DO NOT BE A VICTIM!
What do I mean with this statement? If your pitcher says any of the statements below, she has a victim mentality:
My ______________ isn’t working today!
This umpire won’t _____________!
You called the wrong pitch!
Victims allow things to happen to them. Competitors fight, make adjustments, and work to correct problems until the game is over to give themselves the opportunity to be successful.
It drives me crazy to hear pitchers use the excuse that a pitch or, somedays, pitches just aren’t working today. A pitch may not have worked the last time you threw it but that doesn’t mean it is a lost cause for the day. If a pitch didn’t have the desired movement or change of speed, a pitcher needs to make an adjustment and throw it again. If it still doesn’t work, repeat the process until you get it to work or the game is over.
Going out to the mound without a pitch is just as bad as a shortstop going out there without her glove or a hitter going to the plate without a bat.
It isn’t OK.
Great pitchers will work on a pitch during a game to try to fix it. They don’t become victims.
The umpire’s strike zone is the strike zone for that game. You can like it or not, but the pitcher has the obligation to make adjustments to the strike zone every game they pitch. How many times do we see pitchers decide that being stubborn and throwing the same pitch to the same location over and over is the best solution? They get more and more frustrated, but refuse to make the adjustment. What happens? Walks, hits and losses.
Great pitchers don’t get mad, they make adjustments.
Blaming a coach or catcher for calling a pitch that gets hit is the ultimate victim move. You threw it, so it is your responsibility! The pitcher is accountable for the outcome. If a pitcher is really committed to throwing a pitch to the best of their ability, they execute a good pitch, and it gets hit, just tip your hat to the hitter. She won that battle. Sometimes you have to accept that the kids on the other team are pretty good players too.
Doubt, fear, lack of commitment are all part of the recipe for failure in the circle. If a pitch got hit, make an adjustment and throw it again, with all you’ve got. Great pitchers don’t blame anyone, including themselves, they get back to work!
Choose to take control of the game and your role in it! When you are in control you project confidence!
BE THE WINDSHIELD, NOT THE BUG!!
About the Author: Cat Fritts (Hosfield) was four-year standout at the University of Tennessee, She went 49-22 with a 2.91 ERA in her career for the Vols, earning Southeastern Conference (SEC) Freshman Player of the Week honors in 2009, while also earning SEC Honor Roll accolades following the ’10, ’11 and ’12 seasons at UT. She was named the 2008 National High School Player of the Year by the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) while at Murfreesboro High School. Book her here.
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