Differences in Minor League Levels of Play

[@JustcallmeGnarly22]

I played t-ball and I tell you the level of play is ridiculous. Those kids hit the ball almost every time.

[@bigrhcpguy1958]

LOL

[@AntonelliBaseball]

I bet some of those kids are committed already. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@gkarjala]

lot of players go to T-ball to die.

[@Nihilianth]

LMAO!

[@johnreed9050]

Antonelli Baseball Is rookie ball the same as the instructional league? If you are good enough to be signed shouldn't you already know the fundamentals?

[@sithtabby]

These inside baseball posts you're doing are fascinating, great job. I clicked on 1 by accident now I've watched 6 in a row.

[@Haroldbeavis1969]

Same. Where was he hiding them all this time?

[@FUNSPONGERUNS]

I am 1000% addicted to your vids. I played small college baseball (middle infield) in the late 90's and you lived my dream and are answering EVERY question i ever wondered. your the man! keep it up.

[@fuhrfhrei3441]

Brian Fineberg what is middle infield lol are you sure it wasn’t cricket

[@fuhrfhrei3441]

I am just heckling you btw

[@benbbuxton]

He's got good content! What's up paintballer

[@d.levichestnutwoodboillot8022]

Out of high school, I played in an adult league in AZ. We faced this guy who just got cut from the AAA Yankees team the week before. Early in the game he was sitting at about 92MPH. By the 6th inning or so, he dropped to about 89-90MPH. I just ahead of the count, 2-0, and I was looking to crush his 89MPH fastball, and he umped it up to about 93MPH. I was so behind that I didn't even bother swinging. He tricked me. It was the coolest thing that I had ever seen, and I had seen many cool things, being a catcher. I don't think pitchers do a good enough job at changing speeds with their pitches (harder/slower fastball, harder/slower curve/slider). That pitcher disrupted my timing ON A PITCH THAT I KNEW WAS COMING !!! Coolest thing ever

[@ronaldnixon8226]

Fake

[@markmiller6384]

Great post. I played 2 years in JUCO and one year in the SEC. The amount of dedication and time spent with 35 people was overbearing. I remember having to sign a document every week stating that we practiced for only 25 hours that week and thinking, 'yeah right'. People always say, 'oh man, baseball is just a bunch of grown men acting like boys. I would do anything to have their lives.' I chuckle. I played amateur baseball and I haven't experienced that type of grind in any other job i've been at. You have to be a certain type of person to make it work. And I don't think 90% of Americans would want the lifestyle. It's why I love the game and why I respect the hustle. I couldn't imagine the amount of pressure and daily grind there is in the minors/majors.

[@unclestinky6388]

Thanks for the video. The age rule of thumb for top prospects is A- by age 20, A+ by 21, AA by 22, AAA by 23. These ages are less than the league average for each level because you would expect the top guys to progress faster than average. Even if you know nothing about a player, you can compare his age to the rule of thumb to at least get a rough gauge if he is a player the team has their eye on. For example, Ronald Acuna of the Braves is a top prospect as of 2018. Even if you knew nothing about him, the fact that he made AAA by age 19 means that he is someone a fan would want to watch out for.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks for sharing this!!!

[@bigdogmoody7219]

Uncle Stinky don’t forget about Juan Soto

[@Ninja-ou2by]

U were right. Lmao

[@yablecki]

Good call

[@jnorm0075]

Love your vids. No one I can think of has broken things down so well for the fans. Thank you

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thank you!! Thanks for watching our videos!

[@secordman]

From what I've seen in person high-A looked pretty good. Of course I saw a few players who were major league bound like Freddie Freeman, Lonnie Chisenhall, Steve Pearce etc. Saw another guy at Myrtle Beach high-A who had great power but a huge hole in his swing, struck out three times in the game I saw, he never made it. Looking at photos I took of the starting lineups it's revealing how few made it to the bigs. Very interesting video, you lived this.

[@metsfan7376]

What was the guy at Myrtle Beach’s name?

[@Haroldbeavis1969]

What a great video. I've been an avid baseball fan -- obsessed, really -- for more than 50 years. This is the best description of minor league ball I've seen since reading Pat Jordan's "A False Spring" many years ago. Love your videos. Matt. Wish i had found them sooner but better late than never, I suppose.

[@doubleemcastillano464]

What’s the book about?

