Video: Tony Pena’s catching drills
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Mar 05, 2013 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
Tony Pena’s title is Yankees bench coach, but his spring training role is catching drill instructor. In the right field bullpen at George M. Steinbrenner Field, Pena takes all of the Yankees catchers — the veterans fighting for a big league job, the young guys trying to make a name for themselves — through sometimes brutal drills of blocking, receiving, throwing and footwork. And he loves it.
Here’s Pena working with Francisco Cervelli, making him catch flips barehanded, one after another, with little time in between tosses. This video doesn’t really do the drill justice. Before I began recording, Pena and Cervelli went at least twice as long as this clip without either one making a mistake. It’s rapid fire, and Pena gets extremely excited when a catcher is able to keep going for a long time.
Here’s Pena working with J.R. Murphy, putting him through a fairly self explanatory blocking drill. Pena will stand a few feet away and toss the ball like in this video, or he’ll stand farther back — a few feet in front of the mound — and fire baseballs overhand into the dirt. It’s all side-to-side reaction for the catcher.
Here’s Pena working with Austin Romine, going through what must be Pena’s most notorious drill. Using a bat to create velocity, Pena swings away with line drives and tough hops in the dirt. It’s intense, and Pena occasionally has the catchers do this exact same drill with no glove. They put their hands behind their backs and block everything with their chests (including the line drives that don’t skip off the dirt). By the way, the best part of the video is Pena’s absolute joy when a ball bounces high and basically hits Romine right in the neck. Second best part is the drill ending and Romine clearly asking for more.
Yankee Trader March 5th, 2013 at 8:10 am
I like CJ Wilson, but yeah replacing Santana, Haren and Greinke with Blanton, Hanson (never trade for an Atlanta pitcher), and Vargas doesn’t make them a better team.
—————
Chip
Never trade for or sign as a FA, a pitcher the Braves no longer want.
How true for the Yankees-Wright, Hammond, Vazquez, etc.
Mike Stanton was an exception.
————–
Yeah there are a few exceptions but by and large, if the Braves are willing to move a pitcher, you don’t want him:
Steve Avery
Tom Glavine
Jaret Wright
Javy
Jason Schmidt
Denny Neagle
On paper these teams seem to be better-have enough to advance, if healthy, to the WS.
Tigers
Nationals
Reds
Braves
Giants
Dodgers
Concur?
Doreen,
You’re a voice of reason for this board. There used to be more of such voices here, but they’ve been taken over by the dark side of pessimism.
cave diving for Crustaceans that are visually challenged is project much worthy of C’s attention as his next awareness project. my heart goes out just thinking about those creatures bumping in the dark!
Crawdaddy -
I seriously try to stay out of the fray for the most part any more. (I do a lot of talking to myself while reading some posts – LOL). Mainly because none of it really matters, and for the most part, I don’t like the feeling of beating my head against the wall.
Cashman isn’t perfect, nor is anyone anywhere on any team (or in life, for that matter). It’s a waste of breath and keystrokes to chastise anyone for criticizing Cashman (or Girardi, or Hal) with respect to the running of the team. Everyone is entitled to express their opinions here. But whatever the motives, the guy did something that benefitted a worthy charity and does not deserve to be beaten down for that.
Doreen,
I’m with you. I read these boards now without posting much because it’s really a waste of my time arguing about Cashman, Girardi and whatever else comes up.
nice work chad on showing the down in the dirt showing some of the down in the dirt catching drills that catchers go through. pena obviously knows his stuff and was a really good defensive catcher winning 4-5 gold gloves.
this is why it’s inexplicable that pena and girardi let cervelli get so bad throwing out runners over a two year period. cervelli was possible the worst at throwing out runners in major league baseball over that time. i referred to it often on the blog that it was a real problem , and it went on for two years until they finally sent him to triple a. it was obvious at 14% throwing out runners he couldn’t stay in the majors, but cervelli himself didn’t think it was fair that he was sent down.
