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Sunday Morning Chat: PJP II Manager Pete Graffeo

Today, we sat down with Pope John Paul II’s Pete Graffeo, who is in his first high school coaching job at Pope John Paul II. We spoke about his style of coaching and facing the top teams in county. Enjoy…

Anthony: Alright. First off, give our readers a little background on your coaching career.

Coach Graffeo: This is my first high school coaching job. I had been offered some jobs previously, some high school opportunities, but I felt at the time, I really wanted to wait until my kids graduated high school and moved on to college. What happened with Pope John Paul is that I was offer the job and also had another offer from another school. I decided that I’m not getting any younger and they may stop asking me so I decided it was time. Even though my son is still in high school I decided, let me take this opportunity now and go ahead. I coached travel baseball for a long time for my older son and my younger son I coached basically the same group of kids since they were nine years old. I didn’t have a travel team that took kids from every team. It was just the same core of kids because I like to teach them how to play the game. I got to pass on my passion for the game and that’s kind of how I got started in doing it.

Anthony: Last year you guys were 11-13 with some exciting things happening for the program; you got your first home field to play on. Tell me about that experience and the preparation leading up to playing on the field for the first time ever.

Coach Graffeo: They haven’t had a field there in 31 years. When I was hired the main thing I said was, you have to have a baseball field. If you really want to build a baseball program. And I was assured that that was going to happen. I would say, probably halfway though my first year, I didn’t know if that was going to happen. A lot of people told me that probably wouldn’t happen, “they’ve been saying that for years.” But one of the guys that really spearheaded the whole thing was MLB Umpire, Ed Rapuano. He’s been a friend of the program, he’s become a good friend of mine. Many people and organizations have assisted in building this field and I don’t want to leave anybody out, but Ed Rapuano really helped us make that dream come true of building a field.. So last year it was a little rough. We got it started and it wasn’t perfect. There were many imperfections to the field but in time we would fix them. This year we were able to fix many of those imperfections. We’re really happy with the finished product. Unfortunately, the opening of the field we played 2 innings and got rained out. I hope that wasn’t an omen.

Anthony: How much has that helped your program and the players. A lot of baseball is the camaraderie and having the field and the field maintenance and stuff like that. How much has that changed your program?

Coach Graffeo: I think it is another option for incoming freshmen. There’s Cardinal Newman up north, there’s Cardinal Gibbons, south and even further south is St. Thomas, as far as Catholic schools. Pope wasn’t really a choice for a lot of students interested in baseball because their program was had a poor reputation. Plus, they played home games at Sugar Sand Park.; It almost gave you a rec baseball kinda feel to it. It wasn’t a place they could call home. We got through that first year of playing at Sugar Sand and then we got the field for my second year. It’s just a complete change. First of all, when people come to visit the school they see that you have baseball field on campus. Previously, If you had a prospective student and parents visit the school and they asked where the field was, you had to explain that we had to travel to Sugar Sand Park for practice and games. Thant would mean either a parent has to come pick him up after school and drop the student off at Sugar Sand or they had to get a ride with a student that drives. Not a great selling point for incoming baseball players. We had to build a field on campus if we wanted to build a real baseball program. As far as the morale of the players, it’s great. There is school spirit because they’re on the campus. You’ve got lacrosse, softball and other activities going on campus and now the baseball program feels like it’s part of the school as opposed to being on an island over at Sugar Sand Park.

Anthony: Also last year you had several players sign on with scholarships, Zander with Villanova. How rewarding is it to see players that you’ve helped develop, moving into the next phase successfully because of what you do?

Coach Graffeo: The priority is to get a quality education and Zander will get that at Villanova. it’s not about me, it’s about Zander. He’s a hard working kid. He helped turn this program around. Obviously you’ve got to have a good catcher and you’ve got to be strong up the middle, but as far as building a baseball team that’s where it starts. For lack of a better word Zander transferring to Pope” legitimized” our program…

Anthony: Credibility?

Coach Graffeo: Yeah, credibility in our program and what I’m trying to build as far as down the road. I didn’t come in here just to coach for a couple of years, I came here to build something as far as long term. Last year six freshman started, we were able to get 10, 11 wins. This year we’re starting six, seven sophomores at a time. So we have a young team that plays hard, knows how to play the game and we’re developing. Some of these young kids have gotten a lot of looks already as far as colleges calling, contacting me. I’ve had a couple of the major league scouts contact me about a couple of the kids. You’ll watch them out here today and I don’t know how much time you’ve, how many time you’ve seen us play; we’ve got some good looking athletes out there and they’ve caught a few people eyes. And they know how to play the game, it’s not just that they’re athletes, they’re baseball players. I feel real good about our program and the kids coming through. I think you’ll see a lot more of that, as far as kids being signed to go on and play. I’m not pushing it for any verbal commitments or that kind of stuff. I’m not really big on that. I’m more concerned with, let’s find the right fit for you. You’ve got to get your education, what’s fit for what you’re looking to do and then go from there.

