May 2013
Anthony Kaskadden Signs Professional Baseball Contract

The 2013 season will mark Anthony's first year of professional baseball. The 23-year-old played college ball at College of Lake County and Western Illinois University, and is the third rookie under contract for the Sioux City Explorers of the American Association.

Background and Playing Career:

Growing up in Lakemoor, Illinois, Anthony Kaskadden was an outstanding high school and college athlete, breaking all kinds of records. As a two-time all conference selection at Grant High School, he earned rookie of the year, most valuable player, and a batting title. Carrying his success into college at CLC, he twice earned All-Skyway Conference accolades and was named the league's Player of the Year following his sophomore season.

Anthony's speed and ability to get on base led him to receive the Golden Cleats award in 2008 where he finished 3rd in the nation in stolen bases (45), 7th in batting average (.482), and 15th in on-base percentage (.560) drawing the attention of D1 colleges throughout the nation. After considering several options at the D1 level, Anthony chose Western Illinois University where he played four different positions and lead the team in stolen bases.

Professional Aspirations:

Kaskadden's speed and versatility was a major threat at the college level and was certainly worthy of professional baseball.

With dreams of making the big leagues, Anthony set out to showcase his talents at every professional tryout he could. Scouts were impressed by his talents in throwing, fielding, and running, but there was something in his hitting mechanics they just didn't like.

Without much feedback from the scouts, Anthony was turned down by every ball-club he visited after they saw him hit. Anthony was dumbfounded... "what am I doing wrong" he wondered?

Back to the Fundamentals:

After repeatedly getting turned down by professional clubs, Anthony was running out of options to play in front of scouts, and was desperately looking for answers on how to improve his hitting.

Scouring the web for help, Anthony and his father found Go Hardball and scheduled a video lesson with owner and hitting instructor Tony Feo. Reluctant at first, Kaskadden was unsure about working with a new instructor, but quickly saw potential in video technology to aid in identifying the hitting flaws that the scouts were seeing.

In just one hour with coach Tony, Kaskadden was able to uncover a flaw in his fundamentals and learned how to unlock hidden power potential. Here is a video comparison of Anthony's swing mechanics before and after lessons:

Reaching Peak Performance:

Upon completing his video lesson, Anthony realized that the hitting training he was performing in college was not allowing him to fully utilize his body to produce power. With the swing flaw limiting his motion, he was even suffering from a chronic pain in his hip and hardly ever felt comfortable in the batter's box. If Anthony was to play professional baseball, this pain was going to limit his opportunity to perform consistently.

To get the pain under control, Anthony visited with Go Hardball owner and certified trainer Kate Mitchum for a comprehensive performance assessment and postural analysis. With a quick evaluation, Kate was able to discover the cause of the pain and provide a simple set of exercises to provide relief of muscle tension and help realign the body. Disappointed with the results of his initial performance assessment and score, Anthony religiously performed the exercises Kate prescribed and was able to relieve his pain and restore motion in just a few weeks.

With the pain out of his system, Anthony was now ready to take on the challenge of performing at the highest level. Training 3 days per week with Kate, Anthony pushed the limits of his body and built a strong foundation for performance.

Anthony cut his body fat, increased muscle mass, improved flexibility, and transformed his body into a high performance athlete. Through sports specific challenges and circuits, Anthony learned to run faster, react quicker, and increased core rotational power.

The results from the training were outstanding... Anthony elevated his performance evaluation score by 32 points and improved his bat speed dramatically. He felt ready to showcase his talents at the next level.

Living The Dream:

With nearly 6 months of sports performance training and hitting lessons under his belt, Anthony set out for the California Winter League to showcase his new skills to professional coaches and scouts from both independent and major league affiliates. The league featured 8 teams consisting of amateur players from around the nation looking for a shot at a professional contract.

Anthony made an impression right away. After 16 games, the Sioux City Explorers were ready to ink a deal. It didn't take long for Anthony to accept, after all, it was his dream to play professional baseball!

Anthony credits hard work, a never say die attitude, and great coaching for his accomplishment... proof that if you seek help and put in the effort, the results will come.

Anthony begins play with his new team on May 16th, the home opener for the Explorers vs. the Sioux Fall Canaries. Check out www.xsbaseball.com for the schedule and tickets to see Anthony in action!

Anthony's Testimonial:

"The Video Analysis is one of the most helpful tools Go Hardball offers. Breaking down your swing and seeing it from a third persons view really helps point out the flaws of the swing. Not only that, but we looked at my swing side-by-side a choice of many professional players and compared myself to the greatest players in the game today! Coach Tony went step by step through the entire swing, and we could then understand what I was doing wrong and use certain drills to help fix my swing."

"The workouts and training also helped my game. Usually workouts can get repetitive, but the staff at Go Hardball really likes to mix things up and keep it fun while training. They are very approachable and easy to talk to about any questions you may have or if you need them to show you how any certain exercise is done."

"Coach Kate and Tony really want to see you succeed and improve. They motivate you and push you to better yourself both on and off the field. The trainers and staff are always positive which creates a great atmosphere to work out in. I always have a blast when I go in to train. It is challenging but at the same time fun. I look forward to the off-season!!"

~ Anthony Kaskadden
Professional Baseball Player w/ the Sioux City Explorers

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April 2013
Go Hardball Owners Hit Homerun with Business, Life

In 2005, Kate Mitchum met Tony Feo while she was playing in a women's baseball league called the Chicago Gems.

