From Ireland to Oregon: Improving your game

May 14, 2012, 9:44 am

Concussions, Bounty Gate, the death of Junior Seau, Darron Thomas leaving for the NFL and a possible behind the scenes controversy between the defected QB and his head coach Chip Kelly, Aaron Gipson, former Duck, joined the program to give his take on all the issues. Plus, Aaron is joined by Kelly Ireland, President of Metro League Baseball, talking about his ventures with Gipson towards keeping kids active and improving their skillsets.

With the summer months quickly approaching, parents need to find creative and innovative ways of keeping their kids active. Kelly Ireland and Aaron Gipson talk about Metro League Baseball and the different aspects and elements of coaching they offer.

Aaron Gipson focuses on speed and quickness, while a team of Tom Gorman and Kevin Gunderson specialize in pitching. Darold Ellison leads the way in hitting coaching; Ellison currently serves as a scout for the Miami Marlins and is ones of the most respected hitting coaches in the Pacific Northwest. Kelly specializes in teaching hitting and fielding along with an overall passion for baseball. His goal is for players and families to enjoy baseball and all that it offers. He played baseball for nearly two decades, and experienced what it takes to exceed beyond the high school level.

For all back stories and bios on the coaches, click here.

Tom Gorman: Pitching

Kevin Gunderson: Pitching

Darold Ellison: Hitting

Kelly Ireland: Hitting, Fielding

Zach Brown: Catching, Hitting

Kelly strives each day to continue his father’s legacy of helping kids grow through the pursuit of excellence in both life and baseball. “I’ve been around coaches all my life and know how important it is to connect to players. Since my father’s passing, I’ve worked very hard to select the ideal coaching staff to shape Metro Baseball Academy’s future in providing a high quality training organization. I feel very fortunate to have such great people involved with Metro Baseball.”

Aaron Gipson, former University of Oregon NCAA College Football All-American and National Leader in Interceptions, as its Speed, Quickness & Agility Coach. Aaron’s coaching approach is that of a demonstrator. He focuses on quality and meticulous methods to create a lifelong foundation for speed, agility and quickness in any sport. He stresses the importance of giving maximum effort on every rep, to achieve your overall potential.

Aaron knows firsthand that the youth sporting world has evolved to a level of competitiveness unseen in year’s past. “Youth from all over the world are training year-round to gain a competitive advantage,” he says. “No longer are the days where youth just play little league.”

"Sports Cross Fit Training" - Starting May 10, 2012 @ Metro Baseball Academy - Aaron Gipson willl be leading youth in this hour long 4 week class that focuses on functional sports training. This is a challenging class that will help young athletes build fundamentals needed in every sport.

Gipson shares his thoughts, too, on Darron Thomas leaving for the NFL, his experience with concussions and the affect it has on him and what needs to be done to protect its players.

And be sure to check out their website, here