Anthony: Tell me about Pete Graffeo away from the baseball field.

Coach Graffeo: I’m not usually away from the baseball field so that’s my first problem [laughing]. I’m just a regular guy, a family guy. I’ve got a daughter up in college, a son playing college baseball. I just like to be around my family and friends. I’m probably much more intense at the baseball field and practice than I am in the other aspects of my life. Most people think I’m a pretty easy going kind of guy on the outside, well not my family [laughing]. People that come in contact with me and then they see me out here on the baseball field see how intense I can be. I like to call it passion for the game. I believe that you have to push the guys to the limits to try and get them to reach their goals and their true ability.

Anthony: What are some of your fondest memories of the game of baseball? Not really at high school baseball but major league baseball. Times that stand out and shaped your love for the game.

Coach Graffeo: I grew up as a kid, my dad loved baseball. He passed away a couple years ago and he—(Coach got a little choked up as he spoke of his father)—I apologize for that, he taught me the game. He had taken me to Yankee games and all of that kind of stuff, always talking baseball.

Anthony: So he was the main influence.

Coach Graffeo: Yeah, he was a big influence for me (choked up).

Anthony: It’s ok.

Coach Graffeo: I also grew up during an era when I was a pitcher in high school and junior college level that starting pitchers finished what they started. I grew up idolizing Catfish Hunter. These kids probably have no idea who Catfish Hunter is. If you ever look at Hunter’s career, I think he had one year where he completed thirty plus games. There was no pitch count, that’s not what it was about. If you started a game, you finished a game. Now it’s a little bit different, everybody’s has a pitch count. And I understand that, believe me I follow that. But I just came from a different time. Those are the things I remember. Going to ballgames, Yankee stadium, that’s how I grew up.

Anthony: I talk to coaches all the time about the differences maybe when they were playing ball and now and how much major league baseball shapes that. Along the lines of pitch counts, do you think that’s where it comes from? You see what the nationals did last year with Strasburg, it may have cost them the world series. Is that just a different time in baseball? Do you think it’s better for the players?

Coach Graffeo: I’m kinda on the fence with it. At a players young age, I believe in the pitch count, In mlb there were a lot of great pitchers that came along that threw a lot of innings, a lot of pitches and lasted a long time.

Anthony: Never got hurt.

Coach Graffeo: And they had hall of fame careers. At this [high school] level I do think it’s important to keep pitch counts as the players are still developing. When I was coaching travel ball I saw opposing teams have pitchers throw 130 pitches. To me that’s abuse. They’re physically not ready. But when you get to the major league level how are will you know if you will get that opportunity again to play in a World Series. Strasburg would have probably made a big impact on the Nationals advancing to the WS.

Anthony: Palm Beach has some of the best programs in the state. How hard is it for you, who’s trying to build a program to face these top teams on a weekly basis?

Coach Graffeo: What I’ve tried to do each year, we only have two teams conference, Summit and Heritage, obviously two of the better teams in the county. I’ve tried to fill our schedule with as many good teams as I can schedule. A lot of other schools, they don’t have the room to fit us in because they may have six in their conference. But I want the opportunity and I want to play the best teams that are out there. What I’m trying to expose my kids to is the best baseball teams and players Because that’s the only way you’re going to find your flaws and get better. You’re not gonna find your flaws playing weak teams throughout the season. And that’s not to disrespect anybody. We played Benjamin the other day, our young pitcher had a bad inning but it will be a good character builder for my pitcher. Those are things he needs to learn and experience. We had another well-pitched game against Calvary, our kid strikes out 10 guys in five innings and allows one run. We can’t get the runs home. We lose one – nothing. We have to continue to coach and work on our situational hitting to win close games. it shows the importance of the aspects of the game. I’m a big believer that adversity makes you stronger.

