Communication Is Not A Soft Skill In Life Or Baseball

There they were…two teenagers having temper tantrums both on the mound and behind the plate concurrently.  We could be talking about the Sonny Gray-Gary Sanchez duo or the Luis Severino-Gary Sanchez out of tune duet.  Either would showcase a couple of little leaguers unable to communicate effectively, unless you consider eye rolls and leg thumping communication.  If the Yankees are going to win, their pitcher and catcher match ups have to learn to communicate.  And make no mistake communication is not a soft skill, it’s essential.

According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), communication, one of eight essential competencies needed for lifelong success, is defined as an ability to “articulate thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively in written and oral forms to persons inside and outside of the organization.” Accordingly, communication skills are ranked as the number one “must have” skill according to the 2010 NACE survey.  And if you are going to make it in baseball, you have to be able to represent your team with positivity in the public eye, articulate insights to the media, communicate with your team and communicate within your smaller teams, like pitchers and catchers.

When I see Sonny Gray and Gary Sanchez miscommunicate with the result being wild pitches and needless runs like we saw on Monday night and a similar transaction between Severino and Sanchez, I just shake my head and say, “I’m not having this crap.”

No one cares how hard Sanchez has been working or how fast Severino can pitch after 100 pitches if their day to day interaction looks like two teenagers have a lunch room battle.  “We use different signs (in contrast to those with Austin Romine),” said Severino, who gave up six runs (five earned), six hits and fell to 17-7,” as reported by NY Post after a loss earlier this month in Oakland.  “I think I need to do a better job and communicate more with Gary, and try to get better,” Severino said according to NJ.com after the loss in Oakland.  Sanchez shared the same sentiment.

It was the screaming match in the dugout against the Rays back in July where these two guys exchanged words and frustrations for all to see.  It has not gotten all that better since and the root cause of this appears to be a complete lack of communication.

The team has to get on the same page with one another.  They have to respect and trust each other if they are going to be successful this post season or next season.  Two more games in Tampa and three in Boston before we go to the all-in, winner-takes-all Wild Card showdown.  Will it be Luis Severino and Gary Sanchez in this game?  Likely not the two of them, but rather Sanchez and another partner.  Either way, the communication has to be intact, consistent and effective in order to win, no matter who is on the mound and who is behind the plate.

–Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof