Minnesota Blizzard Baseball

The Trusted Coaches program is proud to be partnering with the top baseball program in Minnesota – the Minnesota Blizzard Elite.

Starting this year, all of the Minnesota Blizzard Academy’s instructors and coaches will be certified through our Trusted Coaches program, a comprehensive membership that offers essential training, education and screening necessary for a youth coach via a nationwide criminal background check‚ first-aid training, concussion instruction and Positive Coaching Alliance Double-Goal Coach® character education course.

The Minnesota Blizzard is the most successful traveling and club baseball program in Minnesota and among the top select teams in the Midwest winning 62 national tournaments and placing in the top four 152 times since 2003.

Over 250 players have committed to play college baseball and another 40 have drafted including Minnesota standout Coon Rapid’s Logan Shore (SEC Pitcher of the Year – A’s 2nd round Draft Pick) and Eagan’s Matt Fiedler (Big 10 Player of the Year – Cardinal’s 9th round Draft Pick).  It is one of the most well-respected programs in the Midwest and has garnered attention from Kare 11, ESPN 1500, Fox9, Channel 6, the Star Tribune and the Upper Deck Report among others.

Owner and Coach, Adam Barta, who has been involved in baseball all of his life having coached in college, runs the Blizzard Academy and works as an Associate Scout with the Chicago White Sox.

“Partnering with Trusted Coaches made a lot of sense for the Blizzard,” Barta said.  “One of the most important areas of the Blizzard program are the coaches.  They are phenomenal leaders, mentors and are top-of-the-line baseball teachers.  The Trusted Coaches program only furthers their development as coaches and also helps me insure that they are properly trained for concussions and gives them further tools to help our Blizzard players.”

One of the lead instructors and coaches is former New York Yankee and current professional pitching coach for the Laredo Lemurs, Ben Moore, on the Trusted Coaches program.

“With the increased awareness on how dangerous concussions can be for athletes, Trusted Coaches (TC) gives us as coaches up to date information on prevention and recovery to keep our kids as safe as possible,”  Moore said.  “TC also blends the importance of getting better as baseball players with winning and having fun both in practices and games.”

Trusted Coaches is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt nonprofit organization and was created by the Minnesota Youth Athletic Services and the Wisconsin Sports Services as a response to youth athletic associations’ need to train their coaches and protect their young athletes. Trusted Coaches has a staff of 25+ full time sports professionals that are immersed in the youth sports scene.

Dawson Blanck, the Executive Director of Trusted Coach, has had a relationship with Barta and the Blizzard program dating back to 2003. From 1999-2015, he was the Director of Baseball for the MYAS where he helped create the brand of Gopher State Baseball and establish a comprehensive youth baseball program for youth baseball associations across Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

“We are excited that Adam and the rest of the Blizzard Baseball Academy have made the decision to utilize the Trusted Coaches program for the 2016-2017 season,” Blanck said.  “They have established themselves as the elite club baseball program and training facility in the state of Minnesota. The Trusted Coaches will allow all current and prospective Blizzard players and specifically their parents gain even more confidence and credibility into the brand of Blizzard Baseball.”

“By providing the training, screening and character education to the Blizzard coaches, it provides other tools needed as a youth coach today beyond the expertise of the game of baseball. The endorsement of Trusted Coaches by the Blizzard Elite program, once again proves that they are always looking to enhance their program for their participants. More than anything, they ultimately want to provide a safe, positive and productive experience for all baseball players that dawn the Blizzard uniform!

To learn more about the Trusted Coaches program, please go to: trustedcoaches.org

To learn more about the Blizzard Academy, please go to: blizzardelitebaseball.com