So I went to a workshop this weekend, one that I normally attend at least once a year. This workshop is for my personal growth, but then again everything in life really is. But I use the workshop as a way to evolve as a person which in turn will always allow me to evolve as a coach. My job as a coach is to not only research, watch film, gain knowledge in my sport, but it is also to get better as a person so I can have better relationships with the players I work with. In the end that is what it is all about because I could have all the answers and the best information in the world, but if nobody wants to listen because I am the worlds biggest jerk, then none of that really matters.
The message I wanted to talk about and get across to the lovely athletes who actually read this thing is a little thing called Want and Believe. This is something that stuck with me this weekend. In order to manifest anything you want in life there is always a process of creation that is going to take shape. But before you can move forward in the process you must bring along two very specific things, Want and Believe. Seems pretty simple right. This is the starting point and basis to everything you go for in your life.
Now in my line of work this is a HUGE deal. To want and to believe is really what it is all about. The thing is though that the wanting has to be through the roof. You have to want so badly that you will do anything to get what you want out of this profession. You have to want so badly that there is no real sacrifice because you don't care about anything else. You have to want so badly that all the workouts and the games and the traveling and all that other stuff you could throw into the bag is never called work or a job. You have to want so badly that you eat, sleep, drink... (you know the rest)...this sport. To be a professional pitcher in the biggest of stages your wanting needs to consume you. Yes!!! Consume you!! I understand I am on the verge of sounding cultish and insane and overdone but it is the truth. There is always perspective that comes into this as well. So when I mention all these crazy sentences you must realize the perspective that you must have on all this. The perspective is coming from a passion and a love. Not from a lack or a longing for. This means that sacrifice doesn't exist because your perspective on what you are doing is clean. This means that work or a job type focus is not in your vocabulary because it is just your life and what you love to do. This means that the choice to have baseball consume your life is a choice of joy and not insanity. It just means you love the sport so much and you choose to succeed so you practice at your craft and you study your craft and you love your craft. That is the "consume" that I speak of.
The next step is the Believe part. If you have this ever-burning desire or wanting to be a major league pitcher you must then have the belief in yourself, no matter what the situation brings, to back that wanting up. You have to believe so clearly and confidently that you never hear the doubters, the naysayers, the people who tell you that you are too small, too short, too fat, too slow and whatever else the critics think of. The perfect example of belief right now is Tim Tebow. Look at that guy. You think he believes in himself?!? He believes so strongly in himself and he wants to succeed at quarterback so badly that he has convinced his entire team, his entire organization that he can win, no matter what. No matter how bad it looks or how bad he throws or how bad the game goes into the 4th quarter. Nothing matters, nothing shatters his belief because he knows he is capable of anything. Just think of the belief he has in himself when week after week he has to hear the critics and the opposing teams continually criticize the way he looks on the football field. But yet he wins and has been highly successful solely based on his wanting and his belief.
So the next time you go to practice or to your game and are wanting to have results that are satisfying, just think about how much you want it and then believe that it can happen. You could go as far as measuring on a scale from 1 to 10. 1 being the low and 10 being the high. If you go home each night and answer the question honestly to yourself you will know exactly why you get what you are getting out of your sport right now. Increase the wanting, increase the belief and see the performance in your sport flourish!
Ok, that's all for now folks...hope all is well in your baseball world and keep throwing!!!!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
How I Conquered The Impossible cont...
I wanted to clarify some things on the recent Blog I wrote about my troubles with BP. I wanted to let you know why I really ended up deciding upon writing that Blog. You see for me, I believe there is a process to this life we all live. There is a consistent path there to assist you in times of contrast. A path that never leaves you, never strays, never goes off into the woods. A path that you may not be able to see all the time, but it is always there.
I wanted to share this Blog with you because I wanted to tell you that you all have the answers you want in life. You all have the answers to what you think you need in life. I say this because I know of this now. I needed this contrast in my life to prove to myself that I could trust the process, trust the path, and simply walk down it. I didn't need a drug, a sport psychologist, a shrink, nobody. All I needed was to learn how to trust myself, love myself, listen to myself and have confidence in myself. In no way am I saying that people don't need assistance or that assistance is not a good thing. Not true, assistance is an amazing thing along the path of life, but it is not supposed to be a dependency.
