Complete Athlete & Deion Sanders team up

I just received this release. Seems that Jen Wells and Donnie Watson are taking their company, Complete Athlete, to a bigger audience with a new partnership with Deion Sanders' PrimeTimePlayer.

Here's the release:

Complete Athlete Launches Performance Program with PrimeTimePlayer

March 25, 2009 -- Dallas / Fort Worth, TX

In an agreement reached this week, the Complete Athlete (CA) will partner with PrimeTimePlayer (PTP) to provide high-level baseball and softball instruction and performance analysis for athletes across North Texas. The partnership, a first in the D/FW area, will provide a range of services including pitchers' prep programs, performance symposiums, high-speed motion analysis and recruiting preparation seminars & services starting in May 2009 for players aged 12-25 in both sports.

"We are truly excited about working with (NFL Network analyst, eight-time Pro Bowler and MLB player) Deion Sanders and his PTP staff to deliver pain-free performance, said Donnie Watson, co-founder of the Complete Athlete. "In our work with Dr. James Andrews, it's always been our mission to teach and train to avoid the surgeries and injuries becoming epidemic in baseball and softball. This partnership helps us reach more athletes more quickly, and to work with coaches, trainers and professionals to help players excel."

The Complete Athlete (CA) was founded by former NCAA Division 1 coaches Donnie Watson and Jenifer Wells (a 3-time All-American and national champion team softball player), in conjunction with The Andrews Institute, of Birmingham, AL and Gulf Breeze, FL. CA is dedicated to providing a proprietary blend of education, instruction and analysis to baseball and softball pitchers and position players to better enable them to avoid injury and reach their performance potential as they pursue college and professional team roster spots.

According to Watson, the partnership will reach from Frisco to Fort Worth, utilizing PTP facilities and venues to give more baseball and softball athletes access to the tools for gaining higher visibility with college-level coaches and professional scouts for "all the right reasons." Recruiters will know that each of these athletes completes the program with a full understanding of their physical and emotional capabilities along with the tools to present a dossier that outlines their achievements, capabilities and assessment results.

"We'll show the players the correct path, help them take ownership of the process, and work to make them the best they can be without sacrificing their health or attitude," adds Wells.

Athletes, parents and coaches seeking information on CA/PTP events may call Donnie Watson at 214.704.8017.

PrimeTimePlayer is the brainchild of business partners DL Wallace, and former NFL and MLB star Deion Sanders. Alongside Sanders' highly-rated televised football training, Prime U, PTP develops student athletes on many levels, preparing them for college and professional-level play and showcases their talents via player training, combines, clinics, showcases and PrimeTimePlayer Pages; printed directories distributed to college-level recruiters.

Lamenting the loss of the 'Lifer.'

Having watched this year's über-hot hot stove churn and burn, and seeing what Charlie Steiner aptly called the weirdest January ever ($Quote: "Aren't we supposed to be resting?") we're again reminded about the sad state of player portability.

Likely forever gone, the era when players were the franchise, dedicated to and emblimatic of a team's ups and downs. Now, they move freely from team to team without being tagged as "journeymen." In fact, despite the comforts of "staying home," it takes a bigger effort, and financial sacrifice to stay in one city. As Jeff Bagwell said "You can always find a higher bidder. But there are a lot of good things that come with being at home. Your family is in one place, the fans know you and love you. It makes everything easier."

A great overview of this trend can be found in a recent article at mlb.com, where author Alyson Footer points out that Reality is another word for the business side of baseball, and in reality, it's not always the player's intention to stick with one team for the duration. They're pulled in all directions, absorbing pressure from either their agents, the Players Association or families, and sometimes, all three. Only a special few have resisted the outside elements.

Being in the heart of Rangers country, we've seen so much transition it has become a running joke: the Texas Rangers are simply a high-dollar farm team for all successful mlb teams. We bring them up, pay them handsomely, set them up for real success and promptly trade them away.

Or find a way to insult their pride and loyalty, i.e. Michael Young.

To read more, we suggest you take a stroll through these related blogs and articles.
The Baseball Think Factory
Inform
St. Petersburg Times

My son Avery Sullivan, has a remarkably keen sense of the game and knowledge of the players. It's not due to studying incoming teams and knowing who belongs to whom, however. His smarts come from hours playing various baseball video games and building his dream teams in a PlayStation. He notes movement amongst players by comparing and contrasting his efforts from year to year as he upgrades the game.

Perhaps the only remedy we'll see to this springs from the newly harsh economic climate. As teams get squeezed w/ reduced attendance and product sales, there may be less heat in the hot stove, and an inclination amongst players, agents and teams to embrace fan loyalty, and work harder to keep a nucleus together for the survival of all parties.