Building Men Before Athletes

What kind of man is your son becoming?

That question reaches further than whether he can hit a breaking ball or make a throw from the outfield. Those skills have their place. But a boy can become a talented athlete while learning habits that will harm the people who depend on him later.

He can learn to avoid responsibility. He can learn that talent excuses his conduct. He can learn to expect praise while refusing correction. If adults reward those habits, athletic success may help him carry them further into life.

At SDG Baseball, we want to keep his future responsibilities in view. We build men before athletes. We use baseball as a training ground to teach young men through Scripture for the glory of God.

Manhood under the authority of Christ
Biblical manhood begins with God's authority. A young man needs to learn that his strength, abilities, desires, and decisions belong under the rule of Christ.

Our aim is to prepare boys to become faithful men who serve their churches and take responsibility for what God entrusts to them. As God provides marriage and children, we want them prepared to be husbands who love sacrificially and fathers who lead their homes according to His Word. Faithful manhood is also essential in singleness, work, and every responsibility the Lord assigns.

Ephesians 5 calls husbands to love their wives according to Christ's sacrificial love for His church. Ephesians 6 calls fathers to bring up their children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Those responsibilities require more than confidence. They require humility, endurance, and a willingness to give yourself for others.

A 14-year-old boy is not yet carrying those adult responsibilities. But he is already learning how he responds when someone needs him, when work is difficult, and when his preferences are challenged.

We want to teach him faithfully while he is learning.

Accepting responsibility
Consider a player who forgets something he was told to bring. His first response may be to blame his parents. We need to help him ask a better question: What was I responsible to do?

Taking responsibility begins there. Tell the truth about what happened. Accept correction. Make the adjustment. Learn to prepare more carefully next time.

The same lesson applies when a player makes an error or fails to follow an instruction. He does not need to invent a defense for everything. He needs to learn that acknowledging a mistake is part of growing up.

Adults should model this. If a coach gives unclear instruction, he should acknowledge it. If he sins against a player, he should seek forgiveness. A young man needs to see responsibility practiced by the people asking it of him.

Learning to undertake hard things
We also want to challenge boys appropriately. Difficult instruction, steady practice, and responsibilities to teammates can stretch a young man beyond what feels comfortable.

We should not rush to remove every difficulty. Sometimes he needs encouragement to stay with the work. Sometimes he needs to hear that his feelings do not excuse leaving a responsibility unfinished.

That requires discernment. Coaches must account for a player's age, development, and physical limitations. There is a difference between patiently challenging a boy and treating him carelessly. We are responsible for how we use our authority.

But loving instruction includes standards. A player should learn to work when he would rather quit, listen when he would rather argue, and serve when he would rather receive attention.

Titus 2:6 calls young men to be self-controlled. The field gives us opportunities to apply that command. Anger does not have to govern his speech. Disappointment does not have to determine his conduct. He can learn to act faithfully while experiencing both.

Strength used in service
A young man's development should make him more useful to others. The player with greater ability has opportunities to encourage someone who is struggling. The boy who understands a drill can help a teammate learn it. The player on the bench can still engage and support the team.

Philippians 2 directs believers toward Christ's humility and concern for others. That teaching confronts the desire to make every situation revolve around ourselves. We want young men learning to notice what another person needs and take action to help.

These lessons reach beyond baseball. A future husband will need to listen. A father will need patience. A church member will need to serve without receiving the credit. The habits being practiced now necessitate our attention to detail and discipline.

And we must keep the gospel central. We cannot train a spiritually dead heart into life. Christ saves sinners, and His Spirit produces genuine holiness in believers. Our instruction must continually direct these boys to Him.


Parents, talk with your son about the man he is becoming. Ask how he receives correction, handles responsibility, and treats people who cannot advance his ambitions. Those conversations belong at home, and we want our coaching to support them.

That is our commitment at SDG Baseball. We want to teach the game well while investing in young men with their future responsibilities before us. If you share that vision, we invite you to consider partnering with us.