Expert: Rick Bundy - 3/18/2011

Question
QUESTION: Dear Rick Bundy,

My name is Emanuele, I'm 21 years old and I'm playing college Baseball in a Junior College. In may Im going to be 22.

I've been out Baseball for 2 years due to an injurie of my ACL turn playing A. Football with my friends.

When I was 18 I was playing in the Dominican to get signed with a MLB team accademy. I'm Just starting telling you my story and finding some mental helps too if I still can get a possibility to get signed with my age.

So my questions are this:

- How is my bat swing? (I have a video for you hitting the T-ball after practice and I bat a lot of balls like 3 bins every day). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7armR7UEA4o

- what can I do to improve more my skills after a normal practice.

- I'm scared about grounding balls sometime, because I always think a lot and always go unsure to catch it, so I appear to tight and tense, also I get shy to dive is like I'm feeling . The coach says that im sitting too much on my place and making my feet slow even if I am not.

- Do you think I can still do it to be part of a minor league team? I started play baseball again in November so right now I'm not playing the season.

ANSWER: Hi Emanuele, good to hear from you again!

Good video.  You certainly have some pop in your bat, good balance and a short compact swing.  All things that someone would look for.

You make the statement that you always think a lot.  That can be a good thing, or it can be a bad thing.  Sounds like you are an infielder, what position in the infield do you play?  When your coach says you are sitting too much on your place, he may mean you are sitting back on ground balls, not coming to get them.  That generally leads to having to rush throws, the more hops a ball takes, the better the chances are for a bad or in between hop.  

I assume that you are healthy now, the ACL is rehabbed and there are no physical limitations?  If so, you should be able to trust your skills and turn it loose.  If you have been successful in the past, you should be able to be successful now.

If you would like to see how professional baseball evaluates your current skills, you should go to some tryout camps.  That would be the fastest way to see how they see your skills at this point.  

At the levels you are looking at now, everyone has physical talent.  The separator becomes individual mental toughness and skills.  The mechanics are there; but can the player produce those results under game conditions and speeds.  Being able to consistently perform day after day, and work through the adversities and pressures that are inherent in baseball are of the utmost importance.

At the MLB level everyone there can play, they all have exceptional physical talents; but within that structure there is a separation between those that have superior mental game skills, and those that do not.  An example, Derek Jeter.  While he is truly a gifted athlete, there are many others in the game with greater physical skills; but few that are able to produce the results that he produces day in and day out.  It is his mental preparation, his ability to prepare, concentrate and set aside adversity so one bad event doesn't destroy an entire at bat,inning, game, series, week, month or year.

Only one example of many.

There is something called self talk, that voice inside our heads that speaks to us on and off every day.  When that self talk is happening to you on the field, what are the things you are saying to yourself?  Are they positive or negative?  If they are negative, you are hurting yourself.  The successes we achieved in our past are more real than the failures we fear in our future.  Trust your skills!  Stay positive.

Did you look into some of the mental game books I mentioned before?  There is information in there that will help you to get where you want to go.

I was watching Derek Jeter on TV in an ALCS game a number of years ago.  He was in the on deck circle, the camera showed a shot of him doing what many do, setting up and timing the pitch to the hitter before him.  Nothing particularly exciting.

The pitcher threw a pitch, which came in high and tight to the hitter, who had to hit the ground to keep from being hit.  The announcer asked the camera crew to run that pitch back.  From the camera in the third base dugout, the shot showed Jeter in the on deck circle, timing the pitch as before. This time, when the ball was high and tight, Jeter hit the ground also.

That is mental focus, concentration at it's finest.  Those types of abilities are the separators between players.  Put your mind in a position to be successful!

I would put my after practice time into the development of my mental game.  Work on things outside of practice, then take them into practice for real time experience.  It will transfer into games as you move forward.  

As I mentioned before, these are skills as learnable as throwing, hitting, fielding.

I would like to hear more of your story, more details on just what is happening to you in game situations.

Keep in touch.

Yours in baseball,

Rick  









---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Well, I play the 3rd base.

What can I say about me is that most of the time I'm scared about trying something new that I would like to do! things that pass in my mind, like dive, throw like I know how to throw harder, but I'm really scared to do it on the bad way. Is like i need someone who's help me to make me feel quite training with him; trying all those things where nobody will watch me and think  or say What is he doin or what is trying to do, most of the time I'm scared about what people can think about me while playing, but fortunately with the time this behavior is going away from me.

