What if the real game-changer in travel baseball isn’t your player’s swing-but your decisions as a parent? In this solo episode, Matt breaks down what he refers to as The Precision Process, a behavioral-psychology-based framework designed to help travel baseball families make better, calmer, and more confident choices in a chaotic environment.

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the nonstop pressure of tournaments, recruiting, and exposure events, this episode will show you how to filter the noise, think clearly, and align every decision with your family’s long-term goals.

You’ll learn how to stop reacting emotionally to “urgent” choices and instead make strategic, values-driven the same kind elite CEOs and investors use, but adapted for the world of youth sports.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• The Precision Process: a 6-step system to make high-quality decisions under pressure

• How to identify if you’re in a stable, complicated, or chaotic environment—and why that matters

• The truth about emotional vs. logical decision-making in travel baseball

• How to create your family’s North Star statement to filter opportunities

• The 3 biggest cognitive biases that sabotage baseball parents—and how to overcome them

• Why clarity, not control, is the key to thriving in travel baseball

• How to build a decision database that helps you avoid repeating costly mistakes

Matt breaks down real-world examples from families navigating tournaments, showcases, and college recruiting. You’ll discover how to use tools like the 3x3 Clarity Grid to bring calm, structure, and precision to every choice-and how to measure progress through regular debrief loops that keep your family aligned and less stressed.

If you’ve ever caught yourself making reactive, fear-based decisions (FOMO, comparison, sunk cost), this episode will hit home. By the end, you’ll walk away with a repeatable decision-making framework to replace chaos with confidence.

CALL TO ACTION:

If this episode brought you clarity, share it with another baseball parent feeling overwhelmed by the chaos.

• Subscribe for weekly episodes on mindset, leadership, and decision-making in travel baseball.

• Comment your biggest decision-making challenge below.

LINKS & RESOURCES:

https://www.youtube.com/@mostvaluableagent

— Follow the MVA Podcast

#TravelBaseball #BaseballParents #YouthSportsMindset #DecisionMaking #BaseballDevelopment #ParentLeadership #BaseballPodcast #MVA

What if the real game isn’t played on the field, but at home, in the way we raise, support, and speak to our kids? In this heartfelt episode, Craig Holman, former pro player and father of two elite athletes, joins Matt Antonelli to share the untold truth about youth and travel baseball.

From watching his son Luke battle childhood cancer to seeing him become one of the nation’s top prospects, Craig reveals how failure, faith, and love shaped both his family and his coaching philosophy. This isn’t just about baseball -it’s about building resilient, grounded humans in a culture obsessed with wins and exposure.

Whether you’re a parent, coach, or young athlete, this episode will change how you see youth sports and what truly defines success.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why “more exposure” isn’t the same as development

• The single most powerful thing parents can say to their kids

• How to build confidence without pressure or comparison

• Why failure and struggle are essential for long-term success

• The life-changing difference between listening to your kids vs. for your kids

• How perspective-not performance-shapes greatness

Craig shares unforgettable stories of parenting through adversity- including his son Luke’s fight with cancer, his daughter’s final at-bat, and how the “tennis ball moment” changed his understanding of effort forever. His insights remind us that the greatest wins happen off the field and that the true job of a parent-coach is to nurture purpose, not pressure.

CALL TO ACTION:

Subscribe for weekly coaching and real conversations about the mental, emotional, and developmental side of baseball.

Comment below: What’s the biggest lesson baseball has taught your family?

LINKS & RESOURCES:

Follow the MVA Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@MostValuableAgent

Bear Bryant’s Prayer: “This is the beginning of a new day…”

ABOUT MATT HANNAFORD

Matt Hannaford is a 25-year veteran MLB agent who’s represented MVPs, All-Stars, and first-round draft picks. Through the Most Valuable Agent podcast, he helps parents and players cut through the noise and focus on what really works.

#YouthBaseball #BaseballParenting #CraigHolman #MVA #SportsParenting #AthleteMindset #BaseballDevelopment

What happens when the hardest opponent you’ll ever face isn’t standing in the other dugout—but lives inside your own head? In this solo episode, Matt breaks down the silent battle every athlete faces: the illusion of control. He unpacks why your identity can’t be built on performance, what happens when effort stops working, and how true freedom begins when you stop trying to be your own source.

Through powerful reflection and personal insight, Matt shares how athletes often grip tighter when things start to slip, chasing certainty through training, diet, or routine. But lasting peace—both in life and in baseball—doesn’t come from control; it comes from stability. You’ll hear how players who perform from identity, not for it, compete freer, lead stronger, and play with conviction instead of fear.

• The illusion of control — why it feels powerful until it breaks

• How to perform from identity instead of for validation

• Why effort alone can’t sustain confidence forever

• The mental shift that separates players who last from those who burn out

• A practical framework for letting go without losing your edge
  
  

Matt challenges listeners to examine what they’re still trying to control—and how those same things might be controlling them. By redefining success beyond stats and status, this episode helps players rediscover who they truly are, no matter what the scoreboard says.

Subscribe for weekly coaching on the mindset of baseball. Drop a comment sharing what part of the game you’re still trying to control.

• https://www.youtube.com/@mostvaluableagent (Official Site)

• Follow Matt on Instagram:instagram.com/mfhannaford
  

#BaseballMindset #MentalGameBaseball #AthleteIdentity #PerformanceMindset #LetGoPlayFree