[@Haroldbeavis1969]

@@doubleemcastillano464 It’s Pat’s first person account of life in the minors, all the way from top notch highly touted prospect to failed minor leaguer. Great read.

[@StephenTomczak]

I guess this video is pretty old, but I appreciate the explanation anyway. My nephew just moved up to "High-A" ball in the Mariners org. I've been trying to track his progress as he has been playing pro since high school. It was a HUGE adjustment going from a HS kid dominating and having fun with his friends to having to train, go to meetings, practice, etc. as a job 24/7/365. The first two years were really rough but he seems to have settled in and is making his way up now. I am certainly proud of him however far he makes it, as having been a D3 college athlete I know how much time and effort (not to mention talent) it takes at that level, and that is barely a blip compared to any level of professional athletics.

[@radioman8427]

Quite a few years ago Fernando Valenzuela came to Little Rock to pitch against our AA team. This was after he was released from the Dodgers and he signed with a Texas League team. About 12,000 packed the small park to see him pitch. He pitched a two hiter shutout and I remarked to the guy next to me this is the difference between the minors and the majors.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Without a doubt!!! Thanks for watching our stuff and commenting!

[@J.C...]

Texas League, eh? We had a championship AA Texas League team here for quite a while that end up leaving. They were a SF Giants farm team. The Shreveport Captains. I saw a bunch of guys come through here that went to the majors. The biggest being Doug Mirabelli, Tim Wakefield's catcher. There were a few others but nobody really big that I remember.

[@adampalmer3702]

Awesome insight! As a frequent observer here in Low A - Asheville, NC, it's so cool to understand what these guys go through and have ahead of them. Really makes me appreciate all the hard work they put in and constant adversity they face as they move up.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks Adam! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@jacquestaulard3088]

Fun to hear you talk with admiration on your peers. NO ONE really 'gets it' on how good you guys are at sport and then even players like YOU see guys who you imagine are from another planet or two

[@cedricgist7614]

Thanks for your recollections of how talent improved as you progressed. I've known of guys getting promoted to MLB from Double A, so I figured that was the watershed line. What you shared nearly aligns with what analyst Eric Walker maintains - that after three years of professional ball, a player has pretty much established who he is.

[@kosys5338]

Man, I have to say, your insight into playing for the majors and the road to get there is pretty awesome. Another great video. Thanx.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thank you!!! Thanks for watching our videos and commenting!!!

[@manifestgtr]

I can relate to the “high level college ball = aaa” nonsense you hear. I’m a professional guitarist and back when guitar hero was a thing, I remember hearing more than one person say that “freebird on expert mode is tougher than playing it on a real guitar!” Ohhh ok...so how long did it take you to master that? I dunno...3 or 4 weeks? Right...now realize that it takes most people 3-4 years to become a MEDIOCRE guitar player...nevermind the next decade you’ll spend learning how to play with feel, precision, consistency and confidence.

[@mggailitis7231]

Hey man, I'm so happy to have stumbled onto this channel. I've seen two videos and both were illuminating and super interesting. I only recently took an interest in baseball and have a ton of questions regarding pretty much every aspect of the game. I'm from Toronto, and the "Bat Flip" game was by far the the best baseball game I have ever seen. The atmosphere was electric. Needless to say, I became hooked. Looking forward to watching more vids.

[@Ruby2sdee]

Hey man, how would English speaking team members communicate/get along with the non-English speaking team members?

[@bbausch1184]

Ruben Vargas Translators?

[@Ruby2sdee]

I know but, like getting along in the clubhouse/dugout.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Good question. I'll try to make a video for you! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@SeanOMatic]

That's a great question, man.

[@erad67]

From what I hear, there aren't many professional translators in the minors, especially for the Spanish speakers. I worked for a minor league team one year. A lot of the non-English speakers do pick up a little English. You can communicate quite a bit with a very basic vocabulary and hand motions. Also, some teammates will translate if it's something important that needs full and detailed understanding. Some of the English speakers also know a little Spanish as well.

[@DuCaDo003]

Thanks for the video! Very interesting! I don't play baseball but I am a fan of MLB and it's interesting to hear someone who played talk candidly about some "behind-the-scenes" stuff and the process of trying to make it to the major leagues. Thanks again!

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@OSUalum41]

Matt, a friend of mine once told me that AAA players pretty much can do all the same things MLB players can do - that the talent is pretty close to the same. The key difference, he said, was consistency. MLB players are more consistent and that's that main difference between AAA and MLB. Does that sound accurate to you?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Yes kind of, but consistency is a huge deal. That is a skill. There is a large gap between players that can do it once in a while and players that can almost always do it. Thanks for watching our videos and for commenting!!!

