Process, Process, Process...

Life is a Process...

What does that mean?  Well, since this is a blog for baseball let's relate it to that.  Baseball is all about the process.  You either have one and when you enjoy the process and follow it and believe in it and don't stray too far from it, the game will bring you success.  But when you float around aimlessly and don't have a process and don't focus yourself on a daily basis, the game beats you up.

Take the professional season for example.  It doesn't matter if you are in Low A or the Big Leagues, there is a process to each day that the manager and organization lays out for you.  Everyday you come to the park you get into the locker room and sit down.  There is time to say hello to your teammates or for the coaches to review the prior days work or what will go on for the current day.  Then the players will dress for some early work and get some hitting in or perhaps watch film or do whatever they feel they need to get better each day.  Then the team will meet together on the field and go through a warm-up, long toss session, fundamental for the day, BP, and bullpen sessions for the pitchers.  After all the pre-game work is through the players and coaches will have a bit of down time to relax before the game.  At about 30 minutes or so before the game the pitcher will go out with the catcher and pitching coach and start to throw and get loose for the start of the game.  Usually all the games will start at 7:05pm right after the Star Spangled Banner.  After the game the guys get into the locker room, they shower and then head out for the night hopefully getting something to eat on there own and then going to bed.  The coaches will do their reports for the night and then go eat and replay the days workings in their heads to see if they could do something different or improve upon what they did the day before.  Then it is off to bed for all so that we can all do it again the next day.

You can see from this brief description of a day in the life of a professional player or coach that the process is long and repetitive.  But this is a great thing.  What this does is, it allows the players a chance to get comfortable in their environment and surroundings so they can focus on what they need to focus on.  What happens sometimes though is the players don't ever wake up and realize what their own process needs to be.  What I mean by that is there is a routine layed out each day just like what was mentioned above, but the kids don't seem to realize that is not the exact process for them as an individual.  You don't want to just be sucked in by the schedule and not know what you should be doing inside of that bigger schedule.  Most players get caught just rolling along with the herd and doing the same old thing not understanding that each day is passing them by and there is no real work going on. 

We all do the same type of drill work and the same type of preparation each day, so why are there some players that are soooooooo much better then others?  Well, that's because they have a process of their own, inside of the overall process that is provided for them by each organization.  The point of all this jabber is that you must be present when you do your work.  And even before that you must have a process of your own that you follow each day.  Then when you follow the process each day you must be awake and present and focused as you perform this process.  The amount of repetitions, types of drills, skill work, physical training workouts, whatever it is that you are deciding to do that day, you must be present and focused for the session.  The trick to training is not doing more then the next guy, the trick is to do it more focused then the next guy.  Being more deliberate, more concentrated, more focused, more intense, more passionate then the next guy is what really matters.  The physical work matters, but the mental and emotional approach to the physical work is much more important.  This is something that is easily talked about and at times easy to understand, but tougher to actually do.  Not that many people choose to want to be that aware of what is going on or be that focused on a daily basis.  That takes much more effort then physically running through the process and performing a series of exercises.  It is much easier to just shut your thoughts down and run on auto pilot through the workouts.  That is the true reason starting pitchers need 5 days in between starts.  Of course they need to recover from the physical workload, but even more so they need recovery from the mental focus they hopefully were using for the nine innings they were pitching in the game.

In closing, the process you choose in your daily life should be something you do with a trained focus that continues to make you better as a person and player everyday.  You create the process, you decide what makes you tick, you go after it the way you want to go after it.  But just don't forget that while you are in this process be aware, be present, be in the moment and take advantage of the process.  Don't let the process take advantage of you!!

Spring Training rolls on.  Games for the minor leagues start in two days.  Talk to you soon!!!! 

First day in the books!

It is 4:44pm here in wonderful Jupiter, FL and I am sitting in the lobby of the local honda dealership so I can take care of my trusty automobile and continue to depend on it to take me wherever I go next down the road to the big leagues!!

Today was the first day we were on the field.  The first two days were spent in meetings going over the entire minor league personnel, covering organizational philosophy, and getting reacquainted with all the staff.  Today we got on the field with all the pitchers and catchers.  It is nice to see all the guys you have had over the past years and see them grow more successful and also more appreciative of our relationship.  It has taken me a bit to get to the level where I can be more of myself and really enjoy making relationships with some of the players.  I don't mean buddy, buddy type of relationships either.  I am referring to the type of relationship where the pitcher understands what I am there for and they are not threatened by me offering information.  Also, I am referring to the type of relationship where the pitcher actually respects what you say and there is a mutual respect with what we are both working to accomplish.  That is really what is so great about the game of baseball, and for me, the professional game of baseball.  I love working with the best of the best and hopefully guiding them a bit to get even better.  I would like to think I have something to do with some of these pitchers successes, but I also am fully aware that they are the true creators of their reality and they are going to determine, in the end, what happens to them in the game of baseball.  But it sure is fun to watch the players grow and get better and reach the level of success they are aspiring to. 

I did want to talk a bit about success today and why I feel it is no accident why guys get what they want and what they work for.  Every year I get to come back to this Organization, I am reminded of the process of being a successful major league player.  I get to see guys like Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Yadier Molina, and of course, Albert Pujols.  People want to know out there how they are so good at what they do.  To me it is very simple, they understand focus and they can keep it for the periods of time that it is most needed.

As I get older and have more experiences in my life I can see more clearly why certain guys fail and others succeed.  But not only that, I can see it coming before it happens.  Now, this is nothing new to a lot of coaches, especially the ones that have been around a while.  But if you watch more closely you can see the ones who "got it" and the ones who don't.  There is a presence, an aura, an energy around the players that "got it".  But even more then that, the players that "got it" are the same ones that have a routine, who trust the process, who work hard at their craft, who understand focus and how powerful it can be.  If you could have the opportunity to come down here and see Albert Pujols work in the batting cages you would clearly understand what I am writing about.  This guy is just so darn good at focusing and knowing what he wants to accomplish with each workout and not settling when he works.  He doesn't waste any of his time.  He doesn't quit on his repetitions.  He doesn't just go through the motions and hurry through his workouts.  Everything he does has a focus and intention to it and that is why he is Albert Pujols.  How did he get like that??  Not sure, that you would have to ask him.  But if I had a guess at it I would say he got it from experiencing contrast at different points of his life and never wanting to feel a certain way again.  He took all his focus and energy and put it towards what he wanted to accomplish and what he wanted to feel like in the game of baseball and then he did it.  He never wasted his time sulking, feeling sorry for himself or being afraid.  He spent all his attention and focus on turning into the player that he knew he was capable of being.  Man is he good!!

More on this to come folks...hope all is well!!!!