All my thoughts and prayers are headed to the hospital as Big M is in surgery. He is undergoing a procedure to insert an internal defibrillator and pacemaker. He's way too young for this, but that demon cancer will attack everything and render the body helpless. Once again, we won't settle for anything less than a miracle.
And so, what is going on in the mountains? well, the big kid is still peeved about the cheap hits that the batters got against him. He's going to have to figure out a way to handle it, because it is going to happen again and again and again.... By the way, in yesterday's paper, there was an article about a former Phillies pitcher, Jamie Moyer who pitched until he was in his late 40's and he won many many games. From what I could ascertain from the article, he says...get this....pitching is done 'between the ears.'
That's right, friends. He says that pitching is 100% mental. OK, now I am completely befuddled.....the coaches and players tell the big kid not to think. Just throw! Then a former all-star and pretty good pitcher tells him to 'think'. So, what he is saying is that the coaches are wrong...OYE! Where to begin on this one?
Yes, I believe that the best athletes do think and are capable to adjusting their game. For example, in tennis (yeah, it's my frame of reference AND no, I was NOT a great player), if I continue to serve to a person's back hand and she hits a winner every time, then I have to adjust and hit to the forehand...right? Well, it is the same in baseball. If a guy is a fastball hitter, then why oh why, would a pitcher throw fast balls at him? The pitcher has to adjust his game. And so, I submit, pitching is a mental game. There you have it.
Jamie Moyer also said something fascinating. He never sees a batter in the box. He only sees the glove. Interesting....he can actually block out the batter. That obviously took a great deal of mental practice. Again, I concur with the pitcher, 'cause when I play the ball and not the person, then I am playing tennis. Forget your opponent, focus on the ball. See the similarities, because that's where it ends.
I had sent a link to the kid and asked him if he wanted the book, but he never returned my email which says to me.....that he was partying this weekend with the guys and not thinking much about baseball..although, they had a 5 hour practice yesterday. He reported to dad that his arm was 'dead.' Yikes. He also said that he is pitching better since he stopped throwing his weighted balls per the request of the coach, but his arms feel more tired. In two weeks? I am thinking that this is a bit
mental....but so it goes.
The last thing that Moyer reported is that once he beat the Red Sox, he asked his wife to make the same dinner every time he was supposed to pitch. And so, for a number of years, he ate shrimp before each game. A bit superstitious, but obviously effective.
On to my last convoluted thought....as I turned on Good Morning America this morning, I saw that David Ortiz hit a grand slam home run to defeat the Tigers. Now, I have not been watching the playoffs nor do I care who wins or loses BUT all I thought of was the poor pitcher who threw the ball. Boy, has my paradigm shifted or what? Big M, a former offensive lineman in college, watches the o-line during football games. Some people watch the quarterback, not Big M. He is watching technique and skill. On the other hand, I am only watching pitchers as they throw. Cra-zee, yes?
Uh-huh....I wonder what I am going to do once this baseball journey is over. Will I have had my fill of it or will I keep my eye on the pitchers and rate their throws?
Not sure where the journey is going, but I now appreciate the amount of hard work and dedication that it takes to succeed in the sports world. And despite the concept that jock are dumb (some are...some are not), I will offer them a great deal of praise for their fortitude and work ethic. Hmmmm...maybe I will write a book.....Gotta go...laundry is calling my name....
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