[@patrickhughes9304]

I was once told that good MLB ballers play AAA. The standard of play in the show is so high. They not only expect you to be great but to be great every time.

[@SH19922x]

It's weird though its gotta be hard to judge when you have guys looking like idiots when playing in MLB, is the turnover so high during the season? Or do you get a number of fuckups before someone kicks you out? Like if babe ruth or someone was playing wonderball for 5 years all the way to AAA then half a season in MLB performs horribly will they still kick him out? Or take into account his wonderful college/minor league performances

[@timbrown5576]

I think when a player first come up, they have to be consistent to stick around. But once a player is established and have a guaranteed contract, they could have long slumps and still stay on the roster. Also, I'm seeing a lot more strikeouts because players are swinging for the fences now because of that silly launch angle. When the defense shift, they don't know how to hit the ball the other way. Pitching at the major league level isn't all that consistent also. You have pitchers throwing with maximum effort throwing at 100 MPH and leave after a few innings. They don't know how to change their approach by mixing their pitches to batters that they faced in the 3rd time in the order. Analytics is ruining the game.

[@TheMadMariner]

Great video. Your love for the game and sense of humor really shows.

[@BellaGsdad]

Hey Matt, great insight as always. The biggest jump for me was when I got to Double A. It was like all the guys with the tools really started to put it together. The consistency wasn't always there, but it's where talented guys turned in to ball players and knew what they were doing.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! And thanks for sharing!!!

[@ryangi5]

Hey Alex, interesting point. I totally get where you’re coming from.

[@kaydoubleyou4316]

I had a teacher in high school who in his younger days worked his way up through the minors as a pitcher. He had some great stories about the fun they had in the 1970s.

[@StackerBA]

"You're gonna see a lot of tools" was unintentionally funny. Got a chuckle out of that.

[@XxWakeboarder911xX]

I’ve never even played baseball but really enjoy the videos. Thanks for sharing.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks! Thanks for watching and commenting!!

[@howardwilliams2587]

I played in the military (Air Force) one year in 1970 before Nixon budget cuts did away with the team. We played mostly small colleges and some AA teams. It was primarily a PR group. Our level of play was probably your description of 'short season'. They are all good ball players, just not great yet or consistent. I've had 100mph fast balls behind my head on several occasions - quite disconcerting! As a catcher my cup got bent several times on plays at the plate. Your insights have brought back many great memories for . Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Wow crazy! And thanks!!! Thanks so much for commenting and watching our videos!

[@romimusic]

Thanks Alex for asking the question that a lot of people are afraid to admit that they wanted to ask themselves.

[@MrOccyc]

I really appreciate the insight on subjects like this. Thanks for posting.

[@lyndallbazzrea9941]

For you old school guys I played softball with a guy that played minor league ball with Ron Gant and David Justice. He said those guys were so smooth, so fast and made it look easy. You knew they were going to The Show!

[@encompassvideo5429]

I was a serious prospect for the Red Sox circa 1977 when I was in middle school, or so I liked to believe.

[@davidursini4740]

I hear what you're saying with regard to skills at the AAA and Major League Level. One of my roommates and fraternity brothers walked on as a Junior at the Univ. of Florida. Later he was drafted by the Tigers...Scott Lusader. He had those freaky skills you talked about as an outfielder. At 5'9" and 165 he could throw from deep in the outfield with no hop straight into the catcher.

[@marksmadhousemetaphysicalm2938]

My home town hosts the Phillies AA team...don't live there anymore so I don't know if it's still the case, but so many players from the Phillies rehabbed there...half a season recovering with the little Phillies and back to the big phillies... it was awesome to watch these guys growing up play in our town, get autographs...it was because we were close to Philadelphia that they sent them there...they didn't need to find housing or anything...in less than an hour they could be in Philadelphia. The AAA park was much further away...🤷‍♂️

[@mste910366]

I grew up going to AA games so I’m used to seeing that level of play. This past weekend I went to a college summer league game. The league is supposed to be one of the better college summer leagues, just below the Cape Cod League. I noticed a huge difference in the level of pitching between these guys and players at the AA level. I saw a pitcher fail to back up a throw from the outfield to 3rd base. When the ball got past the 3rd baseman the catcher wound up getting it leaving the plate uncovered. I also saw a pitcher fail to cover home on a passed ball. Matt mentioned a big jump up in the level of play when he reached AA. That goes with what I’ve heard about AA ball being the proving ground where the real prospects are separated from the pretenders. I think the jump up to AAA is huge because that’s where your facing guys with major league experience regularly for the first time. I remember reading 1 player saying that was the first time he faced pitchers who threw the ball out of the strike zone on purpose.

