Mike Roberts, who was signed by the Kansas City Royals, was sent to the Kansas City Baseball Academy in Sarasota, Fla., to be part of an intensive, 24-hour-a-day program focused on ways to improve the game of baseball. For the bulk of those 24 hours a day, base stealing was the focus.
In those two months, Roberts’ baseball philosophy was born.
All of his teams at the University of North Carolina, all of his players in the Cape Cod Baseball League, all of his clients at Athletes’ Performance are all taught to live in accordance with the credo of base stealing.
For years thereafter, the experiment persisted in Roberts’ backyard — and this time, his son Brian was the guinea pig. By all indications, the experiment worked.
Brian, an All-Star infielder and 10-year veteran of the Baltimore Orioles, tied Carl Crawford for the American League lead in stolen bases (50) in 2007 after leading the nation in the category for two years in college. Seems like all that experimenting paid off.
"Brian was sort of my experiment for 18 years," said Roberts, currently the head coach of the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League.
For 5-foot-9, 175-pound Brian, in particular, his base stealing may have been the primary factor that allowed him to break into the big leagues.
"Base stealing was kind of a thing that allowed Brian to play the game until he got much better at some areas," Mike Roberts said. "In other words, his speed and base-stealing skills were good at a young age, but his skills weren’t good as in other areas. He wasn’t a great hitter as a youth or as a high school player. He wasn’t very strong, he was very little and he had trouble getting the ball out of the infield, even through high school. But he made contact, so the encouragement was, 'Brian if you can get a walk, an error, get on in any way — that’s your way to be a good player and help your team."
Base stealing is not something to be taken lightly. For someone like Brian, it can be the difference between a lengthy career in professional baseball and going undrafted. The art of base stealing is one of the first things Cotuit Kettleers learn when they arrive on the Cape every June; in fact, the art is so imperative to Roberts’ teachings that in 2008, he and Brian penned a book titled, "You Can’t Steal Second Base and Keep Your Foot on First!," soon to be accompanied by an instructional video.
"Base stealing is almost like bunting, and somewhat like defense today — it’s kind of losing its thrill to people, and people really isolate their thoughts on hitting and pitching," Roberts said. "I'm trying to help the little guys still be able to play this game, because it seems like everyone is moving toward [the idea that] you have to be big to play sports these days."
But base stealing is the second-most important thing Roberts strives to teach his players. The on-field business is important, but everyone who plays in the Cape League is good. It’s the nation’s premier amateur baseball league, so that much is obvious. What Roberts truly strives to do is teach his players how to be successful off the field as well, because that — more than anything, even base stealing — will ensure future success.
"The ultimate goal really is to help them both on and off the field," Roberts said. "Life skills last much longer than baseball skills, and so my first goal is, if they’re interested, to work with them on life skills and things that will carry them long beyond baseball.
"Just because you’re successful now at the collegiate level doesn’t mean that what you’re doing now works at the professional level."
Roberts has been doing this for a long time. He spent 24 years coaching Division I college baseball, earning five ACC championships and two College World Series appearances along the way. His coaching career in the Cape League began in 2000 with Wareham and continued with Cotuit in 2004. He knows what to expect of his players; he knows what makes them successful, and how to make sure that success endures long after the two-month Cape season expires.
"They have a dream and something they want to accomplish in the world of athletics, and my goal is to help entertain that, just like my son," Roberts said. "My job here in the Cape is to help you reach your goals, and those are always in front of you. That’s what the team wants to accomplish because wins and losses — they go by the wayside. My goal is to help them first on an individual basis to make sure that we open up some more doors."
The doors have been opened for plenty of Roberts’ disciples. Remember the rookie who broke up Armando Galarraga’s no-hitter in May? He played for Roberts in 2005. Texas Rangers outfielder Julio Borbon and rookie Justin Smoak also studied under his tutelage in 2005 and 2006, respectively.
It seems that much of Roberts’ philosophy got through to Borbon, who saw his name pop up on fantasy-watch lists last summer after he made his big league debut and racked up 19 stolen bases in 46 games.
Then, there are natural-born talents like Smoak, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound switch-hitting first baseman who may be more suited to hitting home runs than stealing second.
"[He] really was so polished coming out of his freshman year at South Carolina that you really just kind of wrote his name in the lineup and he just went and did his thing," Roberts said, adding, "I can’t really say I helped him a lot."
The Roberts Model of Success is laid out plain and simple at the beginning of every summer — work your hardest on the field, work your hardest off the field, and all the rest will fall into place. And after his days in baseball are long over, Roberts only wants to be remembered for one thing. In his mind, it's the only thing that matters.
"Maybe one of these days, when I’m no longer on earth," he said, "my baseball legacy will maybe be a little bit about base stealing."
Photo courtesy of Coachmikeroberts.com.