When I truly decided I was going to get over this "Yips" thing, I finally made the decision that I didn't care what others thought about me. I didn't care that I may have looked funny or people were laughing at me or whatever else was going on behind my back. I even remember one day about a year or so ago, having a conversation with a well known man on this topic. You know how sometimes you feel like you have nothing left to give a subject you are trying to fix. You have been working for years and years and it just isn't helping. So you have given up on yourself and you go to anyone in the industry you think can help. You read articles, go to classes, workshops, seek guru's on the subject. Anything to shake the situation you are currently in. Well I did all that. I went to the guy people were all paying money to to help them on the subject. Do you know what he said to me??? He told me that if it is as bad as I am describing it and I was not able to pay the thousands of dollars it would have cost to go through his program, then I should simply quit. He told me there is nobody who can get better from the position I was in and it would be best to just quit trying.
That is why I wrote the last Blog and am writing this one. There is no impossible, there is just you thinking it is impossible and that is all. I am living proof!! This doesn't mean I am the best BP thrower in the world or that I still don't have thoughts of "OH SHIT" go through my head about the subject. But I found my path, I trusted the process. Each one of you can do the same thing, no matter what the task. The trick is though, you have to do the work.
Now I know I just said you have to do the work and that everyone who just read this Blog said "Yes, hard work is the answer. Determination, motivation, grit, sacrifice" That is not the work I am speaking of. The work I am speaking of is not physical at all. The work I am speaking of is inside yourself, it is emotional work, it is evolving work, it is growing work, it is wanting to be all of who you can be type work. There are all sorts of things out there in this world to "fix" you or "help" you or "solve" you. But the problem I have with most of these things is that they leave you reaching outside of yourself. Again, they give you a drug or an antidote or whatever it is they are offering. But there is one thing they are all missing, they never teach us how to be us. How to be all of who we are. How to trust our intuition. How to trust our emotional guidance. How to build our foundation and knowledge from the inside out. That is why I wrote this Blog. I wanted people to understand that this life is an inside job, not an outside job. All you have to do is have some patience and trust the process, learn the process. And nobody can tell you ultimately how that is for you. That is your job. Nobody truly knows how you feel or where you are on certain subjects, you are the only one who truly knows. That is why we need to start looking at things from the inside out. Stop fishing for the quick fixes and learn yourself. Sure, it may take a bit but it may not. And once you truly figured out your own process to make things work for you, it never changes. You will have that forever no matter what you do in your life. To me, that makes it worth the "work".
Ok, no more soap box for now. Hope all is well in your pitching world and I am sure we will talk soon. Keep pitching!!!
I wanted to share this Blog with you because I wanted to tell you that you all have the answers you want in life. You all have the answers to what you think you need in life. I say this because I know of this now. I needed this contrast in my life to prove to myself that I could trust the process, trust the path, and simply walk down it. I didn't need a drug, a sport psychologist, a shrink, nobody. All I needed was to learn how to trust myself, love myself, listen to myself and have confidence in myself. In no way am I saying that people don't need assistance or that assistance is not a good thing. Not true, assistance is an amazing thing along the path of life, but it is not supposed to be a dependency.
When I truly decided I was going to get over this "Yips" thing, I finally made the decision that I didn't care what others thought about me. I didn't care that I may have looked funny or people were laughing at me or whatever else was going on behind my back. I even remember one day about a year or so ago, having a conversation with a well known man on this topic. You know how sometimes you feel like you have nothing left to give a subject you are trying to fix. You have been working for years and years and it just isn't helping. So you have given up on yourself and you go to anyone in the industry you think can help. You read articles, go to classes, workshops, seek guru's on the subject. Anything to shake the situation you are currently in. Well I did all that. I went to the guy people were all paying money to to help them on the subject. Do you know what he said to me??? He told me that if it is as bad as I am describing it and I was not able to pay the thousands of dollars it would have cost to go through his program, then I should simply quit. He told me there is nobody who can get better from the position I was in and it would be best to just quit trying.