girardi and pena talk defoense, but they send a guy out there for two years under their watch throwing 14%. that’s just plain wrong and enabling if nothing else. they could have intervened much earlier and cervelli would not have had to go through two full years of 14% throwing out runners.
there’s something weird with the yankees supposedly being so strong in catching coaching and then looking at the results they get with their catchers they have developed. romine is nothing special defensively either . cervelli does have a really good arm so it’s just very strange he got so bad under their watch.
i had assumed that he had a sore arm two years ago when his throwing was really bad. i figured girardi didn’t want to say he had a sore arm for obvious reasons with opponents running more if they knew . i still wonder if that wasn’t the problem at least for part of it.
catchers throw more than anyone except the pitchers. they often get arm problems and they hide it. we’ll never know, but there is absolutely no excuse for a yankee catcher with a good arm to throw out 14% for a two year period. yet it happened under pena and girardi.
This Joe Bisceglie is weird… I dunno what to make of any of it. There’s no foundation to the report, of course, but it’s still getting picked up.
How is it possible that only Yankees use PEDs??
Doreen March 5th, 2013 at 8:20 am
Tar,
No one is saying you have to praise him. I get it. You have an extreme dislike for the man.
He did not orchestrate this jump. He did not seek it out. But even if he did, so what? If you’re going to have a mid-life crisis, might as well have someone benefit from it along the way.
As far as the team goes, Cashman’s decision making has at least a little bit to do with the directives he receives from ownership. The direction the team has taken in the last 2 years may have very little to do with what Cashman himself would have done. But he signed on for the challenge and we’ll see how it all shakes out. I am not a doom and gloom-er. This year and next may be a challenge, indeed. But I can’t believe all the vitriol spewed on this site on a daily basis against Cashman and Co.
===========================
Good call Doreen.
People here have too much time on their hands including myself.
While we all have opinions, who really cares.
Whats does this all mean, sitting and typing on a blog while successful people live their lives and collect fat paychecks and laugh at us.
Go ahead voice your opinions if it makes you feel good.
Most here are not qualified to do the jobs they criticize and like Tar, I question your motives.
Nobody is listening, nobody cares, go back to your lives, if you have one.
@dapswebsite
Boomer and Carton are talking about @joebisceglie’s MLB suspension post right now lol.
LOL, see!!! It’s crazy how a guy with less than 50 Twitter followers can get this type of coverage. Who wants to start rumors with me???
I have no doubt Dante Bichette Jr. will repeat Low A Charleston, but I thought Angelo Gumbs would be starting at Tampa this year. With a strong spring, maybe he still might
I guess I’ve stumbled upon the absurdist version of the blog this morning..
Just listening to Boomer and Carton myself . . .whats the Baseball rumor they are talking about ???
Shame Spencer March 5th, 2013 at 9:16 am
This Joe Bisceglie is weird… I dunno what to make of any of it. There’s no foundation to the report, of course, but it’s still getting picked up.
———————-
It’s the age we live in due to everyone being connected through social media. Twitter has given everyone a voice
“I guess I’ve stumbled upon the absurdist version of the blog this morning..”
Heh.
Mike Ri March 5th, 2013 at 9:24 am
Just listening to Boomer and Carton myself . . .whats the Baseball rumor they are talking about ???
————–
There is a rumor stating A-rod, Grandy, Robbie, and Braun will all be suspended for failing PED test.
There is a rumor stating A-rod, Grandy, Robbie, and Braun will all be suspended for failing PED ——–
Oh god . . lol lol . . . thanks Against all Odds
Mike Ri March 5th, 2013 at 9:24 am
Just listening to Boomer and Carton myself . . .whats the Baseball rumor they are talking about ???
————–
Apparently Arod, Cano, Grandy and Ryan Braun will be suspended for 50 games due to testing positive for PEDs. This guy’s source allegedly gave him the Melky suspension info in July of last year which he reported via Twitter. A month later the suspension was handed down.
