by Bruce Johnson

Created on: August 18, 2009

"Baseball is 90% mental, the other half is physical." - Yogi Berra

This quote, from the late, great Yankee catcher, is profound in it's simplicity. And when it comes to batting with runners in scoring position, its truth is even more pronounced. The key to success is almost entirely in your head.

First off, from a logistics perspective, the act of batting with runners in scoring position means that there is a runner on either second or third base or both. The underlying premise is that, with something as simple as a single or a pop-fly, one or more runs are likely to score. And since scoring runs is the name of the game in baseball, the situation places a great deal of pressure to perform on the batter.

And, as it turns out, this pressure, and how you deal with it is a key to being able to succeed. As a start, consider that the pressure to perform is not limited to the batter. The pitcher is one bad pitch away from allowing a run to score. The catcher is concern that the pitch that they call for is the correct one. The manager is subject to second guessing whether the pitcher should be left in or pull. Even the fielders face pressure, as the cost of making an error has gone up. Everyone in the game is facing the pressure, so while the batter might feel that the entire weight rests on their shoulders, that's not nearly as true as it seems to the person with the bat in their hands.

When placed into a pressure situation with the world of sports, one of the worst choices the athlete can make is to try and change. Many sports, including baseball, use muscle memory to great effect. With muscle memory, the body becomes so familiar with a particular set of movements that it happens without conscious effort. Batting is just one of these movements. The problem with pressure is that one of the most common responses is to tighten up. The batter may grip the bat just a little harder. The may hold it over their shoulders with just a little more strength. But the tightening of the muscles plays against the muscle memory process. The swing will be less free, the hips less able to turn through the pitch and the result will not likely be the desired success.

The solution is in how you consider the situation. As trite as it seems, the power of positive thinking can be the difference between success and failure. If you think that the pressure is bad, if you dread being placed into such a position, the body responds by increasing the heart rate and releasing hormones into your bloodstream. These changes are likely to turn the fear of failure into a reality. If, on the other hand, you accept (and perhaps even revel in) the pressure, the body will not go through those physiological changes. Instead, the brain generates 'Alpha waves', which indicate a form of wakeful relaxation. The existence of alpha waves is actually detected in professional athletes, and not in novice or intermediate performers. (source: http://thebrain.mcgill.ca/flash/capsules/pdf_article s/brainwaves.pdf) This level of relaxation allows the muscle memory to kick in, which, in turn, means that success is a more likely outcome.

So what is the trick to changing your outlook? Practice. When you are taking batting practice, visualize yourself with runners in scoring position. Do what you can to mentally put yourself in that situation, so that, as with muscle memory, you can develop mental memory. Then, when you are facing their top reliever with the tying and winning runners in scoring position, you can relax and let your natural rhythm lead you to success.

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