The coach knew Feo, who was then with the Midwest Suburban League. Feo helped to coach a practice that included Mitchum at an Arlington Heights field. Mitchum was also in an administrative position with the league and didn't think twice about Feo. "I ignored him for a year," she said.

That didn't last. The duo now owns Lake Zurich-based Go Hardball, a business that offers hitting, pitching and other sports training for all ages and abilities.  Read the Article >

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December 2012
Celebrate 6 Years at Demo Day

Join us in celebrating 6 years of great instruction on January 6th, 2013 from 11am-2pm with wood bat demos from Viper Bats!

Event will include free food, refreshments, and fun for all ages at our training academy in Lake Zurich.

Donations will be requested for video analysis, massages, and sports performance challenges with proceeds benefiting Lake Zurich Youth Baseball & Softball!  Event Details >

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August 2012
Kate Mitchum Makes History in Midwest Suburan League

Kate Mitchum is in a league by herself - literally. Mitchum, 30, is the only female player in the 38 team, roughly 600-player Midwest Suburban League near Chicago, and recently she crossed a new boundary by becoming the league's first female all-star.

Mitchum was chosen by her teammates to represent their team — the MABL Central South Division Cyclones — at the league's Annual All Star game held July 28 at Schaumburg Boomer Stadium, home of the Frontier League Schaumburg Boomers. Read the Article >

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January 2012
Tony Feo Featured on the Cover of Suburban Parent

Read our Daily Herald article on young players reaching the next level with private lessons for baseball and softball!  Read the Article >

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December 2011
Go Hardball Celebrates 5 Years
Join us in celebrating 5 years of great instruction on January 2nd, 2012 from 11am-5pm with a fundraiser benefiting LZBSA!  Event Details >

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November 2011
4 Steps To A Healthy + Live Arm
View our off-season guide for parents and young athletes (including the 5 do's and don'ts of off-season training) and receive a free postural assessment or video analysis w/ any membership ($125 value)!

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July 2011
For Dunn, Here's A Little Friendly Advice
Go Hardball's co-founder and hitting instructor, Tony Feo was recently interviewed by Scot Gregor, long-time White Sox writer for the Daily Herald. Check out Tony's analysis of Adam Dunn's hitting mechanics!

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October 2010
Academy Memberships Now Available
Exclusive Pre-Sale pricing is now available when you join our new academy located at 100 Oakwood Road in Lake Zurich, IL! First 25 members who join by October 30, 2010 will receive a FREE academy t-shirt & hat, a FREE month, and much more!

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August 2010
Fall Baseball Clinics Now Available
We are now accepting registrations for our 2010 fall baseball camps and clinics for ages 5 and up. All sessions will be conducted at Kits Sports Center in Lake Zurich, IL. Registrations are limited, and must be completed by August 21, 2010.

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May 2010
2010 Batter's Eye Summer Camps
Go Hardball is now offering summer baseball camps for ages 5 and up throughout the summer.  All camps will be conducted at Lions Park or Staples Field in Lake Zurich, IL.  Registrations are limited, and must be completed by visiting our camp registration page.

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February 2010
2010 Baseball Clinics Now Available
We are now accepting registrations for our 2010 spring baseball camps and clinics for ages 5 and up. All sessions will be conducted at Kits Sports Center in Lake Zurich, IL. Registrations are limited, and must be completed by March 20, 2010.

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September 2009
New Batter's Eye Clinic Offerings
Our Batter's Eye baseball clinics have been revised for this fall to bring you even better quality instruction! See our new baseball clinics for ages 5 and up available this fall.  Registrations are limited, and must be completed by visiting Kits Sports Center.

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May 2009
Batter's Eye Summer Baseball Camps
New for 2009, Go Hardball will be offering summer baseball camps for ages 5 and up throughout the summer.  All camps will be conducted at Hawthorn Woods Community Park in Lake Zurich, IL.  Registrations are limited, and must be completed by visiting Kits Sports Center.

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February 2009
Spring Baseball Clinics Now Available
New for 2009, Go Hardball will be offering baseball camps and clinics for ages 5 and up throughout the spring. All sessions will be conducted at Kits Sports Center in Lake Zurich, IL. Registrations are limited, and must be completed by March 21, 2009.

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January 2009
Go Hardball Unveils New Website
With a new year comes a fresh new look and feel for GoHardball.com in 2009! Along with an expanded list of services and pricing, we've added quick contact forms and online registration for upcoming events. Be sure to let us know what you think of the new design!

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August 2008
MSL Video Analysis at Alexian Field
Go Hardball attended the 2008 MSL Home Run Derby at Alexian Field in Schaumburg, IL and captured each player's home run swing in slow motion, from the 2008 MSL All-Star Game!  See the videos...

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October 2007
Go Hardball Feature in Hardball Magazine
Go Hardball founders, Tony Feo and Kate Mitchum were featured in the Fall 2007 issue of Hardball magazine for their contribution to girl's and women's baseball in Chicagoland.  See the Article...

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July 2007
Go Hardball Gets Girls in the Game
Over 100 girls ages 8-13 learned hitting, throwing, fielding, and baserunning skills in a 1 day camp hosted by Go Hardball on July 23, 2007. The event was featured on the front page of the Neighbor section in the August 8th edition of the Daily Herald.  See the Article... | View Event Photos...

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