Baseball Unraveled is a must have in the Coaching of Baseball library. It is a textbook that will make a terrific difference in the future of sports. While most books focus on what has happened in baseball, this book helps every team and player as it identifies why it happened. Statistics and performance vary from player to player and from team to team, yet each year there are teams that continually rise to the top and others that constantly remain unsatisfied. A huge amount of speculation occurs in MLB when a player changes teams and (amazingly) his production changes dramatically. All of the statistical analysis goes haywire, and even "Moneyball" has no answer for what a player goes through, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. This book provides answers and methodologies to overcome. Baseball Unraveled defines the visual memory of the baseball hitter as he prepares to hammer a round wooden bat into the very center of the flying object. Though he draws upon previous experience, he continues to be disadvantaged in favor of the pitcher by a margin greater than 60%. It explores why, in 1941, Ted Williams achieved a greater margin than anyone since--against pitchers in Major League Baseball for an entire season. It explains why it is highly unlikely anyone will ever again hit above .400 for a full season. This book identifies the difficulty for pitchers, both when at home and at other venues and gauges ball movement on the "Neeley Scale". Exploring many arenas that are affected by hot and cold weather in various baseball venues, it reveals an often overlooked aspect, identified as: "The Phantom of Baseball." Written in a readable style by a former college baseball and high-level men's fast-pitch softball participant, the book is both scientifically factual and baseball savvy. It is geared to professional players, owners, managers, fans, and college and high school coaches alike. It's an indispensable tool for anyone from anywhere in the world who needs to coach, manage or perform in baseball or softball or to make better predictions about players and teams in competitive sports.
About the Author: Clifton Neeley was born in Cortez, Colorado. After his birth, his family moved to a small "story book" farm 5 miles north of the city where he attended a two room K-8 country school. The farm had a 17 acre apple orchard, several gardens from which his mother selected fresh vegetables to can, a mesa to the east full of large boulders; a trout stream identified the west border, a grassy pasture was north of the house and barn, and wildlife was plentiful. A stock watering pond, which served as the neighborhood swimming pool and ice rink was nestled to the north and east between two mesas. There were Native American Indian artifacts in several burial grounds on the farm. Cliff and his siblings roamed freely on the farm and experienced life in an array of physical activities and mental quandaries. Many of their toys were handmade objects, tools and sports equipment. Bicycles, football pads, ice skates and BB guns were about the only equipment which couldn't be made from willows, string and baling wire. Although Cliff's Dad-a former horseback ranger at Mesa Verde National Park wanted him to be a rodeo participant in roping, Cliff was smitten with baseball by the time he was ten years old. So when the family fell on hard times and moved into the city, he turned his attention to sports playing baseball, basketball and football through high school. Cliff was the fourth child in the family and was the only one of the five children who attended college, as life and finances were tough for his parents on the salary of a small farmer and carpenter in the 1960s. Cliff worked his way through college at the University of Northern Colorado, and graduated with a degree planning to coach baseball and teach business education. Family came first and so making a living pulled him away from his original plans, but brought him back to baseball again and again. Cliff and his wife Susan, have four children and seven and 1/2 grandchildren and counting. Susan graduated with a degree in journalism and was a tremendously valuable resource in the writing of this book.