Andrew Walling: Who Are You Without the Game?
Episode Description Andrew Walling’s journey doesn’t follow the typical path people imagine when they think about elite baseball players. He...
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Marc Wiese: The Game Ends, The Relationships Don’t
Episode Date March 25, 2026 Episode Description Rhett sits down with longtime coach and mentor Marc Wiese, a respected leader in youth baseb...
James Lane: The Truth About Youth Sports Parents
The conversation explores how early success can be misleading, how parents can unintentionally raise the intensity of youth sports, and how ...
Tara Henry: When Winning Becomes the Point, Kids Lose
In this episode of Surviving Youth Sports, Rhett Parker sits down with Tara Henry, General Manager of Softball America and a leader in inter...
Ian Ritchie: When Rankings Don’t Tell the Whole Story (Pt 2)
Ian shares his honest experience navigating national rankings while his son JR was rising through the baseball world. He explains the confus...
Ian Ritchie: When One Son Keeps Playing and One Walks Away (Pt 1)
It’s about everything that came before draft day. The practices most people never see. The early mornings and car rides home. The responsibi...
Angie Mentink: Parenting Athletes Without Living Through Them
This week on Surviving Youth Sports, Rhett sits down with Angie Mentink . You may know her from Seattle Mariners broadcasts covering Major L...
Justin Cunningham: From College Coach to Dad in the Stands
Justin has coached at multiple levels of college baseball and currently leads at Lyon College. This past year, he experienced the game diffe...
Xavier Neyens: There’s No Secret Recipe
Houston Astros first round draft pick Xavier Neyens shares his Player POV on what “it worked out” really means. In this Surviving Youth Spor...
Andrew Walling: Who Are You Without the Game?
At one point, Andrew Walling was at the top. Throwing mid-90s. Big opportunities. A path that looked like it was only going one way. Then it didn’t. Injuries, pressure, and the weight of expectations started to take over. Confidence slipped. The yips showed up. And for the first time, he questioned ...
Marc Wiese: The Game Ends, The Relationships Don’t
Rhett sits down with longtime coach and mentor Marc Wiese, whose career spans youth baseball, high school state championships, college programs, and USA Baseball. Having coached his own sons and thousands of players along the way, Marc brings a perspective shaped by both success and reflection. This...
James Lane: The Truth About Youth Sports Parents
In this episode of Surviving Youth Sports , host Rhett Parker sits down with basketball coach James Lane to talk about the reality of youth sports from multiple perspectives. James has lived nearly every side of the game. He played Division I basketball, coached at the college and high school level,...