[@Carlos3000727]

Really enjoy these videos. Thank you!

[@stephendufort4154]

Not silly to me, and most of us, we never even got near a high school baseball and never saw, even a game. So we have zero idea of what its like to so , we listen to guys like U!

[@MarcM143]

Thanks for keeping it clean for the youngsters

[@gdoggcasey]

Damn Alex and his dumb questions :P Just found your channel man, really enjoying the insight from inside the game!

[@TheMoondog15]

I enjoy watching Rookie League games. Getting their baseball cards and hoping at least one of them becomes a super will known rookie in the Majors.

[@isaacmason1689]

Loving all these videos lately

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@3daypriest]

I don’t even watch baseball but I enjoy your insights.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks so much I appreciate that!!

[@YolkyPalky]

How about the differences in the Minors/Majors off the field of play? For example, in Low A, are you doubling up in a Motel 6 on the road, carrying your own bags, etc, vs Majors barely handling your luggage and staying in premium hotels, etc. Aside from the differences in the baseball performed on the field, I bet there is a whole other discussion of the lifestyle of the player at each level in the Minor/Major "food chain" so to speak.

[@mikeb1010]

YolkyPalky I think he already made a few vids on that stuff

[@jackhalas9493]

Really enjoyed this one. Cool to see that even as a player you were Wow'ed by some of the stuff you saw at AAA & MLB levels

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!!

[@tophyl7558]

My cousin Andrew Bellatti pitches for the Phillies and my friend Chris Donnell's was the number one pick of the Mets who also played for the Dodger's, D-Backs and a handful of other teams before he retired

[@JADiaz10]

It was cool hearing the differences

[@jeremy454]

My problem is that I didn’t play as well in the cold weather. I hit about 100 points higher in the summer league. I also hit better when I didn’t give a shit. I think hitting can be very psychological and if you put to much pressure on yourself or become a little neurotic it can be very frustrating. I don’t know how in the hell these guys performed in the minor leagues given the day to day conditions.

[@Maideneer]

Extracurricular obligations: are you forced to do photo shoots, submit baby pictures, do meet and greets at local restaurants/phone stores, radio shows, corporate meetings/speaking, make appearances etc etc or is that an on the side “my agent booked that for me” kind of thing. I think I know the answer because I once put together and managed corporate events for Mariano Rivera and also for Brian Cashman/Sandy Alderson but really just wondering how that all works.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Some of the events are things players want to do. There are certain obligations placed on you by the team though. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@SantaBarbaraAlberto]

Played in the rookie league back in 72 before it was the rookie league. There was no money then either. I was signed out of Puerto Rico where I played Double A with the Carolina Gaints as a catcher. Did extremely well and hit over .300. Got hit on a foul tip in my pinky finger hand so couldn't play and that was the end of baseball for me. There were lines after lines of players ready to play. Endup going to College for about a year then my army reserve unit got activated and by my luck spent 3 years digging fox holes and jumping out of airplanes in South East Asia. Would had love to stay playing baseball. War sucks!

[@travisslaathaug8828]

really really good break down. I played independent ball after NAIA college, I've always wondered where that would fall. My guess is right what is sounds like, less than all of it. We even had the 7th draft pick guy who failed miserably as our center fielder. I live in a city with AA baseball, lots of mid 90s - lots of future major leaguers come through.Im sending this video to mini tour and pro golfers and saying, "just think of everything said here, apply it to golf, and you will know where you're at."

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks so much for watching our videos and I appreciate you commenting!!

[@zepole87]

Mexico has 2 pro leagues. Summer and winter. Alot of ex major leaguers play in the summer league when their mlb career is done. And alot of current minor leaguers and few major leaguers go to mexico and play winter ball in the off season.

[@ItsAllAboutGuitar]

Five years later, but I didn't know you existed until now. I'm curious on why it takes so much longer to make it to the big time in baseball as opposed to basketball (Kobe was 17!). Is it as simple as baseball is a lot harder than basketball?