The only thing that really makes me doubt this is I can’t figure out why Robbie would shut the Yankees down if he knew he was going to be rung up for PED use. I’m basing that on the reported 7/189 offer though.. not sure if that was even accurate.
You’re welcome Mike. You know what’s funny before this came out last night. I thought to myself it’s been a while since some steroid news came out. All joking aside I seriously thought that over the past few days.
and rumors make their jobs all the easier.
continue to be their pawns people.
Grandy might be the most surprising but people will look at the jump in his power numbers and go, ‘oh that makes sense!’
Like OAA said, it’s just the world we live in now I guess.
heh. meh. internet words. go watch homer simpson.
The only thing that really makes me doubt this is I can’t figure out why Robbie would shut the Yankees down if he knew he was going to be rung up for PED use. I’m basing that on the reported 7/189 offer though.. not sure if that was even accurate.
————————
Or why the Yankees would even offer him a contract if there was any possibility that he could be juicing. But of course you never know for sure
More info: http://daps.tv/more-info-about.....and-braun/
“The last thing that Cashman has to worry about is not getting enough credit for the Yankees’ success since Stick assembled the core that in some ways still leads the team, almost 20 years later.”
rich in nj-
i didn’t see the posts ast night and see there was a little brouhaha over cashman breaking his ankle.
personally it’s just kind of funny to me, but on a larger level that tar seems to be taking some heat for, cashman has of course regressed over the last few years. the man is not getting better at being the gm.
i just pointed out a real problem with cervelli’s throwing that also happened under cashman’s watch.
under cashman the catching situation became a mess. it started with his problems with posada and went right into dysfuncton with how montero was treated in the organization . the fact the yankee catching situation is possibly the worst in baseball right now underscores what i’m saying.
i think some one like tar is attempting critical thinking rather than criticizing just for the hell of it.
if some posters choose to not get into things like me looking into what happened to cervelli’s throwing, that’s their choice, but from my end i’m thinking about a problem and trying to understand it.
i’m assuming tar is doing the same thing . if some people want to just look at the things that go right, fine, but by the same token it’s fine for people to look into problems they see too.
Grandy might be the most surprising but people will look at the jump in his power numbers and go, ‘oh that makes sense!’
———————–
Someone said that on RAB lol it has begun
Twitter has given everyone a voice
=========================
Is that a good thing?
Never said it was but it’s what it is. There is going to be a lot of misinformation. Some of these guys do have sources or claim too but still tweet things that never happen. When I was following the Dwight Howard drama there were so many ppl with twitter accounts claiming he’s getting traded to here then he’s getting traded to here then it’s a done deal then it’s not a done deal.
“You guys are all right, I have no credibility. I can’t even name my source for you. One of the worst things about the internet is that any idiot can write any nonsense and post it as “news”. I wouldn’t have even read my own story unless it got picked up by ESPN or Yahoo or some other reputable sports website. I’m not a journalist. I’m not f*ckin’ Peter Gammons, or Buster Olney. I’m a guy who took one journalism class 100 years ago in college. When I write about sports here on DAPS I’m exclusively writing editorial pieces meant to amuse other people like me and hopefully provide them with a take on stuff they haven’t heard before. The most popular feature I write includes a picture of an attractive woman at the end so that people will actually read it.
But that doesn’t mean I’m not right. We have no business running this story, we aren’t Yahoo or ESPN or even Deadspin. We are just a bunch of dudes from Staten Island who stumbled into a chance to tell people about the biggest story in baseball before anyone else. We are much more qualified to post cat videos, Kate Upton pictures or sh*t about Jurassic Park. But f*ck it, we work really hard on this site and if this is how people are going to discover our little ol’ site then so be it.”
LOL, man I really dunno if this is just a well executed hoax to get page traffic or what.. he goes on to hash out the circumstantial evidence for why each guy might be guilty.
Is it possible that Granderson and Cano use steroids? Sure. But I’m not prepared to go there based on the say so of someone who we are supposed to believe simply because he was right about Melky Cabrera.