Every time I try to be positive, in my mind comes the bad action, the bad motion, and inside me I feel something, is in my legs and in my stomach! really!

Well, in games it is very strange! Sometimes I get really nervous, but in the moment that I have to do the right thing, i do it and I don't know how! Is like my mind do the things for me.

And...about my story I would like to tell you all things you want to know, but there is a lot, and I don't know what to say.

ANSWER: Emanuele:  If your fielding and throwing mechanics are as refined as your hitting mechanics, you are in good shape.

For the most part, the mechanics needed in baseball are not hard to acquire.  The difficult part is putting those acquired mechanics to good use on the field, in a game situation.

Up until you hurt your knee, had you been successful in baseball?  Were these feelings you are having now always there, or are they feelings that have started since you begin playing again?

If you have been successful in the past, you need to know that the successes you have had in your past are more real than the failures you fear in your future.

From the tone of your writing I would say you do a lot of self talk, and quite possibly the things you are saying to yourself are not positive.

First step, realize when you are talking to yourself and it isn't positive.  Provide yourself with some kind of key, such as saying "stop" outloud, step back and reset your thinking to positive thoughts.

Once you realize what you are doing and saying, you can take control over it, turn it around and make it positive.

If you go on my website at www.theoleballgame.com, go to the section on the mental game.  There are a lot of pages there that can get you started in the direction you want to go.

Were you able to get a copy of the book, Baseball's Mental Game , by H.A. Dorfman?  I can tell you there is a ton of information and help in the pages of his book.

Being able to just shut out all the noise and clutter around you during the game allows you trust your skills and turn it loose.  It is a skill that will allow you to move forward.

There are certain things you have control of in baseball, and they are the things that you should focus on.  You will find a list of those that are controllable, as well as those that aren't on my website, in the mental game section.

One of the things you have no control over is what other people think.  Concentrate on the areas that you can control.

With your age and experience, you should be your own best hitting, fielding and throwing coach.  Be nice to yourself, help yourself make adjustments pitch to pitch, whether it is at the plate or in the field.  You know more about your swing than anyone else, you work with it everyday.  I am sure you know as much about your fielding and throwing situation as well.  Take charge of your game.

Let me know about your self talk.  Write down some of the things you are saying to yourself during games and practice.  All of the mental things can be taken to practice and worked on.  With work comes positive change.  Just like all the cuts you take in the cage and at BP.  It is just another skill.

Yours in baseball,

Rick








---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Good news!

On my last day of practice, I did it great!

Everybody told me I was great, no error on the field, no stepping back and slow feet, I also hit a HR in BP, almost Two!
I've never seen the coach so happy, I saw him laughin very highly!
Then he started saying that Dominicans player are great...

I just started the day talkin with everybody and saying whatever thing I want to say with my baseball collegue. Jokin with the trainers, with the players, and copy from the others 3rd baseban even if I was going to do the things wrong.

At first on warming-up catching the ball on the run I miss a thorw because I had to know how to do the motion, but then I strted throw perfectly on the base and to the catcher, I don't know how, is like all my baseball knowledge came out and automaticaly being applied!!!

Sometimes I was telling to my self, how did I do this?!?! The homer, I did it without thinking about nothing, just swing.

And: (here come what you want to read) while I was watchin that ball, I was saying, is going out? no maybe is not, it would be a dream again...I was negative in that instant. But at the same time happy!

I want all the days like this.

And bout my thoughts during practice, I realized that sometimes I say, No that one was bad, try again...or... that swing wasn't stong enough, try again....things like this.

I can get nervous thinking about somethings, image talkin with a person.

Answer
Emanuele:  Sounds like you did have a good day!

You mentioned a couple of times, once that the homer came without thinking.  Again, with your throwing, is like all my baseball knowledge came out and was automatically applied.

Those are examples of trusting your skills and just play.  Yogi Berra said, "you can't think and hit at the same time!"  It is true.

When you said your last day of practice, did you mean for the year, or just the last day before you sent the update?

It has to feel good to just turn it loose and not worry so much about things.  As I mentioned before, if your throwing and fielding mechanics are as sound as your hitting video, you should be having way more good days than bad.

Let me know what you are doing from here.

Yours in baseball,

Rick