I don’t know anybody that hasn’t been knocked down in life. When you get knocked down, and I preach to these kids, you’ve got to get back up. It’s how you react to that. You could go hide. You could sit and pout. But my theory is that you get up, dust yourself off and you go on to battle again. Unfortunately, the hardest part of baseball is you have to accept failure. It doesn’t mean you have to like it but you have to accept it and understand that. I don’t want to get off the subject but one of my things is, it’s kinda a pet-peeve, is that these kids put too much pressure on themselves. Whether the expectation, true or false comes from parents, from friends, or peers, They think “I’m supposed to carry the team.” Or, “I’m supposed to do this…” A lot of time it’s self created by them. They’re their own worst enemy. I’ve been around baseball way too long to expect a kid to get a hit every time up, strike every guy out.

That’s what I was explaining to my young pitcher the other day is that, you’re in a 1-1 game and you look like you’re down by twenty. And that’s what they have to understand, their expectations are unrealistic. It’s not that we don’t want to have success, but you’ve got to be realistic and be able to grind your way through it. I think that’s sometimes the biggest point I try to get across to these guys is that, “You’re putting these expectation on yourself and it’s not realistic.” Come out here and especially on game day, lets have fun! Practices are hard, we’re working, all the weightlifting, off season conditioning we did to prepare for this season. Now we come out on game day, this is fun. It shouldn’t be where you’re tightening up and you’re getting yourself wound tight. Just relax and let’s play.

Anthony: These kids are so impressionable at this age. How much of that do you think comes from parents. That pressure, especially in Palm Beach, it’s very cut-throat, the baseball community.

Coach Graffeo: Yeah it is. It’s not for me to say…

Anthony: Let me rephrase it. Is there a lesson in there that, even as coaches you can see that it’s just a game.

Coach Graffeo: Yes, I think, and again, I am one that coaches with intensity and passion but I don’t want to misinterpret that for make the expectations too high. I just expect us to go out and play hard. I think if the players were able to pull those expectations back a little bit and relaxed you would see a complete difference in them. Of course easier said than done. The mental approach It’s such a big part of the game. The kids get caught up looking at stats online, who’s hitting this. I just stress to them, I’m really not interested in stats. I’m interested in team baseball. Can you hit behind a runner? Do you know how to lay a bunt down to get him over? All the things to focus on them being complete ball players. A college coach is going to wants baseball players not just great athletes. They want to see a kid that can play the game. . guys have been around long enough to know that.

The players don’t realize that when scouts or college recruiters watch them play that they don’t expect perfection. A professional scout attended our pre season game to watch a sophomore. He has been following him from the summer. My player said to me after the game, “Coach, I had such a bad day.” He went one for four, a little bloop single the other way. And I was like, First of all, you are two years away from being a senior.” I said, “you have three high school seasons remaining.” I said, “Do you really think he’s looking at you today and saying, ‘I don’t want to look at that kid anymore, because he had a bad day.’” Because he went 1-4. I said, “That’s what I’m talking about by creating unrealistic expectations. He’s been watching baseball and scouting baseball for a long time. He’s looking at our skills, how you react to failure. Did you run the ball out?” That’s what he’s looking for. It’s easy to see how a player reacts to sucess but it’s the reaction to failure they want to see.

Anthony: Sure.

Coach Graffeo: Any scout from college or professional. They want to see how a kid reacts to failure. And that’s something that I try to preach to them. You’ve got to be able to show that you can move on to the next pitch, play etc. They want to see how you mature. And I’m a big believer in that. You’ve just got to be tough out there, grind it out. I would like my team to take on that persona.

Anthony: What are your ultimate goals for Pope John Paul baseball? I’m not talking State Championships, that’s a goal every goal has but more along the lines of, what is it I want Pope John Paul to stand for that makes them different from other programs?

Coach Graffeo: Obviously we want to win and besides that I want us to come out and have a good reputation as a team that plays hard. When someone comes out and watches us play I want they see that it’s well coached team with passion and plays it the right way. And obviously, also I want them to do well in school. College education is the priority. And I’m big on that. Players careers can end in a hurry “you’re an injury away from not playing anymore”. We are trying to build a solid program to be proud of on and off the field. We had our biggest freshman class this year and last year was our second biggest in the last ten years. The first year here, I had 11 kids come out, last year it was 24 and this year we had 44. So it’s been a nice progression as far as attracting future student athletes.

Anthony: No matter what community you’re in coaches are always criticized by fans and parents regardless of how many titles they’ve won or how they run their program. What do you think is the biggest miss conception about coaches in general from those that aren’t on the field with the kids everyday.