[@AmericanEagleThe2nd]

Awesome vid, love hearing all this info about baseball

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks for watching!!!

[@user-jv9qz2bu1r]

love your description of AAA. off topic - would love your take on Bull Durham movie

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! And I’ll do a video on it! Thanks for watching!

[@fliegeroh]

Great vid. Thanks.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thank you!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@dvvalant]

I once attended a try-out camp run by the Pirates and the Reds. I did pretty well but we just couldn't agree on a contract. I wanted to sign one, and they didn't want me to sign one.

[@spi71]

Smaller fields may be attendance in. AAA is what 10,000 - 12,000 and in smaller cities. Worcester, MA is getting the Pawsox in about 2 - 3 years.

[@metaljustice4518]

Baseball..the game that takes a lifetime to try to master and i can be over in a heartbeat...

[@sasquatchhunter86]

At least you have options in MLB. Lower leagues. In the NFL, it’s there, Canada, or bust. Unless you count indoor leagues that nobody watches

[@LEV1ATHYN]

Awesome vid man

[@dirkhafner9970]

Thank you! So interesting!!

[@manifestgtr]

Another thing I’ve heard about major league play is that everything in the game becomes “faster”. You have to get rid of the ball as quickly as you can. A lot more “bang, bang” stuff happens...close plays. Runners are really digging it out hard. All of that stuff. I’m not a player but I heard a career minor leaguer say that once and it made a lot of sense to me. So that’s always been my big “impression” of the difference between aaa and the mlb.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Sure thing! Speed of the game definitely increased with every level.

[@jefflovercheck1930]

Wanted to know the dugout atmosphere and pitcher reactions to defenders blowing a perfect game no no etc. Thanks for the videos. Really great insight.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Depends on the player. Most are pretty respectful, but seen a few really get pissed! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@markc5771]

You said more in fifteen minutes than those professional sports analysts say in three weeks.

[@brenthildenbrand7556]

I was done when I could hear the pitches but not see them but I loved hot dogs so I became a fan.

[@SeanOMatic]

Holy shit, when I first watched this, I thought your buddy Alex asked if you could play at college baseball level NOW. He actually asked you when you were still playing for MLB teams. Wow.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha yes!

[@billmalec]

Went to more than a few try out camps as a pitcher. Always threw to the batters. Always got looked at afterward. One time very closely by many scouts. They always wanted to see your fastball. Heck, I threw 85 tops and that's what they want to see 85 and above. Well, I threw like a veteran pitcher by then because I didn't have over powering stuff. I had a good curve (from multiple arm positions), a slider and even a decent split-finger, and a change up off any pitch. They weren't concerned with that at all. All they wanted was, like you say, a tool. Probably the best though as I think I'd have been at best a Double A player. Went to school and became a Doctor instead of floundering for years in the system.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks for sharing!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@TeamoJr]

Matt, did you ever get the option to play overseas?

[@lancethune8740]

Watched several videos of yours that were very informative. I have a grandson playing JV high school ball , and would like to here your take on the best avenues for him to reach the next level of play.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! I'll try to get some more videos up for you. Good luck to him!

[@JoeyIndolos]

When you were talking about the sloppier play that characterizes the lower leagues, I couldn’t help but think about the Yankee’s 5th inning in game 5 😢

[@DeanGoranites]

Great content, thanks!

[@kingarthurj]

I used to live in Pearl,MS where the the Braves Double-A team is. They put together an exhibition with the Braves Futures team (all the top prospects) going up against the actual Atlanta Braves. I'm figuring since it's the best of the best from the minors then it might be competitive game. Shiiiiid, as soon as BP started I knew it was going to be a massacre. First off all everyone from the Atlanta Braves looked huge. Jason Heyward looked like Cerrano from major league and Freddy Freeman was just as big. The crack of the bat sounded different, the trajectory of the ball was different when it left the bat, the sound of the ball hitting the mitt was different. When the Atlanta Braves hit homeruns the balls were so high in the air I thought they were fouls. The "Futures" couldn't hit the ball nor could they get the Atlanta Braves out. I was flabbergasted at the difference in the level of play. Also, I got to see Alex Wood and Ben Sheets. Now with Sheets he was rehabbing from an injury and he was already established but once again, I knew his stuff was different from everyone else. Alex Wood on the other hand was up and coming but I knew he wasn't long for Double-A either. He pitched Sundays and they used to have a promotion called the Wing-Stop challenge where if the pitchers got enough strikeouts to spell Wing-Stop (hyphen included) then everyone got 5 free wings. I ALWAYS went to the Sunday games because Alex Woods was gonna get those 9 strikeouts. I mean he had a 1.26 ERA who does that!?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Absolutely!! It is amazing to see. Thanks for sharing! Thanks for watching our vids and commenting! I really appreciate it!

