"Coach Dunns Quick Pitches" -- By Coach Jack Dunn

THIS PARTICULAR ARTICLE FROM COACH DUNN FIRST APPEARED IN THE NEWSLETTER IN FEBRUARY 2003.

NERVOUSNESS

Make it work for you, not against you.

It is our job, as coaches, to teach the fundamentals of play and a myriad of offensive and defensive situations that will occur during a game and/or a season. However, one aspect of play that confronts our athletes every time they are called upon to perform, we fail to deal with or discuss. That one aspect is NERVOUSNESS! Call it fear, anxiety, or butterflies...but NERVOUSNESS will manifest itself in tense muscles, sweaty palms, and a dry mouth all of which adversely affect performance.

WHAT IS NERVOUSNESS?

It behooves us to teach our players to recognize "NERVOUSNESS" for what it is. Nervousness is simply "A DESIRE TO DO WELL!"

Many athletes do not understand this concept and believe that because they are "NERVOUS" or have "butterflies" that they are somehow "choking!" As a consequence of this negative thinking, they become tense and their performance suffers.

Dale Murphy, former Atlanta Brave Outfielder and two time National League Most Valuable Player, was a player of mine during his high school years. Dale said, "Coach, I have butterflies my first time at bat in every game." Surely, athletes of the caliber of Dale Murphy do not "choke!" They have learned to make their nervousness/butterflies work for them.

Recognizing that nervousness is "SIMPLY A DESIRE TO DO WELL," Dale changed his perception of it, and was then able to utilize the extra adrenaline that his nervousness made available to him in a positive rather than a negative manner. The sting of a negative response was gone and his nervousness became an asset rather than a liability.

Our athletes must understand that all of those who put their talents on display and hold them up for public scrutiny experience nervousness. Success or failure is determined by how they deal with their nervousness...in a positive or negative manner.

Psychology tells us that the arousal of emotion depends upon the situation's having significance to the individual.

HOW CAN THE ATHLETE DEAL WITH NERVOUSNESS?

Coping with nervousness effectively can be accomplished by using both a mental and physical approach. The mental approach utilizes mental imagery (pre-programming) and positive self-talk.

The physical approach is a more immediate tension reliever and involves correct Breathing, Swinging the bat while on deck, and Progressive Relaxation.

MENTAL APPROACH

Mental Imagery:

An excellent way to lessen nervousness, anxiety, or tension is through the use of mental pictures. This is commonly called "Mental Imagery."

The athlete should develop a clear mental picture/visualization of himself/herself performing at his/her very best, free from nervousness, anxiety, or tension. This can be done during periods of relaxation or in bed prior to falling asleep.

Rick Wolff in his book The Psychology of Winning Baseball states: "Imaging is the practice of visualizing in your mind precisely what you expect to do on the field. Imaging allows the athlete to practice certain positive thoughts in his/her mind just as they practice their swing or pitching form on the field!"

Wolff goes on to say, "During this period of imaging, the athlete must view the game's events in a positive frame of mine! He must not visualize any nervousness, anxiety, or tension of any kind."

Astronauts, great stage performers, skilled surgeons, and championship athletes practice flawless techniques in their minds over and over; again and again, they discipline their thoughts to create the habit of superb performance. Thus, preprogramming or the ability to practice within makes performing of the task easier.

Positive Self-Talk:

1. To enhance performance concentrate only on those internal comments that are positive.
2. Eliminate all negative comments and thoughts by treating yourself as you would a doubles partner in tennis.
3. Winning self-talk should go something like this...Of course I can do it! I've practiced it mentally a thousand times.

PHYSICAL APPROACH:

The late Charley Lau was considered baseball's premier hitting instructor. Lau who authored The Art of Hitting .300 and The Winning Hitter wrote, "If you are tense mentally you will be tense physically. Your muscles tighten and you begin to grip the bat so hard your knuckles turn white."

Harvey Dorfman, author of The Mental Game of Baseball stated, "The monster, fear, breaks down our confidence, brainwashes us, makes us play a losing game!"

Here are a few simple but effective techniques that can be used by players to combat their nervousness during competition.

BREATHING

1. Take several full and complete breaths. Inflate the chest and abdomen.
2. Inhale and exhale through the nose. Exhaling through the nose allows for a slower release of air, which maximizes physiological benefits.
3. Several complete breaths tend to relax the body by making a greater amount of oxygen available.
• Inhale = Relaxation.
• Exhale = Elimination of stress.
4. Times to utilize the full and complete breathing technique to lessen or alleviate nervousness might be:
   1. While on deck waiting to bat.
   2. While batting, step out of the batter's box, turn your back to home plate, and take a few complete breaths.
   3. While pitching, step off the rubber, turn your back to the hitter, and take several complete breaths.
   4. While in the field, do breathing exercises between pitches.

ON DECK SWINGS

While on deck, prior to stepping into the batter's box, take several practice swings. These swings will relieve tension and prepare the body for actual hitting.

SQUEEZE AND RELEASE

Grip the bat and squeeze it tightly for a few seconds then release your grip. Do this several times.

SQUEEZE AND RELEASE is part of what is known as progressive body relaxation, where relaxation is achieved by tensing and then releasing the muscles in various parts of the body in a progressive manner, e.g.: feet, calves, thighs, buttocks, back, etc.

I GOTTA GOALS - Real tension builders -

Harvey Dorfman states: "Goal setting makes the player's purpose clear and gives direction. The successful player sets goals in order to stimulate himself to act in a way to achieve his objectives. Game day athletic goals can cause tension if their emphasis is placed incorrectly upon the Result rather than the function or action."

I Gotta Goals build tension: I gotta get a hit...I gotta throw a strike...I gotta...I gotta. The emphasis here is placed upon the result over which the athlete has no control.

A pitcher may throw a perfect strike on the knees outside and the batter hits the ball out of the park, or the batter hits a bullet line drive right at a defensive player. These examples show that the athlete cannot control the result of what may occur. NERVOUSNESS AND TENSION ARE THE ONLY THINGS "I GOTTA GOALS" ACCOMPLISH.

Dorfman, makes the point that to lessen tensions, "the emphasis or focus should be on the function or immediate action"...Hit the ball up the middle...keep your head down...see the ball...nice low fast ball...good balance point.

By focusing on the action, rather than the result, tensions are eased.

CONCLUSION:

What you are thinking manifests itself in a physical equivalency, (i.e.: if you think you are "choking," muscle tensions build and performance suffers) so remember:

1. Nervousness is common to all performers.
2. You're not "choking" because you are nervous or have butterflies.
3. Nervousness is a desire to do well.
4. Practice mental imagery and positive self-talk.
5. To alleviate tension, take full and complete breaths, practice swings while in the on-deck circle and practice "squeeze and release" techniques.

If an athlete never gets nervous or never has butterflies is..."Too Cool"... he either isn't smart enough to realize what kind of a "jam" he's in or doesn't give a damn.

Good Luck!

For a more complete discussion of how to deal with attitudes, emotions, tension, etc. see the following:

1. Dorfman, H.A. The Mental ABC's of Pitching. Diamond Communications Inc., South Bend, 2000
2. Dorfman, H.A. and Kuehl, Karl. The Mental Game of Baseball. New York: Rowman and Littlefield Publishing Group, 2002
3. Wolff, Rick. The Psychology of Winning Baseball. Parker Publishing Company, Inc. West Myack, N.Y., 1986