Like Boomer said; if this proves true then the guy should get his props, but until then…not worth our time
People look for reality so reality TV emerged.
Now that is scripted so it’s the same crap we had before.
Twitter is the same.
Self promoting shills lopped up by the masses.
Be the 1st one on your block to be in the know.
Of course – if Robbie were to get suspended this year, it would make a decision about a long term deal a lot easier.
Though with the Yankee luck recently they will sign him to a 10 year $300 mil contract and the day after the contract is official he will get dinged 50 games.
No big scoop.
They all use.
It’s a pact.
Baseball does not want to know.
They will penalize a few, but if they are all doing it, what can they do?
Suspend them all?
awoke to a tough decision this morning, Cashmoney, who had lead the Braves to 5 straight Pennants is facing the realistic possibility of early retirement … MLB 13 the Show has been released.
btw, I go by the alias of Mickey Mantle on MLB 12
“heh. meh. internet words. go watch homer simpson.”
I love the way you think it’s cool to diss players you don’t like, say Joba, but if anyone else does it, it’s negative.
Hell there was a story that came out yesterday stating Lebron is connected to the Anthony Bosch clinic
didn’t you know it’s alright to use in the nba and nfl?
Cashmoney March 5th, 2013 at 9:46 am
awoke to a tough decision this morning, Cashmoney, who had lead the Braves to 5 straight Pennants is facing the realistic possibility of early retirement … MLB 13 the Show has been released.
—————–
5 straight Pennants that is a dynasty
heh and meh are words i don’t like.
don’t “conflate” that with your “result oriented” conclusion.
randy
I will leave Cashman’s accident to one side. It’s a noble cause, I’m sorry he got hurt.
As for the positivity,negativity issue, can you imagine someone being negative in 1998 or 1999 or even 2009 after spending a ton (it posed longer term risks, but made for a great, short run) Those teams were stacked.
Pointing out that this team isn’t, isn’t negative.
“Hell there was a story that came out yesterday stating Lebron is connected to the Anthony Bosch clinic”
Saw it. Dismissed it.
AoA, my plan was attracting the Yanks as my suitor as I am in the middle of my FA year… I had not realize MLB 13 had came out til this morning… but it’s tough to walk away from a character that I invest considerable time in.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvZ-v1R-ql0
looks good.
I’m trying to decide who I should start a rumor about… our Stewie or Family Guy’s Stewie.
Yea it was from good ol Incarcerated Bob so it was dismissed quickly.
Now Cano and Braun will have to deal with a swarm of reporters waiting for them today for their comment on this rumor
OOA, AoA….get it right. The guys name is AAO.
“I’m trying to decide who I should start a rumor about… our Stewie or Family Guy’s Stewie.”
Heh and meh.
Sounds like certain posters think they need to defend their comments by clarifying their motives, but frankly, who cares? If you want to think this team is not a playoff caliber team, then so be it. I think differently and the season will play out to see which opinion was correct.
Let them all come out and admit they all use.
Together on Opening Day.
Call MLB’s bluff.
Suspend them all I say…
QFT rich.
+1
Yes it does look good and entertaining.
Oh yea it’s tough walking away after investing all of that time and energy because you have to start over.
mick March 5th, 2013 at 9:58 am
OOA, AoA….get it right. The guys name is AAO.
—————-
Mick for President
How do you know I am not the President?
“Pointing out that this team isn’t, isn’t negative.”
rich in nj-
if the yankees themselves aren’t looking at their team closely trying to figure out a way through an obvious low point something would be wrong.
why wouldn’t fans be also looking closely at what’s happening ?
looking to make things better is a positive in my mind.
for the other discussion, as far as cano, what are the chances he hasn’t used PEDS? maybe he hasn’t, but with alex as a mentor and melky as a close friend AND vastly outperforming his minor league numbers, he’s suspect.
that’s just reality. i hope he’s clean and stays that way and signs a new yankee contract sooner than later.
randy, why aren’t you out playing or doing something?
mick March 5th, 2013 at 10:03 am
How do you know I am not the President?