That is why I wrote the last Blog and am writing this one. There is no impossible, there is just you thinking it is impossible and that is all. I am living proof!! This doesn't mean I am the best BP thrower in the world or that I still don't have thoughts of "OH SHIT" go through my head about the subject. But I found my path, I trusted the process. Each one of you can do the same thing, no matter what the task. The trick is though, you have to do the work.
Now I know I just said you have to do the work and that everyone who just read this Blog said "Yes, hard work is the answer. Determination, motivation, grit, sacrifice" That is not the work I am speaking of. The work I am speaking of is not physical at all. The work I am speaking of is inside yourself, it is emotional work, it is evolving work, it is growing work, it is wanting to be all of who you can be type work. There are all sorts of things out there in this world to "fix" you or "help" you or "solve" you. But the problem I have with most of these things is that they leave you reaching outside of yourself. Again, they give you a drug or an antidote or whatever it is they are offering. But there is one thing they are all missing, they never teach us how to be us. How to be all of who we are. How to trust our intuition. How to trust our emotional guidance. How to build our foundation and knowledge from the inside out. That is why I wrote this Blog. I wanted people to understand that this life is an inside job, not an outside job. All you have to do is have some patience and trust the process, learn the process. And nobody can tell you ultimately how that is for you. That is your job. Nobody truly knows how you feel or where you are on certain subjects, you are the only one who truly knows. That is why we need to start looking at things from the inside out. Stop fishing for the quick fixes and learn yourself. Sure, it may take a bit but it may not. And once you truly figured out your own process to make things work for you, it never changes. You will have that forever no matter what you do in your life. To me, that makes it worth the "work".
Ok, no more soap box for now. Hope all is well in your pitching world and I am sure we will talk soon. Keep pitching!!!
Monday, October 31, 2011
How I Conquered The Impossible
Who knows who Steve Sax is??? Who knows who Chuck Knoblauch is??? Or, how about Rick Ankiel??? (the pitchers version) What do you all remember them most for? Most people reading this blog would say their issues with throwing at one point or another in their career.
One of the most infamous and mind boggling topics in sports these days is getting "the Yips" when it comes to throwing a baseball. Most are terrified of this subject, especially if you are currently playing the game, because nobody really understands the how or why of it all. So for the first time ever, I am going to let the world (or at least the people reading this blog) in on a little secret. I had "the Yips"!! Yup, little 'ol me. It actually happens more then most know about. There are professional coaches all over the globe who can't throw a baseball. Professionals who at one time could put the ball wherever they wanted, whenever they wanted. And now, all they can do is cringe at the sight of a baseball, especially when somebody asks them to play catch or better yet, throw Batting Practice.
That is really the issue at hand for most professional coaches, batting practice. Most people out there would laugh at this but it is true. When certain coaches are asked to throw BP in their organizations, the emotion of "OH SHIT" quickly runs through their veins. It is quite a frightful feeling that I am well aware of. Your stomach crawls, your heart drops and you start sweating on the spot. Your heart beat rises and there is nothing you can do to run or hide from it. "The Yips" it's called. Not really sure who came up with that name but the person should be rich by now.
So this is how it goes. When I was towards the end of my playing career I was going from workout to workout trying to get picked up by independent baseball teams. My whole life was fixed around gaining velocity. I couldn't throw the fastball like I wanted to and was utterly obsessed by it. Night and day I searched for a pitching coach or a baseball god who could show me the way. I wanted velocity!! I knew that if I could just throw a faster fastball I could be that big league pitcher that little kids are in awe of. The more obsessed I got, the closer to disaster I was getting. As I went to these workouts I started a make believe world in my head. I thought up every scenario in the book to the point that I believed people were making fun of me because of my velocity. Here I was, I pitched in college, I pitched professionally but still was slowly creeping towards self destruction. I remember at one workout I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. The ball wouldn't even cross home plate. I was everywhere and felt no reason of why it was happening, but boy was I scared. Little by little towards the end of my career it got worse and worse. I wanted to continue playing but by this point it wasn't worth the stress I was putting on myself. All that I wanted was a couple more miles per hour on my Fastball and what it turned into was a complete panic. I really didn't know how bad it was until I got my first professional coaching job.
