From the Mound

If you are reading this and you are a pitcher, you're in the right place.

I'm a pitcher. I've been one my whole life. I have always loved playing as much baseball as I could, whenever I could. I still practice every day. But, to be a pitcher you have to have a few specific and important traits.

Confidence:

If somebody wants to dominate on the mound, they have to be able to walk out onto the field and say to themselves (over and over!) "I am going to strike out every single person that I face. And if I don't, I will move on to the next batter."

It's so difficult to do something like pitching really well when you are doubting yourself. Believe me--I've done this before a million times! I just had to keep repeating in my mind that even if I saw that even if a hitter was crushing someone else's fastball, I would give them a curveball. And if they were crushing their curveball, then I would give them a fastball. You just have to keep changing it up until you find something they can't hit. That's just what you have to do if you want to become a pitcher.

Short-Term Memory:

If somebody goes out to pitch and gives up hits, runs, (or worse--a bunch of runs), they just have to forget about it. I know that's easier said than done. But you just develop an inner voice that tells you during the game when your adrenaline is really going hard "When I make a mistake, I will move on to the next pitch." That is a mandatory thing that a pitcher needs to have to be successful and keep cool under pressure. This is just as important as confidence for a pitcher.

So, just a few thoughts from one pitcher to any others who might be out there. I know spring is still months away and the cold weather is already here, but that's okay. Only 11 more weeks until pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training.