————————
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TWMg.....ck+gif.gif
@afusfeld
Ironically, by acknwledging lack of credibility in breaking what’d be 2013′s biggest MLB story, @joebisceglie brings legitimacy to his scoop
—————
People are crazy… I really hope this isn’t true, I don’t have the time to not care about PEDs.
randy
“if the yankees themselves aren’t looking at their team closely trying to figure out a way through an obvious low point something would be wrong.”
When Hal says young players have to step up, he is indicating that this team is in transition.
It could still win this year (the 2014 roster is still too much influx to venture a guess), but more things have to go right than normal.
What most of us are saying is that they had the notice and the time to make this transition smoother.
“for the other discussion, as far as cano, what are the chances he hasn’t used PEDS? maybe he hasn’t, but with alex as a mentor and melky as a close friend AND vastly outperforming his minor league numbers, he’s suspect.”
randy
I’m not going there. Innocent until proven guilty. I don’t view Cano as any more likely than any other player.
aao those guys look familiar esp the one w/out the glasses, do you know their names?
if they are all guilty don’t they become innocent or is that a double NEGATIVE?
randy refuses to answer on the grounds he might incriminate himself.
but so do many…
looking to make things better is a positive in my mind.
——
There is always room for improvements in my book Randy I. It’s what makes the greats great.
In terms of baseball, I want the best for the Yank in every facets of the game. I am not saying you have to thinking this way to enjoy what you have, just a personal prospective.
in all seriousness, of all the ppl here, i believe randy could work for a baseball organization.
if not in the USA, certainly in a 3rd World country.
name names aao…
I think positivity and negativity is in the eye of the beholder.. there are a lot of wordsmiths on the blog
I didn’t realize how ripped Grandy was until I saw a picture of him with no shirt on because of this report. I am at least not disappointed that this rumor has introduced me to Grandy’s bare chest.
i will have to take a long hiatus, perhaps till noon, so any responses to my tweets that have been excremented, please respond now or forever remain constipated.
Pointing out that the team isn’t as deep as it’s been in the past isn’t being negative.
Suggesting that perhaps the transition could have gone more smoothly or less abruptly isn’t negative.
But there is a tone and an atmosphere that prevails that everything the Yankees do, individually and collectively is either wrong or clueless or both.
I just think there’s a “nicer” way to be disenchanted. But that’s just me.
Rich in NJ – In the past, there was discussion about how the Yankees were trying to transition in a less catastrophic way (and I mean a couple of years ago, when SJ was still posting here, and before the craziness started). It’s not easy for a team that needs to be at the top of the pack to transition. Maybe this way ends up being the best, because gradual transition wasn’t really working, either. And Hal did also say if the young guys don’t step up, he has to revisit his commitment to a lower payroll. I think he does know that an non-contending team with no stars means death at the box office.
As I said, I’d like to see how it all plays out.
@ mick I don’t know their names but it seems to be from a black and white movie or tv show
The odd thing was, when I was in high school, we tried to get steroids, but couldn’t get them. I used to have to force myself to eat hamburgers by the bunch, and I hate meat.
But there is a tone and an atmosphere that prevails that everything the Yankees do, individually and collectively is either wrong or clueless or both.
===================================
Hasn’t this always been the case?
I’m sure this has occurred in the past even in the dynasty years.
It’s not easy for a team that needs to be at the top of the pack to transition. Maybe this way ends up being the best, because gradual transition wasn’t really working, either.
———————
It was though they were in a better position in 09 then they are right now
I think positivity and negativity is in the eye of the beholder.. there are a lot of wordsmiths on the blog
============
so are you saying some here write just for the exercise?
The odd thing was, when I was in high school, we tried to get steroids,
==============================
bet they have no trouble getting them now.
Thanks for ignoring me, have to go now, it’s been your pleasure, but no kudos necessary.