It was with the Montreal Expos. I was 25 years old and ready to roll. This was my first experience inside a true, Major League Organization. I was so excited and ready to conquer the world but I forgot one thing. I didn't believe in myself in some ways. There were things I could do as a coach and I felt very confident and aware of my ability. But when it came to some on the field stuff I felt I was inferior. That is where BP came in to the picture. The time I spent towards the end of my career, making up a story in my head that I wasn't good enough or people were making fun of me because I didn't throw hard. All those stories were right where I left them when it was time to throw BP. I felt judged and quite inadequate when really there were no facts whatsoever to support my made up story.
So there I was in the middle of the action and really no understanding of how I got there or better yet, how the heck I was going to get out of it. This was the first time in my life where I knew I was in trouble and didn't realize what the solution was. Stuck in a problem I saw no way out of. Fast forward to January of 2011 and I was finally ready to move on from this nightmare of a situation. That's right, 2011. It had been about 8 years or so that I hung on to this made up belief, that I wasn't good enough and people were laughing at me and that I don't belong because I have trouble with BP. It took years of seesawing back and forth until I finally was fed up with it all. For most of the viewers out there I am sure you are wondering why it took so long for me to finally get fed up. I can't really answer that, it is different for everyone. But for me, I just couldn't handle the fear of throwing BP in front of the team I worked with and having everyone know how bad it really was. I did that over and over and I really let it tear me up inside. Until I finally started understanding perspective and also growing up on the inside. Until I realized this issue had nothing to do with anything else but how I thought about myself. The thoughts I practiced were debilitating, so I just started to work on creating different thoughts.
I worked on BP for two months before the 2011 Spring Training opening day. I threw well all the way up to that point but still had not been in front of professional ballplayers and professional coaches who knew about all the trouble I was having. It takes a lot to shut out all those people watching and wondering what is going to come out of that arm when you start throwing the ball. Some are supportive, some don't care at all, and of course some want to see you fail. But again, that has nothing to do with me. No matter how anyone felt about me, that didn't and doesn't matter, it all had to do with how I felt about me. So when I got to Spring Training it was time to get in there and prove to myself I could finally get past all this bullshit I put in my head. For the first couple weeks I threw quite well but man was it tough to keep my focus and get prepared to throw each day. I was so nervous each time I threw and had to concentrate so hard on keeping my focus and thoughts in a healthy place that it was almost not even worth the throwing.
Then it happened....the breakthrough. I was having a couple difficult days of throwing and looked pretty bad during BP. One time I actually had to step outside the cage because it was that bad. But in the past I would let that defeat me and I would go back in my cave for weeks at a time and sometimes months before even trying to throw again. But this time something felt different. I didn't care about what it felt like or looked like, I just cared that I wanted to feel better and that was more important than anything. So the next day I got back in the cage and started throwing. The start of BP was pretty brutal again and I was a bit worried at first. This time though, I started to loosen up. I started to tell the hitters coming into the cage that they better put their hard hat on because I am not leaving this cage. I started to make a joke of it and have fun with it each time I threw the ball and it missed the target by a mile. But as I loosened up more and more and took away the serious tone to BP that I was putting towards it, things started to get easier and easier. The next thing I knew I was throwing strike after strike and really started having some fun. I was talking smack to the guys and just living it up. The rest of spring training and extended spring training I was fine and threw every day. When my short season started in Tennessee I even threw all 3 groups some days. The big bosses would come in and it would rattle me some but I wouldn't let it take me over. I knew who I was and how I could accomplish what I wanted to accomplish and it all came together.
