Baseball

As both a professional player & coach, Lamarr Rogers, owner of Blue Chip Sports Academy, has played, "talked shop" & worked with many baseball and softball players and coaches from all over the world. He has learned many of the intricate details that come with each style & form of hitting (linear, lower half, power, slap, line drive, front side etc.). As a coach, he has prided himself with the ability to be knowledgeable and flexible in all aspects of hitting.

Blue Chip staff members understand the importance of each style of hitting and how it correlates to each player's skill level, physical make-up and natural abilities. The staff consists of women and men who are trained and dedicated to providing a sound coaching service specific to the student-athlete's needs.

With many different hitting styles to choose from, we have learned that there are areas in each type of swing that share a common ground. This common ground is how many top colleges and professional teams are now assembling their teams in order to maintain balance throughout the line-up and generate more victories on the field.

At Blue Chip, this common ground is our foundation and philosophy. With a strong foundation built under a player, any style of hitting can be developed. We are dedicated to building this foundation along with any style of hitting, to maximize the full potential of your student-athletes.

Program Designer

Lamarr Rogers
Background
Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Lamarr credits his success in baseball to having strong family support. While many of his friends went into gangs, Lamarr saw baseball as a way to escape the unfortunate lifestyle that surrounded him in South Central Los Angeles. As a kid, he looked up to such players as Ozzie Smith, Eddie Murray, Shane Mack, Darryl Strawberry and Eric Davis, all of whom succeeded in the game despite their roots in the same tough Los Angeles neighborhoods.

At the age of thirteen, he would experience his first taste of baseball on a larger scale when his team advanced to the Babe Ruth World Series. Although his team would lose in the semi-finals, of the 14 players on the team, 8 of them would later be drafted and/or received Division I scholarships.

In high school Lamarr was very successful in both football and baseball. During the football season of his senior year, Lamarr finished 3rd in the country in rushing and was offered numerous Division I scholarships. He also shared League MVP honors with NFL player Johnny Morton. Choosing baseball as his future, he was fortunate to play on a nationally ranked team. Labeled a "Blue Chip Prospect" with scouts and colleges present at every game, Lamarr was able to also play with the Major League Scouting Bureau and the Major League Area Scouting teams. These opportunities prepared him for college and professional baseball. Drafted by the Boston Red Sox out of high school, Lamarr declined the draft and accepted a scholarship to play for the newly rebuilt and nationally ranked Long Beach State 49er's (Dirtbags) baseball team.

College
In his first year as head coach Dave Snow, took the Long Beach State baseball team to the College World Series. Lamarr along with current major leaguers Jason Giambi, Chris Gomez and Steve Traschel became his first recruiting class. Starting all 3 years of college, Lamarr set records (most of which now have been broken) in On Base Percentage, Walks, Stolen Bases, Hit by Pitches and Fielding Percentage. He also became known as one of the nation's best lead-off and number 2 hitters. Due to his athleticism, he became more of a utility player, playing 2nd base, centerfield, leftfield and, if needed, shortstop and 3rd base.

Lamarr's success on the field provided him the opportunity to play in the Cape Cod summer league (widely considered the elite summer league for Division I players) for the Chatham A's during his freshman and sophomore years. He led the team in hitting, stolen bases, walks and on-base percentage. He received team MVP honors one year and league All-Star selections both years.

In all, Lamarr received All Big West Honors (2 years), All Regional Honors (2 years), an appearance in the College World Series & All- American Consideration (1 year). He was later selected, at the completion of his junior year, in the professional draft by the Colorado Rockies during its first draft in 1991.

Professional
In an expansion year, Lamarr was selected in the 1991 Major League draft by the Colorado Rockies making him one of the first Rockies players ever. As a result he had the opportunity to play alongside or against such current greats as Barry Bonds, Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr., Derek Jeter, Nomar Garciaparra, Pedro Martinez, Alex Rodriguez & Greg Maddux to name a few. Lamarr would go on to play a total of 8 years spending the first four with Colorado and sharing the remaining four between the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox & Arizona Diamondbacks.

Lamarr began coaching the St. Paul Saints in 1998 after suffering an on the field career ending injury with the Arizona Diamondbacks. With an opportunity, in 2004 he officially became the team's hitting coach. As the hitting coach, Saints hitters as a team have finished in the top three in the league during each year under Lamarr; one hitter, in particular, set a league record for batting average in 2004. Lamarr has also had at least two hitters finish the season in the top ten in the league with 2004 being his best with five. Lamarr is now in his eighth season as a coach and his tenth season overall with the Saints. Although his playing career was cut short, Lamarr has used his experiences at each level and background of playing multiple positions to become a well rounded coach. Playing alongside and learning from some of the best in the game, Lamarr considers himself blessed to have been able to take what he has learned and turn it into a professional coaching career. Since his injury in 1998, Lamarr has been offered or considered for multiple front office and coaching positions in Major League organizations. He has consistently chosen to stay with the Saints, a situation that allows him to stay in professional baseball and enjoy watching his three kids grow up. Lamarr is the older brother of 2007 American Idol Finalist, Brandon Rogers and the son-in-law of former Minnesota Vikings, Windlan Hall.