynolds in 1986 as his tabbed replacement, but he ranked among the league leaders in hits in '84 and steals in both '84 and '85. And he already had a World Series ring from his time with the Dodgers in 1981. Perconte went from a player to a teacher of baseball when he moved back to suburban Chicago after his MLB career ended in 1986 with the White Sox.
  He still teaches the game to players of various ages at his baseball training academy in Naperville, Illinois, writes a regular column at Seamheads.com, and has written two books, The Making of a Hitter and Raising an Athlete (both of which can be bought at his website). Looking ahead to the 10th anniversary of the Kingdome's implosion on March 26, 2000, I asked Jack some questions about the mid-'80s Mariners, his memories of the Kingdome, and his time as one of the bright spots in the long string of mediocre Mariner teams.

  Arne Christensen: What position were you in coming into spring training in '84? You hadn't played much in '83 with Cleveland. Were you confident you'd succeed, nervous, eager to have the chance to prove yourself in a starting role?
  Jack Perconte: The Mariners had traded for me that off-season, I am sure that was because of manager Del Crandall's suggestion - because I had played for Del in the minors. I was always a little short of confidence my whole career but I felt assured that I would be given a good opportunity to make the club because of Del's presence. I was coming off a AAA season where I had won the batting title so I felt cautiously optimistic. Always a little nervous but that is a good thing and extremely eager to put the memory of my 1982 Cleveland Indian play behind me.
  AC: This may be repeating the previous question, but what happened in '84 to enable you to win the starting job at second and elevate your play that year?
  JP: I was basically obsessed with proving I could play in the bigs. I was able to concentrate through my lack of confidence and was able to maintain focus day in and day out. It certainly helped to have Crandall, who believed in me, putting my name in the line-up every day no matter my previous day's performance.
  AC: From looking through the archives, it looks like your departure from Seattle was pretty bitter. Looking beyond your own release, what was wrong with how the Mariners' management operated in those years?
  JP: I was very fond of everything about my Seattle experience so when I was released, great disappointment set in. My words may have come across as bitter but it was mainly disappointment and some immaturity on my part.
  I don't believe the organization was any different than most teams - trying to make it all work - but of course they had not won much over the years so they were still trying to figure it all out. I didn't believe then or now that they were out to hurt me personally with my release - just trying to put the best team on the field that they could. The front office people and on field coaching staff were all good people from what I experienced. Of course, all players feel like they can help a team so it is always hurtful when released.
  AC: I saw a 1992 letter to the Seattle Times that said, "What this team needs is a steady, inspirational leader (and producer) such as Seattle had a few years ago in Jack Perconte." It sounds like you were a popular player: a lot of the Seattle fans had a particular appreciation for you, and I guess some of them still do. Where do you think that came from?
  JP: I only knew one way to play and that was all out. I believe my teammates and the fans appreciated that. Of course, part of my "hustle" was due to feeling insecurity over whether I belonged and could succeed in the majors. Give the person who wrote that about me a huge hug from me. It is nice to be remembered.
  AC: Was it more satisfying to start the two years for the Mariners and play pretty well for mediocre teams or to be a backup/late-season call-up on the '81 Dodgers and win a World Series?
  JP: Personally, by far to play for the Mariners because I was a much more integral part of them - however, I am proud of my Dodger contributions, although they were quite minor ones. Having received a World Series ring and trophy from the Dodgers I have great fondness of being part of that team success and have appreciated the Dodger days more and more as time passes.