Doreen
Yes. It seems that Cashman has tried to make the transition by relying on young pitching. The problem, as we have seen, is that young pitchers are the most vulnerable to injury and/or detours in development. So some of us have thought that this is a strategy that poses higher risks than necessary.
As I have said before, there is nothing more harmful to the Yankees winning the most championships (not merely contending) than the idea that they have to, as you say, “be at the top of the pack.” Taking a step back often leads to two steps forward.
But that is the way it is, and because it is, it will make it harder to develop young players.
So you’re right. We’ll see. The goals may be at odds, and something may have to give.
“bet they have no trouble getting them now.”
I don’t know about now, but ten years later, it was easy.
mick March 5th, 2013 at 10:24 am
I think positivity and negativity is in the eye of the beholder.. there are a lot of wordsmiths on the blog
============
so are you saying some here write just for the exercise?
————–
I’m saying people have a need to put things into categories.. Human beings are notorious for grouping like things together. I think the discussions on here are more nuanced and in a gray area rather than simply being ‘positive’ or ‘negative’.
“I think the discussions on here are more nuanced and in a gray area rather than simply being ‘positive’ or ‘negative’.”
This is a good point. No, make that a great point.
shame-
have you ever had a crazy uncle that just won’t shut up?
even an aunt?
i know it’s not polite but don’t you ever just want to tell him/her to shut up?
not that you don’t love them any less but just STFU already?
maybe you will realize this more if you ever have a mother-in-law …
Rich, i had cyclist buddy in H.S. , he had little trouble getting roids in the late 90s.
Boy, do I agree about people having to categorize!!!
And while I’m a glass-half-full kind of person, it doesn’t mean I don’t realize that the glass is also half empty.
Doreen, did you ever find that restaurant I recommended?
I forget the name…
Cash
Cyclists want them for endurance?
There is no question that if they were available when I was in hs that I would have done them.
Rich, I think as an organization the Yankees have been at the top for so long, they are afraid to take the chance of not being there. It’s been so long since the days of sub-500 baseball. It’s been so long since the days of not being in competition for a playoff spot. Even 2008, when they did not make the playoffs, they finished a lot better than most teams, with a ton of injuries to key players to explain their “off” Year.
It is foreign to this Yankees’ regime to not be a contender. And there are fans who literally do not remember when they didn’t contend. I can’t blame them for being iffy here. And in a world where people love to hate the Yankees and pounce on any negative (and I’m not talking about fans), it’s a delicate situation.
As a fan I want the Yankees to be #1 every year in every possible way to rank a team. But I also realize that’s not always an achievable goal. And with the parity that exists now? Tough.
Haven’t driven to Florida since then, mick.
I interupt this blog to pass along some good news.
http://www.wabi.tv/news/38189/.....-sugarloaf
Rich, he told me he was using it to build endurance and sustain muscle mass at that time.
Doreen
All true, but if your plan is to win WS, then if you don’t win, at least you are contending. If your goal is to contend, and things don’t go right, you find yourself not contending.
They are in this position because they had a GM who put a plan in place (sometimes by lying to George) that afforded Jeter, Bernie, Rivera, Pettitte, and later Posada the time to form a foundation to build around.
While it’s unreasonable to expect to produce that level of enduring greatness, the plan required for success is still the same.
If they try to shortcut that process, especially without a spending advantage, they could be in trouble.
I expect some prospects to be traded for established stars at some point.
Deciding which ones and for which players may determine the success of the next era
Haven’t driven to Florida since then, mick.
===========================
Just remembered.
The Georgia Pig.
Right off the spigot or whatever its called.
randy must be out doing something…
@HardballTalk
Red Sox minor leaguer Drake Britton got a DUI, was clocked at 111 miles per hour http://dlvr.it/32YJ1m #mlb #hbt
Mick – Smoking Pig right off the 95 in Richmond Hill, GA
http://www.rovingfoodies.com/post-2-8/
“randy, why aren’t you out playing or doing something?”
mick,
sorry to be delayed getting back to you.
been driving down from maine to the cape
time to prepare for opening for the new season.