A Fun Conversation

Hello Passion for Pitching Family,

The other day, April 1st, was the last day of Spring Training.  On the last day the triple A pitching coach was not there because he had already left to start driving to Memphis, TN where the triple A affiliate plays during the season.  That meant I was given the honor to finish up Spring Training as the triple A pitching coach, such a fun treat this was.  The best part of it was that Lance Berkman was one of the hitters that day.  Sometimes the big league guys want to get some extra at bats before the season, kind of fine tune things.  So what they do is come to the back field where all the minor league teams play.  They are allowed to hit wherever they want, whenever they want.  So on this day, Berkman hit lead off for us in each of the first three innings.

It is so much fun when the big league guys come down to the minor league fields because you get to ask them questions and find out some really cool information.  After each AB Berkman would come sit down on the bench where the coaches sit for each game.  I got to ask him a few questions about hitters and what they are looking for in regards to pitchers maybe tipping pitches.  I also got to ask him about what he thought were ways to get big leaguers out.  Berkman was very upfront and forthright and personable, it was quite an experience!!

It just so happens that I wrote a blog right before this one about repeating pitches.  It also just so happens that I have been writing a blog series about the Law of Attraction and how it plays an amazing part in all of our lives if you care to understand how it works.  The great thing about this blog is that, not only did Berkman reinforce what I wrote in the "Repeating Pitches" blog (which I will share for you in a second) but it also gives a perfect example of the Law of Attraction in action.  I wrote a blog about repeating pitches, then a couple days later one of the best big league hitters in today's game sits down next to me so I can talk to him about that very thing.

Ok, so I'll get to it because I know you are on the edge of your seats....LOL!!

It went like this, I overheard Berkman telling another player next to him that he looks for an exact strike zone for himself, sort of like an imaginary box.  Not a strike zone that the umpire creates, but his own strike zone that he knows he can handle in a game depending upon the pitcher throwing that day.  So I asked him what he looks at for tips that the ball is not going into that strike zone that he creates for himself.  Basically, his answer was that he picks up all sorts of small things based on all the pitches he has seen in his career.  The brain has put all these pitches into the bank and as a pitcher throws each pitch he is intuitively seeing little giveaways to let him know what is coming.  So then I asked him what would a pitcher be able to do to take that away from a hitter.  He simply stated that if a pitcher can repeat his delivery on every pitch, repeat the same plane out of the hand on every pitch, that it is very tough for a hitter to be successful.

Now counts and situations in a game add to this equation but you guys get the drift.  If you are a pitcher your only work right now should be to make sure you are repeating the same delivery, same arm action, same arm slot, same aggressiveness, same plane out of the hand, same everything, on all of your pitches.  Don't take my word for it....take Lance Berkman's....LOL!!

Ok, that's all for now....Happy Pitching everyone!!!