[@Yep529]

I am a pitcher (switch) in youth baseball I pitch sidearm sliders and changeups I threw a slider bout 35 mph and this guy bombed it over the fence that’s my first time seeing some bomb a slow slider over the fence in my league

[@johnfraleee]

I have a buddy who would argue with me saying that the best college football team, say Alabama, could beat the Browns when they were 0-16 lol. I tell him, you do realize that the best player Alabama has is every player in the NFL but better. They’d be lucky to get a field goal on them.

[@billbaber6653]

Enjoyed the chat

[@mississippirebel1409]

Anyone that can go and play in the SEC or ACC is REALLY good, so I can only imagine how good the players are in the minors and MLB are. I always loved playing baseball and i'm pretty lucky to have gotten the opportunity to play juco baseball. Unfortunately my should finally gave out and I ended up enlisting in the army and spent 11 yrs in the army. But even if I would have stayed healthy I sorta knew that college ball would be it for me. I was a pretty decent player but I wasn't even close to being good enough to start for a SEC team lol. I grew up in Mississippi and we have some really good baseball and football players that come out of the state. But I remember in high school (I graduated in 2000) facing a kid from that had a legit 90+ mph fastball and a great curve. He was also a lefty and it was my first time seeing a pitcher that threw that hard. Needless to say he made me look pretty stupid the first time I faced him lol. He was smart and changed speeds on me with his fastball. The first pitch he threw was maybe mid 80's right down the middle. I was thinking I can crush that if the throws it again because I was thinking he could throw really hard. Well the second pitch was his REAL 90+ mph fastball and I didn't he get a chance to swing. So now it's a 0-2 count and I figured he would just try to throw a fastball right by me again. Well this time I was just going to start my swing really early, but instead he throws me this big breaking curveball and I swear I think I broke my back and neck lol. I was so far out in front of it and I realized it when the ball was about halfway to me. I think my bat landing halfway down the left field line. That was so embarrassing but the good news is i actually did end up getting two hits off him but we got our butts kicked. The pitcher and catcher on that team ended up going to LSU on scholarships.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Wow! Thank you for sharing!! Thanks for commenting and watching our stuff!

[@mattandjax2002]

Hi Matt Love Your Videos SO MUCH ❤️❤️❤️

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@MIlobloom6548]

Matt, I heard the biggest difference between triple A and Major League for players was one big thing; consistency. Being able to do your position/hitting consistently night overnight. A triple-A player can play as good as an MLB player on any given night, but struggle more to do that consistently. How fair is that statement? Thanks for your videos, insight!

[@330wiz7]

I never made it to the bigs. But i did play minor league ball and i can tell you once u hit the higher levels of A ball. Dudes throw GAS its another level. It weeds out the guys who just dont have it. Baseball is the most difficult game out there

[@littlelildude69]

And then there’s Juan Soto

[@jmart1393]

Yea Juan Soto and his growth hormone

[@maddierosemusic]

@@jmart1393 You a cheatin' Astros fan bois? GO NATS!

[@mlbhittingmechanics]

Great insight

[@alimansoor6075]

Great video

[@cagedtigersteve]

I always thought it would be fun to watch a college versus MLB game....like Auburn vs the Yankees.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

They kind of do that in spring training, although it's not really the major league team. Thanks for watching our stuff and commenting!

[@danejurus69]

The Red Sox play Boston College once a year.

[@Matt-ek1me]

Great vid as always

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Mr.56Goldtop]

Very informative! Maybe Alex was asking if you could still play at that level after being out of the game for a while. Not about your skill level, which would obviously be far superior to any player on Clemson.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Haha maybe! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@houstoncranford5983]

Tan! That’s my favorite color!!!

[@nbwall56]

I love your channel. You may have addressed this, but what are things that keep pitchers and hitters in the minor leagues?