Now this is not to say I still don't have thoughts of fear or get nervous at times. And this is not to say I won't have any more bad days. But what it does mean is that I know the process to get back to where I want to be. I will never be lost any more. I got back on the road I wanted to travel and now am familiar with that feeling. Once you can get to the feeling place of where you need to be to accomplish something, the rest is easy. You just follow the road and enjoy!!!
More to come on this topic soon......
One of the most infamous and mind boggling topics in sports these days is getting "the Yips" when it comes to throwing a baseball. Most are terrified of this subject, especially if you are currently playing the game, because nobody really understands the how or why of it all. So for the first time ever, I am going to let the world (or at least the people reading this blog) in on a little secret. I had "the Yips"!! Yup, little 'ol me. It actually happens more then most know about. There are professional coaches all over the globe who can't throw a baseball. Professionals who at one time could put the ball wherever they wanted, whenever they wanted. And now, all they can do is cringe at the sight of a baseball, especially when somebody asks them to play catch or better yet, throw Batting Practice.
That is really the issue at hand for most professional coaches, batting practice. Most people out there would laugh at this but it is true. When certain coaches are asked to throw BP in their organizations, the emotion of "OH SHIT" quickly runs through their veins. It is quite a frightful feeling that I am well aware of. Your stomach crawls, your heart drops and you start sweating on the spot. Your heart beat rises and there is nothing you can do to run or hide from it. "The Yips" it's called. Not really sure who came up with that name but the person should be rich by now.
So this is how it goes. When I was towards the end of my playing career I was going from workout to workout trying to get picked up by independent baseball teams. My whole life was fixed around gaining velocity. I couldn't throw the fastball like I wanted to and was utterly obsessed by it. Night and day I searched for a pitching coach or a baseball god who could show me the way. I wanted velocity!! I knew that if I could just throw a faster fastball I could be that big league pitcher that little kids are in awe of. The more obsessed I got, the closer to disaster I was getting. As I went to these workouts I started a make believe world in my head. I thought up every scenario in the book to the point that I believed people were making fun of me because of my velocity. Here I was, I pitched in college, I pitched professionally but still was slowly creeping towards self destruction. I remember at one workout I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. The ball wouldn't even cross home plate. I was everywhere and felt no reason of why it was happening, but boy was I scared. Little by little towards the end of my career it got worse and worse. I wanted to continue playing but by this point it wasn't worth the stress I was putting on myself. All that I wanted was a couple more miles per hour on my Fastball and what it turned into was a complete panic. I really didn't know how bad it was until I got my first professional coaching job.
It was with the Montreal Expos. I was 25 years old and ready to roll. This was my first experience inside a true, Major League Organization. I was so excited and ready to conquer the world but I forgot one thing. I didn't believe in myself in some ways. There were things I could do as a coach and I felt very confident and aware of my ability. But when it came to some on the field stuff I felt I was inferior. That is where BP came in to the picture. The time I spent towards the end of my career, making up a story in my head that I wasn't good enough or people were making fun of me because I didn't throw hard. All those stories were right where I left them when it was time to throw BP. I felt judged and quite inadequate when really there were no facts whatsoever to support my made up story.
So there I was in the middle of the action and really no understanding of how I got there or better yet, how the heck I was going to get out of it. This was the first time in my life where I knew I was in trouble and didn't realize what the solution was. Stuck in a problem I saw no way out of. Fast forward to January of 2011 and I was finally ready to move on from this nightmare of a situation. That's right, 2011. It had been about 8 years or so that I hung on to this made up belief, that I wasn't good enough and people were laughing at me and that I don't belong because I have trouble with BP. It took years of seesawing back and forth until I finally was fed up with it all. For most of the viewers out there I am sure you are wondering why it took so long for me to finally get fed up. I can't really answer that, it is different for everyone. But for me, I just couldn't handle the fear of throwing BP in front of the team I worked with and having everyone know how bad it really was. I did that over and over and I really let it tear me up inside. Until I finally started understanding perspective and also growing up on the inside. Until I realized this issue had nothing to do with anything else but how I thought about myself. The thoughts I practiced were debilitating, so I just started to work on creating different thoughts.
