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Showing posts with label derek jeter machine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label derek jeter machine. Show all posts
Derek Jeter and His Baseball Psychology By Nate Barnett
I'm not a Yankees fan. There, I said it. I know that half of you are now finished reading this article, and I'm ok with that. I guess I should explain my opening sentence a bit more thoroughly. While I'm not a Yankess fan, I AM a fan of good, solid baseball. I consider good solid baseball players those who have a firm grasp on both the physical as well as the mental game of baseball. One of the first players I think of who has both components under control is Derek Jeter.
As with most years in his professional career, 2009 was an outstanding year for Jeter. First and foremost, he was a major contributor in the Yankess winning the World Series. Some of his 2009 personal accolades included:
1. Appearing in his 10th All-Star game 2. Winning his 5th World Series Ring 3. Has become the Yankees all time leader in hits wit 2,747 4. Won his 4th Gold Glove 5. Won his 4th Silver Slugger with a.334 batting average and.406 on base average 6. Won the Hank Aaron Award as the best hitter in the American League
If you get a chance to read Derek Jeter's book, The Life You Imagine, you will quickly learn what makes him tick. The mental game of baseball is high on Jeter's list of reasons why he has become a highly successful baseball player. I've added a couple quotes by Jeter below with some of my own commentary following.
"You have got to have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we are playing a game. It is a business, it is our job, but I do not think you can do well unless you are having fun."
Derek Jeter
* Hard work, competing, and winning are what make baseball fun. Once in a while I hear younger players mutter under their breath about not having fun any more with baseball. Sometimes coaches can remove some of the fun from the game, however, I think typically players can regulate their own fun-meter while playing ball. Those who enjoying working on developing their hitting mechanics or pitching skills over and over again think baseball is fun. They know at some point they will enjoy the benefits of their hard work. Those who go head to head with tough competition think baseball is fun. And finally, those who continue to work through mistakes and achieve great things think baseball is fun. Fun doesn't always have to be easy. I tend to think Jeter would agree.
"We just want to win. That is the bottom line. I think a lot of times people may become content with one championship or a little bit of success, but we do not really reflect on what we have done in the past. We focus on the present."
Derek Jeter
* Getting stuck in what you did or did not do in the past will destroy your forward momentum. Lingering too long on your accolades from a couple years ago does nothing productive for you or your team in the present. I think Jeter has nailed this by saying that he doesn't reflect on what he or his team has done in the past. A new year is a new year. Another athlete who has talked about this quite a bit is Albert Pujols, who by the way won the Hank Aaron Award for the National League last year in 2009.
If you are looking for a couple good resources for developing the mental game, I'd suggest picking up the following books for starters. Both are fairly east to comprehend and will help you out in the baseball psychology department.
The Life You Imagine - Derek Jeter
Mind Gym - Gary Mack
Nate Barnett is owner of BMI Baseball. His website is devoted to teaching the mental game of baseball and hitting mechanics. After finishing a professional career in the Seattle Mariners Organization, Nate pursued his coaching and motivational training career.
4 Highly Recommended Baseball Coaching Articles for High School Little League, Cal Ripken, Dixie Youth, Babe Ruth Pony, and all other Youth Baseball Coaches
Bunting is a skill that must be taught and practiced just like throwing hitting, and fielding. It is wise for t-ball or Little League coaches of coach pitch teams to introduce every young player to the basics of bunting. This article outlines 10 recommended coaching points for teaching and introducing bunting to beginners.
Baseball Coaching Digest - What Baseball Coaches and Umpires Expect From Each Other Baseball coaches and umpires often have a love/hate relationship. Coaches often make the job of an umpire more difficult. Umpires sometimes hurt the feelings of a coach with a crucial call. Coaches expect a high level of professionalism from the umpires in the crew working a game. Umpires expect a high level of professionalism from the coaches of both teams. Here I outline 5 things coaches expect of umpires and 5 things umpires expect of coaches:
Little League Digest - The KISS Rule of Teaching Youth Baseball Players a Proper Swing Coaching baseball is not rocket science. I believe in the KISS rule of coaching young baseball batters. The KISS or "Keep it Super Simple" rule means that the coach will present the batting instruction in a way that it is easy for young baseball players to understand, visualize and perform. This article explains the 6 simple steps in teaching youth baseball batters using the "KISS" method.
If you have a young baseball pitcher that at times looks like a Josh Beckett or Randy Smith and other times he struggles to throw two strikes in a row, what can cause of his control problems? There are 10 key elements of his delivery that should always be checked first. Those key elements are outlined in this article.
Great hitters at all levels share one common skill. They know when and how to attack every pitch location. Great hitters read and react to every possible pitch location. If you watched the 2008 Baseball College World Series, you quickly realized that great college hitters can catch up to any fastball regardless of the velocity. You saw batters over and over, on the ESPN TV Coverage of the CWS in Omaha, hit mid-90s to upper-90s fastballs with amazing power and bat speed. You also saw college baseball batters that apply and execute one of the most important and basic skills of hitting a baseball, the skill of "hitting the ball where it is pitched". The philosophy of most pitching staffs today is that the job of the pitcher is to allow the batter to get himself out. Pitching coaches teach and coach the pitcher to keep moving the ball in or out, up or down, and to never leave it over the plate. A batter often does not get the same pitch in an at-bat and may not see the same pitch in several at-bats.
