For assistant baseball coach Justin Ramsey, baseball isn’t just a career, it’s a life-long passion.
“I knew that’s what I wanted to do growing up as a kid,” Ramsey said.
Originally from California, Ramsey graduated from high school in 1999 and went on to attend and play at Sacramento City College. He then transferred to Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma and continued to play baseball throughout college.
Soon, he realized that his college playing career was coming to an end. He wanted to stay on the field, and that’s when he decided to consider coaching.
Ramsey said, “I knew I wanted to be on the field. I knew that when my career was done playing I would be coaching.”
Ramsey went back to California and coached at Sacramento City College for six years. It was there that he started to learn how to develop other pitchers.
A new opportunity came once he went to coach at California State University in Long Beach. He continued to improve under another pitching coach for four years. Ramsey also played three years of independent ball in Long Beach and spent a couple of summers coaching in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
“I always had a decent idea and feel for the game because I developed under some really good pitching coaches,” Ramsey said.
Coming to NSU was the next opportunity.
“What I like about NSU is the relationship in the whole Athletics Department and the coaching staff,” Ramsey said. “Everyone works together and we’re all going in the same direction.”
To Ramsey, team and individual attitudes play an important role in achieving success. He believes that attitude can lead to success or failure depending on how one looks at the game.
“Attitude is everything in this game,” he said. “It’s a mental game, so if you have the right attitude and know that you can beat any body, then you have a chance to do it. If you question it, it will show in your performance.”
Ramsey describes his approach to coaching as a “player-coach” style.
“I like to have that relationship with my guys. They know that I’m working with them and that I have their best interest in mind,” he continued “There are times when I’m hard on them but they hopefully understand. They know that I’m there with them. If they know you’re on the same page, they’re willing to do anything for you.”
Ramsey advises aspiring coaches to always keep an open mind.
“Keeping an open mind is most important. Just try to pick up as much information as you can, whether it’s from me or from another coach. The more you’re on the game, the more you find out that there’s no one way to do it.”