  AC: What was the Kingdome turf like? Did it give true bounces, did it have nasty seams, or was it essentially just standard, predictable Astroturf?
  JP: I would say standard and predictable. Because of the true bounces off turf, it helped my fielding percentage immensely. I did not possess great major league hands so the true hops helped - I could get use to the speed with concentration, so not having to adjust to inconsistent hops like on natural outdoor fields helped my defensive game.
  AC: As a second baseman, how did you adjust to playing balls off turf instead of dirt and grass? Was it something fairly easy to get used to?
  JP: As mentioned above, great concentration can overcome most anything so if one stays focused and has good fundamentals, fielding on any surface is manageable. My defensive weakness showed up more on turning double plays than fielding the ball.
  AC: How did the turf affect you as a base stealer and running the bases? I noticed that you had very good steal numbers in 1984 and '85, and wonder if the Kingdome had anything to do with that.
  JP: I believe it did - not having to worry about wet turf helped. It also had a lot to do with batters behind me in the order. I came to understand how they would be pitched by teams so I learned to pick the best pitches to run on.
  AC: Could you describe the atmosphere of playing in the Kingdome, not so much the field, but in terms of the fans, having air conditioning and a roof over your head, things like that. I see attendance in '84 was only about 10,000 per game, so I imagine the team had to motivate itself much of the time.
  JP: Playing in the big leagues was motivation enough, not to say that playing in front of bigger crowds wasn't desired and a little more exciting. My goal was to concentrate on what needed to be done so that often, I was oblivious as to the size of the crowd. The Mariner fans always seemed knowledgeable and appreciative of our efforts as far as I can remember.
  AC: What were the benefits of playing in a dome? I talked with Mike Pagliarulo about going to Minnesota in 1991, and he said the dome helped him get a productive routine established.
  JP: I would agree with that. Also, indoors took out some of the elements (wind, rain, snow, dusk, shadows, sun, etc...) that can make playing outdoors a little more difficult.
  AC: What was your reaction to the Kingdome's demolition? Had you been back in the place since your playing career ended?
  JP: I watched the demolition at home and I was surprised with how sad I felt. I was back the year after I retired, maybe 1989 or so, but never since.
  AC: What were some of the idiosyncrasies about the Kingdome?
  JP: Nothing stands out besides being indoors - it was still baseball and the same for both teams.
  AC: What's your basic memory of the place? Is there nostalgia for it, or is it just too hard to have fond memories of a dome?
  JP: In general, ballplayers (at least me) judge ball parks not by their fans, looks, location, etc... but by how well I (we) played in a park. With that as the standard, the Kingdome was my "Field of Dreams."
  AC: I know Mark Langston was the Mariners' emerging headline pitcher when you were with the team. Was he someone you could identify right away as a major talent? If so, was that mainly because of his fastball?
  JP: I was new to the Mariner organization in 1984 so I didn't know much about any of the players. It was evident from the start of spring training that Mark had everything it would take to be very successful. Along with the great arm, he had the poise, class and demeanor of a major league pitcher. I don't believe it was a tough call to keep him on the big club that year. It was a joy to play behind him and I believe everyone got a little more "jacked up" on the days he pitched.
  AC: What are your memories of Mike Moore and Dave Henderson as Mariners? I remember Hendu's ebullience and his gap-toothed smile as much as I remember his skills as a player.
  JP: Two more great guys to be around and play with -Hendu had such a joy of playing that was contagious and Mike Moore I remember as always coming to the park ready to give his all - a real professional with great talent.

Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook

Publishers Weekly. 264.40 (Oct. 2, 2017): p129.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook
Jack Perconte. Second Base, $14.95 trade
paper (302p) ISBN 978-0-9981709-0-9
Perconte, who coaches Softball and baseball, has written a thoughtful guide for the "countless kindhearted people" who are trying to coach and inspire athletes in youth sports, which he believes are becoming less about having fun and more about winning. "The focus on winning at the youth level now rivals the intensity of the professional ranks," he writes. He argues that young athletes are dropping out of participating in youth sports due to this high-anxiety environment and because many youth coaches "fail to inspire both youth and parents." To counter this, Perconte provides a step-by-step plan for coaches to help athletes achieve and, at the same time, "keep the excitement in and the stress out of games." He explains how to draw up a personal coaching philosophy that encourages patience with all-youths, regardless of different interest and motivation levels; how to create a practice environment that reminds athletes that "the journey is what's important"; and how to develop and maintain a leadership style that displays "self-control, consistency, enthusiasm" while remembering "to always put the kids first." This is a valuable resource for parents and coaches of youth sports. (BookLife)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook." Publishers Weekly, 2 Oct. 2017, p. 129. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A509728472/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=efe9123d. Accessed 21 Feb. 2018.

Gale Document Number: GALE|A509728472

"Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook." Publishers Weekly, 2 Oct. 2017, p. 129. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A509728472/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=efe9123d. Accessed 21 Feb. 2018.

• Ask David
  http://askdavid.com/reviews/book/youth-sports-coaching/15004
  Word count: 354

  Book: Creating a Season to Remember - The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook by Jack Perconte
  categories: Book, Coaching Kids, Coaching Certification, Leadership Coaching, Sports Coach, Leadership Skills, Kids Coaching Training, Effective Leadership, Coaching Philosophy, Youth Coaching Tips, Coaching Techniques, Kids Sports Coaching, Youth Sports Coaching

  Jack Perconte
  about this book: I became sick of hearing parents say that their child's sports coach was an idiot - so I did something about it. Creating a Season to Remember: The New Youth-Sports-Coaching Leadership Handbook is the coaching training that our youth sports coaches are not receiving. This book could have been titled "How Not to Suck at Youth Sports Coaching, but I took the High Road with the naming of it.

  I set out to write a book for the negative coaches that give youth sports a bad name but realized they would not read it or want to change anyway. So, I wrote a book is for the countless, kind-hearted people who want to influence kids but simply do not know how to go about it and for those who just want to be the role model for youth athletes they set out to be.

  Anyone who is involved in the youth sports scene realizes that coaching is not the experience it once was. Today's athletes and parents are different than when the adults grew up, so different teaching techniques are necessary. You will find solutions, or at the least, things to try to help every difficult coaching situation and every type player personality.

  Jack Perconte, author, and former major league player, uses his playing and 28 years of youth coaching background to help coaches of every sport create a season to remember. Additionally, he analyzes the teaching techniques of some of the greatest coaches, like Joe Maddon, Pete Carroll, Mike Krzyzewski, Tony Dungy and many others to find ways they use to help athletes develop their skills and talents. This coaching handbook has the ability to change kids and their parents' attitudes and lives, and make coaching the enjoyable experience it should be.

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