I worked on BP for two months before the 2011 Spring Training opening day. I threw well all the way up to that point but still had not been in front of professional ballplayers and professional coaches who knew about all the trouble I was having. It takes a lot to shut out all those people watching and wondering what is going to come out of that arm when you start throwing the ball. Some are supportive, some don't care at all, and of course some want to see you fail. But again, that has nothing to do with me. No matter how anyone felt about me, that didn't and doesn't matter, it all had to do with how I felt about me. So when I got to Spring Training it was time to get in there and prove to myself I could finally get past all this bullshit I put in my head. For the first couple weeks I threw quite well but man was it tough to keep my focus and get prepared to throw each day. I was so nervous each time I threw and had to concentrate so hard on keeping my focus and thoughts in a healthy place that it was almost not even worth the throwing.
Then it happened....the breakthrough. I was having a couple difficult days of throwing and looked pretty bad during BP. One time I actually had to step outside the cage because it was that bad. But in the past I would let that defeat me and I would go back in my cave for weeks at a time and sometimes months before even trying to throw again. But this time something felt different. I didn't care about what it felt like or looked like, I just cared that I wanted to feel better and that was more important than anything. So the next day I got back in the cage and started throwing. The start of BP was pretty brutal again and I was a bit worried at first. This time though, I started to loosen up. I started to tell the hitters coming into the cage that they better put their hard hat on because I am not leaving this cage. I started to make a joke of it and have fun with it each time I threw the ball and it missed the target by a mile. But as I loosened up more and more and took away the serious tone to BP that I was putting towards it, things started to get easier and easier. The next thing I knew I was throwing strike after strike and really started having some fun. I was talking smack to the guys and just living it up. The rest of spring training and extended spring training I was fine and threw every day. When my short season started in Tennessee I even threw all 3 groups some days. The big bosses would come in and it would rattle me some but I wouldn't let it take me over. I knew who I was and how I could accomplish what I wanted to accomplish and it all came together.
Now this is not to say I still don't have thoughts of fear or get nervous at times. And this is not to say I won't have any more bad days. But what it does mean is that I know the process to get back to where I want to be. I will never be lost any more. I got back on the road I wanted to travel and now am familiar with that feeling. Once you can get to the feeling place of where you need to be to accomplish something, the rest is easy. You just follow the road and enjoy!!!
More to come on this topic soon......
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Perspective is Power!
Everything in life is perspective. The way you choose to perceive experiences in your life is how you get what you want out of your life experiences. If each experience is just perceived as a way to move forward with more clarity, then each day should become richer, more lively, and better.
The easiest example of this is the current player you are watching in the World Series, right now, Albert Pujols. Sure, I could really mention any of the current players on either roster because they all come equipped with stories of how they made it to the 2011 World Series. But when people mention Albert Pujols, you listen. His presence is obvious and powerful and how he got there was through an amazing perspective. I partly say this because I have listened to him talk in the past several years I have been with the Cardinals Organization. I also say this because look at his life, look at his manifestations, look at how he creates, listen to how he talks, look at how he carries himself, listen to the words he speaks, listen to the clarity of his voice. It is oozing from every pore in his body. And once again it happened the other night. What happened you asked, well, perspective happened.
Albert Pujols was just another hitter in the first two games of the World Series, actually he wasn't even average at that time, when you look at the numbers. I believe he started 0 for 8. If he carried that 0 for 8 into game 3 he would have probably finished that game 0 for 12. Especially after the way the media was tearing him up for the defensive mishap he had in the ninth inning of game 2. But again, listen to how he talks. The media interviewed him the next day and asked him about the defensive play. Their perspective was that he let the team down, could have had an easy out at third base if he would have caught the relay throw. Then the media was giving it to him a little more about the 0 for 8 start.