Coach Graffeo: I just think that the coaches get a bad rap where they don’t realize how much time we put into it; as far as off-season training and all the time we spend with these kids and talking to them. A fan could watch a game out here and they will see a kid is having a rough day but they dont know what may be going on in their personal life. Most coaches have that insight. Fans may say “Why is that kid playing?” It’s easy to second guess, it’s the easiest thing to do. Unfortunately that comes with the job. But I have a lot of respect for all my fellow coaches It’s kind of a thankless job in a sense. The positives of coaching far out way the negatives. I know I’m not going to appease everybody; somebody’s always going to have something negative to say. You just have to move on from it and not feed it. I hear things said about coaches and to me it’s unfair. If somebody’s going to do a better job they should apply for the job.

Anthony: What are your communication skills like with your team? Each coach has their own style; some are disciplinarian, some yell to get their point across, others are friendly with their players. What’s your style?

Coach Graffeo: I’m all of the above right there; because I do expect things done a certain way. We have some rules that we have to follow and if they don’t, the whole team is responsible for it. If one guy is late, they’re all late. So they have to be accountable. I’m big on accountability. Again, that’s also a life lesson to go with; you should be accountable for the things you do, as I am. I tell my guys “I’m far from perfect; I’ve made mistakes.” Even the other the day the kids were laughing because I told them, because I gave the kids the wrong sign. When I came in the next day I told them, “Listen I’m not above it, I made a mistake.” Nobody is perfect but I do expect them to follow a certain code that I’ve set up. I also have a lot of fun with them. We do have a good time together. There’s a time to be serious and these guys just know it. They’ve come to know my personality. They know when it’s time to fool around a little bit and have some fun.

Anthony: What’s the biggest thing or best thing you’ve ever learned about baseball or coaching, from another coach?

Coach Graffeo: Well, I guess there’s a couple of things; it’s not just all about winning but I became a friend, and I watch Coach Hofman for a number of years there; one of my sons played there; Bruce Charlebois. Guys that have intensity; just the way they carry themselves and what they expected from their players and how they push them. I have a tremendous amount of respect for that. Some parents might say that they’re a little too intense. I’m trying to coach the guys that really want to play to move on to the next level. You’re not doing them right if you’re not pushing them to reach their next goal. Those are a couple of guys that I have a tremendous amount of respect for and that I’ve learned from.

Anthony: Staying in Palm Beach and looking around at all the different programs here; what’s the one program, if you can single one out, that you look at and you say, “I want my guys to play like that when we take the field.” In other words, which team and coach would you most want to model your program after?

Coach Graffeo: In Palm Beach? I don’t want to pick out one program I kinda feel like, I don’t want to follow anybody. I have my own style, my own way own way of doing it. I just want to be successful on and off the field. I want people to look at this team and say that “These kids play hard and they give it everything they have” when they’re done playing. Of course we’re gonna have bad days.

Anthony: So, you want to become that model.

Coach Graffeo: That would be nice!

Anthony: [laughing]

Coach Graffeo: But I’m not a “me” guy. It’s really about these kids that come out here and work hard for me. There’s nobody that I’m really trying to emulate. I mean again, I respect Coach Hoffman; I respect Coach Charlebois over at Highland. I think some of these, there’s a young coach over at Westminster, Nick James; he does a great job there. He always has that maybe he doesn’t have the two horses at the time; I don’t mean that disrespectfully to his players. But he’s a really good coach. He’s a really good coach and I like the way he carries himself. There’s a lot of good coaches out there and I don’t want to slight anybody.

Anthony: Lets do a little word association; I’ll give you a word or phrase and you give me the first thing that pops into your mind.

Coach Graffeo: Ok.

Anthony: American Heritage…

Coach Graffeo: Rivalry.

Anthony: Parents…

Coach Graffeo: Parents?

Anthony: Parents.

Coach Graffeo: [laughing] I don’t know if I could say anything.

Anthony: [laughing]

Coach Graffeo: They love their kids; their kids are always right, I guess. [laughing] I don’t know.

Anthony: Baseball…

Coach Graffeo: Love it. Passion. It’s just something in my life. I’m glad it’s part of my life.

Anthony: Pope John Paul…

Coach Graffeo: A team on the rise.

Anthony: My players…

Coach Graffeo: Love them. They’re great kids and I care about every single one of them. I appreciate the effort they always give me.

Anthony: Winning…

Coach Graffeo: Winning; yeah, we like to do that. We feel that we’ve closed the gap. Winning…no disrespect to Summit or Heritage but obviously our goal is to win district. That’s why we set up a tougher schedule; we’re preparing ourselves.

Anthony: Alright, last one. Complete this sentence. I hope my coaching legacy will be…

Coach Graffeo: That he was a good coach. Maybe I didn’t understand him now, but maybe down the road, now I know what he meant.

Anthony: Alright, thank you.

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