Pitching mind mastery

When you find yourself in this predicament try an inning of throwing nothing but fastballs. Up, down, in, and out. Will take you mind off of pitch selection and make you concentrate on just placement. I have seen our coach use this method with success many times.

 

Morris?

 

Not Morris

Nope it's not Morris, but sounds like it .

However I too have had this problem several times. Something that helped me was watching the movie "For Love of the Game" ... just watch how he "clears the mechanism". it's one of the coolest things i've ever seen, and i've actually got to the point now where i can do the same thing. Pitching is definitely more mental than physical. It's all in how you can turn all of those thoughts you're having on that mound into some positive energy. Being a left handed pitcher myself, I know how it can be on the mound. You just gotta tell yourself "don't think, just throw". But it's always ok to step off the mound, collect your thoughts, know what your mistake is, and just fix it. You don't have to be perfect up there. You're never gonna be perfect, so just throw your game. Whoever this lefty is, i'd definitely be more than willing to help ya out. Like I said, i know where you're comin from, and i'm sure we're around the same age. Just lemme know.

 

Breathe through your eye lids. Don't think. Just pitch. Let the batter do all the thinking.

 

Pitching is about concentration, but come game time you can't be thinking too much about mechanics, and you definitely can't worry about your last pitch, it's over. You focus on your mechanics during your daily workouts, performing a lot of reps with the proper mechanics to develop muscle memory. Then come game time, just let it happen. Trust yourself, if you have worked hard enough in preparation, it will happen. Relax is good advice, but understand that is something you do with your body, your mind needs to be sharp and focused. Once the game starts, your focus needs to be on pitch selection and location. Evaluate each hitter, look at their stance and location in the box. Make your pitch and never second guess yourself. Don't worry about throwing a ball, you are allowed 3 every batter if you need them. If you threw all strikes, it would be hard to keep hitters off balance. You must also understand that your job is not to strike out hitters, it is too keep them from hitting the ball hard. If you make a mistake, learn from it and move on. Play the game, don't let it play you.