Now for Albert's perspective. His response to the botched relay throw was simple. He lost focus for a second, the ball cut on him and he wasn't able to make the play. His response to the 0 for 8 start was just as simple. Albert said he was making great swings and hitting the ball hard it was just not falling for him. You see, this game of baseball is goofy. Timing is everything. It just so happened that Albert had a defensive mishap at a key time in the season. But does that make the decade and more that he has played and won gold gloves defensively just disappear? Not at all, in fact, that is why Albert can have the perspective that he has. He is trained that way. He knows who he is, the results don't control his mind, he does. The same goes for the hitting side of things. Albert is one of the best hitters who has ever played the game of baseball. He knows there are going to be times that he will go 0 for whatever, but he also knows how to view the game. His perspective is with each current AB. The result can't matter because nobody gets on base or gets a hit with every AB. If Albert got fixated on each AB the game would be a roller coaster and there is no way he would have ever been Albert Pujols. Instead, Albert takes the perspective of putting a good approach or process to each AB. If the result comes then great, if not, he goes back to the process and clears his mind. So he was able to take all that information from the first two games and then made sure his perspective was in the right place, then he went to work. The result.....3 homeruns and a 5 for 6 night!!
Perspective is a beautiful thing. It can always work for you and work in your favor, all you have to do is practice. Practice making perspective your best friend. Practice your points of view in life and in baseball and things will start to roll your way more and more. Don't be so impatient with all this. Take your time, take a step back, take a look at your life and how things are going for you. Learn about how you look at things more and more. Stop blaming the guy next to you. Who cares, just keep practicing and little by little things will come around, I promise!!!
Ok, all for now...enjoy your week and keep it moving!!
The easiest example of this is the current player you are watching in the World Series, right now, Albert Pujols. Sure, I could really mention any of the current players on either roster because they all come equipped with stories of how they made it to the 2011 World Series. But when people mention Albert Pujols, you listen. His presence is obvious and powerful and how he got there was through an amazing perspective. I partly say this because I have listened to him talk in the past several years I have been with the Cardinals Organization. I also say this because look at his life, look at his manifestations, look at how he creates, listen to how he talks, look at how he carries himself, listen to the words he speaks, listen to the clarity of his voice. It is oozing from every pore in his body. And once again it happened the other night. What happened you asked, well, perspective happened.
Albert Pujols was just another hitter in the first two games of the World Series, actually he wasn't even average at that time, when you look at the numbers. I believe he started 0 for 8. If he carried that 0 for 8 into game 3 he would have probably finished that game 0 for 12. Especially after the way the media was tearing him up for the defensive mishap he had in the ninth inning of game 2. But again, listen to how he talks. The media interviewed him the next day and asked him about the defensive play. Their perspective was that he let the team down, could have had an easy out at third base if he would have caught the relay throw. Then the media was giving it to him a little more about the 0 for 8 start.
Now for Albert's perspective. His response to the botched relay throw was simple. He lost focus for a second, the ball cut on him and he wasn't able to make the play. His response to the 0 for 8 start was just as simple. Albert said he was making great swings and hitting the ball hard it was just not falling for him. You see, this game of baseball is goofy. Timing is everything. It just so happened that Albert had a defensive mishap at a key time in the season. But does that make the decade and more that he has played and won gold gloves defensively just disappear? Not at all, in fact, that is why Albert can have the perspective that he has. He is trained that way. He knows who he is, the results don't control his mind, he does. The same goes for the hitting side of things. Albert is one of the best hitters who has ever played the game of baseball. He knows there are going to be times that he will go 0 for whatever, but he also knows how to view the game. His perspective is with each current AB. The result can't matter because nobody gets on base or gets a hit with every AB. If Albert got fixated on each AB the game would be a roller coaster and there is no way he would have ever been Albert Pujols. Instead, Albert takes the perspective of putting a good approach or process to each AB. If the result comes then great, if not, he goes back to the process and clears his mind. So he was able to take all that information from the first two games and then made sure his perspective was in the right place, then he went to work. The result.....3 homeruns and a 5 for 6 night!!
Perspective is a beautiful thing. It can always work for you and work in your favor, all you have to do is practice. Practice making perspective your best friend. Practice your points of view in life and in baseball and things will start to roll your way more and more. Don't be so impatient with all this. Take your time, take a step back, take a look at your life and how things are going for you. Learn about how you look at things more and more. Stop blaming the guy next to you. Who cares, just keep practicing and little by little things will come around, I promise!!!