[@tonecot8932]

Compared to a high school draftee, do college players have a more streamlined path to majors? Most high school prospects might spend two years in rookie level or a year per level where as college prospects seem to get to the majors in less than 2 years. Also, have you ever played in the Arizona Fall League and if so, how does compare?

[@dixieloucarter3302]

As a parent, how do you walk the line of being encouraging and supportive without being overbearing? My son wants to be a ball player and I want to do everything I can to help him improve, but I don't want to smother him. I just want to make sure that it stays fun for him.

[@StayFlyJW]

dixie lou Carter as a college kid that should have continued playing, show them the pros. Take them to games and make sure they know it is achievable but they will need to work hard. Teach them the mechanics and when they get around 13, start talking to them about the possibility of it being a career if they want. If my parents would have stayed on my ass about baseball, I may could have made it farther, but I gave up and didn’t have anyone pushing me. Decisions should be made by the person who is living their life, but kids are dumb and don’t know what they want.

[@dixieloucarter3302]

Thanks! We live in the Seattle area and go to a lot of Mariners games. He watches the games on tv too.

[@StayFlyJW]

dixie lou Carter I would just continue doing what you’re doing. Engage in anything that they enjoy and run with it, even if it isn’t baseball.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Good question! It’s tough to really say. I felt like I was pushed as a kid to practice and play hard, but I wanted to play. There are some kids that don’t want to play, and if that’s the case it’s hard to push them. I think if they love it it’s important to be there to help in anyway, but make sure they enjoy doing it. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@bbausch1184]

Love the vids I remember my first was what you get for free in the majors

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@bbausch1184]

Antonelli Baseball It’s hard not to since these videos are so amazing!

[@kurumauzamaki2731]

What would the level progress for someone like Harper and Soto and anyone who debuted at 19

[@rgl168]

I know Olerud went directly from college baseball to MLB (Blue Jays) without playing a single game at the minors. But that's more of an exception rather than the norm.

[@zogger5281]

Nice summary. Can you comment about the amount/quality of coaching that exists at each level? Thanks!

[@felmin809]

Can you break down Yoenis Cespedes swing.

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Will do my best! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Haroldbeavis1969]

Great video, Matt. As I said in a comment below, I'm only sorry I didn't find you sooner. Question: What's your honest assessment of Tim Tebow the baseball player? Do players like you have any resentment towards someone who was obviously fast-tracked because of his name and celebrity? Or do you respect him for showing the success he had on the AA level despite having played so little baseball? Just curious what your take is. Thanks.

[@Dre-sv1ke]

Alex needs a hairline

[@annielinkous7635]

Great Insight Mike~YesYouHitItOnTheRightWords~IHaveBeenAFanOfTheGameForALongTime~IKnowWhatYouMean~MLBLevelIsAmazing👍👍👍😍😍😍

[@LJSJIUJITSU]

Years ago I was told by a coach who played minor league ball that if you can succeed well at a D-1 you can hang at the low A level. Does that still hold true from your experience?

[@pitt14370]

Awesome to see your channel growing like crazy! Keep putting out content! What was your walk-up song?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

Thanks!!! I had a bunch and made a video covering them all lol. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@thawkereynolds]

My biggest question is when you have a player that yoyos from the big leagues to Triple A what does he get paid and how does he get paid? So with the minimum salary is 540000 and from June 1st to June 27 hes in the bigs then they send a down from June 28 to July 1st then backup again how does that work for pay check?

[@davislooper5870]

What about gulf coast league, pacific league, and fall league like Arizona? Are those below rookie ball or are they even affiliated with the MLB?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

GCL is Rookie Ball essentially. Pacific Coast league is AAA. Fall league is kind of like an all-star fall ball league. Thanks so much for watching!!!

[@chourpus1949]

Did u play varsity as a Freshmen?

[@AntonelliBaseball]

I was called up towards the end of the season my freshman year. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@brandonyankees1]

I was a senior last year and we had an 8th grade starting ss who bat like .310. Crazy

[@jackhalas9493]

He played at St John's Prep in Danvers, MA which here in Mass is an absolute power of a baseball program! Can cost your parents some pretty big coin too if you can't play ball well.

[@walkershultz8700]

Rick Nash wait what? You’re only allowed to play 4 years of high school so he must not have played senior year

[@briannewsome6208]

Walker Shultz those eligibility rules are dependent on the state. some states focus on a maximum age while others explicitly state 4 years of high school eligibility

[@joeyfreitas1942]

Hey Alex, do you think you could cut it on a t ball team?