It's OK to Strike Out!
Coach Blooper swings at a ball over his head, closes his eyes, and strikes out. Then he learns the Blooper Bounce: breathe, next pitch, cheer your team.
Coach Blooper's big ideas
Swing at strikes
A strike is a pitch over home plate, between your knees and the middle of your chest.
Watch the ball
Keep your eyes on it from the pitcher's hand all the way to your bat.
Everybody misses
Great big league hitters get a hit about 3 times out of 10.
Blooper Bounce
After a strikeout: take a big breath, say "next pitch," and cheer for your teammate.
For grown-ups
Young players often feel a strikeout is a failure of who they are. This episode separates the result from the effort: a good swing at a strike is a win even when it misses. The Blooper Bounce gives kids a simple reset routine to use in a game. The "3 out of 10" figure reflects a .300 batting average, the classic mark of a very good hitter.
Talk about it together
- Coach Blooper made three mistakes before he struck out. Can you name them?
- Why is a strikeout a brave thing?
- What are the three steps of the Blooper Bounce? Can you do them right now?
- How can you help a teammate who just struck out?
Read the whole script
- Narrator
- Meet Coach Blooper! He loves baseball more than anything. He is... still learning.
- Coach
- Hiya, team! Today I'm gonna show you the most perfect swing in the whole world!
- Narrator
- Um, Coach? Your bat is upside down.
- Coach
- Whoops! That's a blooper!
- Ump
- Batter up!
- Narrator
- Here comes the first pitch. It's way up high, over Coach's head.
- Coach
- I'll get it! Hi-yaaa!
- Narrator
- Coach swung so hard, he spun around three times! Strike one!
- Narrator
- Here's the trick. Swing at strikes. A strike is a pitch over home plate, between your knees and the middle of your chest.
- Narrator
- Pitch number two. Coach is ready... and he closes his eyes!
- Coach
- If I can't see it, it can't scare me!
- Ump
- Strike two!
- Narrator
- Keep your eyes open, Coach! Watch the ball, all the way from the pitcher's hand to your bat.
- Narrator
- Okay. This time Coach watches the ball. He swings at a strike. It's a great swing...
- Narrator
- ...and he misses.
- Ump
- Strike three! You're out!
- Coach
- Aww. I struck out. I'm the worst baseball player ever.
- Narrator
- Hold on, Coach. Here's a secret. Even the best hitters in the big leagues miss most of the time.
- Narrator
- If a big league hitter gets a hit three times out of ten, that's great! The other seven times, they don't get a hit, and they're still stars.
- Coach
- Wait... so missing is part of baseball?
- Narrator
- Yep! And a strikeout means you were brave enough to step up and try.
- Narrator
- So what do you do after a strikeout? Let's learn the Blooper Bounce!
- Narrator
- One. Take a big, slow breath.
- Narrator
- Two. Say, next pitch!
- Coach
- Next pitch!
- Narrator
- Three. Go cheer for your teammate.
- Coach
- Go, go, go! You got this, buddy!
- Narrator
- When we cheer for each other, everybody plays braver. That's what teammates do.
- Narrator
- Next time up, Coach takes a breath, watches the ball, and swings!
- Coach
- I hit it! I hit it!
- Narrator
- It's a little blooper that drops over the infield. Run, Coach, run!
- Narrator
- Coach! First base is the other way!
- Coach
- Oops! Blooper!
- Song
- Strike one, strike two, oh what do you do?
- Song
- Take a big breath, the next pitch is new!
- Song
- Eyes on the ball, swing at a strike,
- Song
- Every big leaguer misses, alright!
- Song
- It's okay to strike out, give a shout, shake it out!
- Song
- Cheer your team and try again, that's what baseball's all about!
- Narrator
- Let's remember. Swing at strikes. Watch the ball. And if you miss, do the Blooper Bounce.
- Coach
- Breathe, next pitch, cheer your team! See ya next time, team! Whoa!
- Narrator
- Bye, everybody!