Under The Gun: Jeff Palumbo

Date: January 31, 2019
By: Eric Leary

Coach Palumbo thanks for your time in going Under the Gun with the Dirtbags! Each year we see East Carolina baseball continue to get better. What are the ingredients for this success of the Pirate program?

When the current coaching staff at East Carolina came together for the first time back in the summer of 2014, Coach Godwin laid out the goals for the program and how we were going to go about achieving those goals. We started by targeting recruits that fit the culture of what we wanted moving forward. We targeted player that fit the mold of; 1) Have the ability to help us win a National Championship 2) Are committed to doing as well as they can academically 3) Are good people that consistently do the right thing.

We felt strongly that we would have consistent success if we recruited those types of players year in and year out. Once these types of players are on your campus, it is important to continue to help them grow. We work very hard at helping our student-athletes grow in all areas. Every program in the country works extremely hard at developing the baseball player. Although that is a huge focus of ours as well, we also work daily at developing the people that are in our program. This in turn has helped the East Carolina program be successful on the field, in the classroom and most importantly has prepared the young men in the program for success after they complete their playing career as an East Carolina Pirate! In short, the key ingredients are great people, clear goals and a lot of hard work!

As the infield coach at ECU, what is the one message you preach to your players to help them perform at a high level consistently?

I have a few messages that we preach daily but if you narrow it down to the most important message for a young infielder it would be to practice everything you do at game speed.  At East Carolina we use a stopwatch daily to put more pressure on our infielders. As a coach I would rather our players take less reps at game speed than take more reps at a comfortable pace. This will lead to players being uncomfortable at times in practice which in my opinion is what you want in your practice setting. This will help them grow as players and ultimately prepare them for successful game play.

In looking back at your own development first as a player and now as a coach, who is the one player in the infield that really stood out to you growing up?

Growing up in Maryland, I was a huge Orioles fan so I always enjoyed watching Mike Bordick and Brian Roberts. They played at different times but I appreciated watching both for different reasons. I loved Bordick’s consistency. As a player I prided myself on being as consistent as possible at the position. Now as a coach, my goal is to recruit infielders that can make the routine play as constantly as possible. In an era of SC Top 10 and Web Gems, sometimes players lose site of the fact that as coaches we just want to be able to count on our infielders to make the routine play.

Players and coaches are always looking for that drill that gives them the biggest “bang for the buck.”  What’s your best drill for infielders?

I am a big believer that your feet are the most important tool for an infielder. When it comes to recruiting infielders, that is the first thing I look for on the defensive side of the ball. That said, it only makes sense to start with a daily footwork drill during our infield sessions. We begin each day with our Dry Ball Drill.  We can place a baseball in any spot on the infield to simulate any type of ground ball. We then start at our position, take our game like prep steps, and at game speed take our route to the baseball finishing in a perfect fielding position in front of the baseball.   In order to go full speed and hold our fielding position for a two count, you must be completely under control. If a player can repeat this consistently, it will allow him to react quicker and get into a better fielding position more consistently once his fungo work begins. We must consistently get into a perfect fielding position on a ball that is not moving before we can expect to do it consistently in our fungo work or game play. I compare it to our tee work on the offensive side of the ball. Perfect a controlled environment before you can expect to perfect a situation with a moving baseball. At East Carolina we have a series of dry ball routes that we complete daily before we move on to the next daily drill or before we take any fungo reps.

If you could tell all youth baseball players the most important aspect of infield play, what would it be?

Practice your defense!!!  Everyone wants to go to the cages to hit.  You cannot play this game at a high level without being able to play on the defensive side. The two drills that we do every day require only you and a baseball (Dry Ball Drill and Short Hop Drill).

We know East Carolina is always on the lookout for that next crop of players to continue what has been established as expectations in Greenville.  When you are looking for future Pirate infielders, what’s the one trait or skill you try to identify first?

When identifying infielders that are a fit for us defensively, we always watch their feet. I am a big believer that your feet will always set you up for success in other areas. If you have average hands but always get a great hop because of your feet, you will still be consistent. If you have average arm strength but your feet allow you to always be in a great position to throw, your arm strength is not as important. In my opinion it starts with your feet if you are looking to make plays consistently in the infield.

As we wrap it up, a huge thanks to you Coach Palumbo and we look forward to tracking the ECU Pirates in 2019!