Ok, all for now...enjoy your week and keep it moving!!
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Getting Back Into the Swing of Things
Hello Passion for Pitching Family,
Back in beautiful San Diego I am!! Just got back from another amazing season and am now ready to move on to other things during this off season.
During a baseball season you learn not only so much about the game and how to perform but also about yourself and what you must get better at. Each year I get more clear of a picture on what it takes to become a professional and better yet, what it takes to stick as a professional. I feel as though the more clear that picture gets, the more clear my message becomes and therefore the guys on my staff also benefit from it. There were so many pitchers on the staff this year that got better, that showed themselves how to get better and how to compete. I am very proud of this years staff and the work we did together. We deserved to be back-to-back champions!!! Wouldn't replace them with any others for the world!!!
So what's next? Well, I would like to get more Blogs going and would love to get more emails from you about what things you would like discussed or would like my opinion on. I also am going to be working on a series of manuals. Not sure how many I will be getting done before next season but the topics will be arm care, grip strength for pitchers, general strength for all ages and maybe one or two more if the ideas come along. I just feel as though I want to share the knowledge I have gotten about arm care and general strength from all the years I have been around the game and actually training myself. I feel that people forgot how to train the basics and have gotten so far out there that they forgotten simple things such as a pull-up or push-up. Everybody these days are looking for the next best thing when they have had all the info they have needed the whole time. So I am going to see if I can simplify some things and get them out to the pitchers seeking this type of info.
As far as the grip srtrength goes, I am going to be working on developing a grip strength program because I want to see for myself whether it will assist in velocity gain or not. I figure the best way to find out is to pick some clients and go to work. Then I will take the info and put it into a manual so everyone can test it out for themselves. I am super excited about it!!!!
That is about it for now....just wanted to say hello and let you know what I have in store for the coming months. Oh, before I forget, I have been selected to speak at the National Baseball Expo in late January in San Diego, so if you are in the area come on by and enjoy the festivities.
Bye for now!!! Happy pitching!!!
Back in beautiful San Diego I am!! Just got back from another amazing season and am now ready to move on to other things during this off season.
During a baseball season you learn not only so much about the game and how to perform but also about yourself and what you must get better at. Each year I get more clear of a picture on what it takes to become a professional and better yet, what it takes to stick as a professional. I feel as though the more clear that picture gets, the more clear my message becomes and therefore the guys on my staff also benefit from it. There were so many pitchers on the staff this year that got better, that showed themselves how to get better and how to compete. I am very proud of this years staff and the work we did together. We deserved to be back-to-back champions!!! Wouldn't replace them with any others for the world!!!
So what's next? Well, I would like to get more Blogs going and would love to get more emails from you about what things you would like discussed or would like my opinion on. I also am going to be working on a series of manuals. Not sure how many I will be getting done before next season but the topics will be arm care, grip strength for pitchers, general strength for all ages and maybe one or two more if the ideas come along. I just feel as though I want to share the knowledge I have gotten about arm care and general strength from all the years I have been around the game and actually training myself. I feel that people forgot how to train the basics and have gotten so far out there that they forgotten simple things such as a pull-up or push-up. Everybody these days are looking for the next best thing when they have had all the info they have needed the whole time. So I am going to see if I can simplify some things and get them out to the pitchers seeking this type of info.
As far as the grip srtrength goes, I am going to be working on developing a grip strength program because I want to see for myself whether it will assist in velocity gain or not. I figure the best way to find out is to pick some clients and go to work. Then I will take the info and put it into a manual so everyone can test it out for themselves. I am super excited about it!!!!
That is about it for now....just wanted to say hello and let you know what I have in store for the coming months. Oh, before I forget, I have been selected to speak at the National Baseball Expo in late January in San Diego, so if you are in the area come on by and enjoy the festivities.
Bye for now!!! Happy pitching!!!
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