What Are The Keys to Developing Your Potential?
All young athletes seek instruction and advice from professional athletes in order to improve their performance and advance to the next level.
But don’t forget about the mental game of baseball.
You’ll find many issues that can hurt a young player’s success, such as lack of focus, inconsistency, low confidence, negative thinking, anxiety and the inability to manage emotions.
How can a young player develop the consistency and confidence needed to play at a high level?
Improve both physically and mentally.
Matt Scherzer, 28 year-old pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, is a great example of consistency and confidence for young baseball players to model.
Scherzer, 21-3, was named the 2013 AL Cy Young winner receiving 28 out of 30 first-place votes. However, Scherzer has not always performed to this level of excellence.
In 2010, Scherzer had a record of 12-11 with an ERA of 3.50. Scherzer progressively improved over the next few years: in 2011, Scherzer posted a 15-9 record with a 4.43 ERA and, in 2012, he had a 16-7 record and an ERA of 3.74.
Scherzer started displaying his dominance during the second half of 2012 when he went 8-2 with a 2.69 ERA. Scherzer is 32-6 with a 2.77 ERA over his last 51 regular-season starts, striking out 383 batters over 331 2/3 innings. In 2013, Scherzer posted the best win-loss record, 21-3 (2.90 ERA) by a Major League pitcher since 2008.
In an interview after the season, Scherzer reflected on his award winning season and provided the much sought after advice on consistency and confidence:
You must be immersed in the present moment to succeed at a high level.
- Scherzer: “Now that the season’s over, you have a chance to reflect on what you were able to actually do, because during the season, you’re focused so much on winning that if you focus on yourself, it really takes away from what’s really important.”
You need your technique to be a dominant habit, so you don’t over-think during games.
- You can improve your confidence from competing from your strengths or the things you do well.
- Scherzer: “I think I ironed out a lot of my mechanics. I’ve smoothed everything out, I feel like I’m able to repeat it. And because of that, I’m able to pitch with all my pitches and pitch effectively and execute every pitch in every location… I felt like I had more control. I cut my walks down even further — something I always pride myself in. So I think because of that is why I was able to have a special 2013.”
You must be committed to daily improvement.
- Scherzer: “I’ve been working so hard for all these years to keep getting better and better, and every single year I try to do something better than the [last].”
You should pay attention to the little things.
- Keep in mind that small improvements over time collectively produce big results.
- Scherzer: “It’s a lot of small things, managing my pitch count so that I can pitch deep into the game, working on the curveball so that I could be more consistent.”
Related Sports Psychology Articles
- Boost Confidence via Preparation – De La Cruz
- Be the Driver of Your Confidence
- How to Build Steadfast Self-Confidence as a Ball Player
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Mental toughness coaching helps serious athletes like you uncover the beliefs and attitudes that keep you from performing to your potential. You’ll learn mental game strategies to perform confidently in competition and how to overcome performance barriers.
You can improve your mental game with Mental Game Coaches, Dr. Patrick Cohn and Jaclyn Ellis, M.S. You can opt for one-on-one sessions with Dr. Cohn in Orlando, Florida, or you can stay where you are and get coaching from anywhere in the world via telephone, Skype, Zoom, or FaceTime.
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