If you’ve followed my blogs over the years, you know that I'm a big baseball fan.

More to the point of this week’s SCI message, I've asserted time and again that "small ball" is a better strategy than “homeruns” for building a consistently winning team – much better!

Last Wednesday, the Milwaukee Brewers put an exclamation point on that principle.

Take a close look at these rankings for the Brewers compared to the other 30 teams in major league baseball during the 2026 season:

• 1st in total hits (1,422)

• 1st in batting average (.258)

• 1st in on-base percentage (.341)

• 2nd in runs scored (832)

• 2nd in walks (668)

• 28th in home runs (154)

Let that last number soak in for a minute. Milwaukee finished near the bottom of the list in regular-season home runs, yet they won 103 regular-season games and 11 of 13 playoff games on their way to a World Series championship.

Hey, I’m not opposed to homeruns – they’re exciting, and they even win a game in dramatic fashion sometimes. But why do stadiums across the land shoot off fireworks when someone blasts one over the wall – but never when someone hits a double that drives in three runs?

That basic premise goes to the heart of the power and purpose of Systematic Continuous Improvement (SCI). Sure, it’s great to have an occasional big hit that knocks the proverbial ball out of the park for your business.But those are rare events.

What has a much bigger impact on business over the long haul, though, are the dozens, even hundreds, of small improvements that pile up on top of one another, creating a big compound effect when they accumulate over time.

But it doesn’t happen just by asking for it. It takes intention, communication and a routine process for engaging everyone on your team in continuous improvement.

Want to learn how to get your team flooding you with base hits?

Begin your improvement journey today!

Getting better at getting better.