Many baseball players struggle with these mental game challenges. Cleveland pitcher, Justin Masterson is aware of the mental battle with himself. Masterson helped the Indians beat the Red Sox 11-0 last Wednesday night.

“You get a little excited, but once you get on the field, it is game time. Half the time, the battle for me is with myself,” Masterson said.

Half of the battle is fighting with your own mind. Many ball players sabotage their performance; they can’t get out of their own way. They set high expectations for their performance. If you expect to perform perfectly or not make any mistakes you are setting yourself up for failure. When you don’t achieve those expectations, you become frustrated with your performance.

You can also sabotage yourself by adopting negative self-labels. Negative self-labels are confidence-busting names you use to describe yourself. You might tell yourself you’re a streaky hitter, for example.

Even though you may engage in self-sabotage, you can improve your mindset. First, let go of any expectations you have for your performance. Instead, focus on what you need to do in the moment to execute, such as seeing the ball well. Next, change your negative self-labels into positive ones. Instead of calling yourself a streaky hitter, tell yourself you’re a consistent hitter.

If you feel like you’re losing the mental battle, stay patient–you can improve your mental game with practice. Take time to become aware of your mental shortcomings and work to improve your mindset. A strong mental game can only benefit your performance.

A pre-pitch or at-bat routine is designed to help you:

•  Focus on what’s important
• Prepare consistently for the pitch or at-bat
• Feel confident before execution
• Trust your swing or throwing action

Phillies pitcher, Roy Halladay, recently threw a perfect game to beat the Marlins 1-0. Before his perfect game, Halladay was coming off a poor start this season. He had given up seven runs to the Red Sox in 5 and 2/3 innings. How was Halladay was able to turn his poor start around to throw a perfect game? He attributes part of his success to having a pre-pitch routine.

“I think you pitch the same regardless, even whether you give up a hit or not. I think you try not to be concerned with the score, one way or the other. You’re just trying to make pitches. That’s your only job. So, whether you’re giving up hits or it’s 5-0, 0-0, you’re just trying to make pitches,” said Halladay.

A common mistake that ball players make is to think too much about the score. Batters are often over concerned with their performance at the plate; they pressure themseles to make up for an 0-4 performance in the last outing. Pitchers might be thinking about how many runs they have given up or the current score of the inning. By having a routine, you are less likely to think results and more likely to focus on the process and your exectuion, one pitch at a time. A routine occupies your mind with what’s important, such as what you need to do to execute successfully.

If you notice you’re starting to think about the score, take a moment to regroup. Step out of the batter’s box , clear your mind, and refocus on execution. Find a thought to help you regroup. You might tell yourself to “Stop,” and remind yourself that that’s not important. Then, tell yourself what to focus on for this pitch only. You can focus on your plan for the pitch or seeing a good pitch, for example. Remember to keep things simple. You should only focus on one thought at a time.

Your mental game of baseball tip for today is to use a routine and stick to it. If you find yourself wavering from your routine or are distracted, take a moment to regroup and restart your routine.

For more information on preshot and pregame routines, check out The Relaxed Athlete

The Los Angeles Angels fell 0-6 to the Toronto Blue Jays Monday night. Angels pitcher, Joe Saunders, didn’t perform his best allowing three runs, four hits and five walks over 6 1-3 innings.

“It’s not really frustrating. It’s a good positive for me, knowing that I’m starting to get back to what I know I can do. But team-wise, it’s frustrating that we can’t pull out more wins. We just need to stay positive, and we need to execute better. We need to play the way we’re capable of playing. We just haven’t been doing that consistently this year,” said Saunders.

Confident athletes stay positive after losses, benefiting their performance. Positive thinking will help you bounce back from losses quickly. Instead of losing confidence after a poor performance, notice what you did well. You might have reacted quickly to a fly out or had a good strategy when you were down in the count. Then, take a look at what you didn’t do as well. Use that information to work on your weaknesses in practice and improve as a player. Above all, look at your weaknesses as opportunities for improvement rather than a sign of inadequacy.

Confident athletes are also patient. Many players tend to expect results too quickly. When you become impatient with your performance, you can speed through your routine, lose confidence and focus on the wrong things. Patient players are focused on execution and trust that a good performance will eventually come. Their confidence isn’t thrashed around by results. Patient players are focused on gaining their confidence from more stable sources, such as their preparation and practice.

Your baseball psychology tip is to bounce back quickly from losses by staying positive and patient about your performance. Take an objective look at your game after your performances and work to improve your weaknesses. Stay patient with your results and eventually things will fall into place.

Doubt isn’t the only challenge for baseball players though. Many players have fragile self-confidence. When you have fragile self-confidence, your confidence varies widely based on what’s happening during a game. When you get a hit, your confidence goes up. On the other hand, when you make a mistake, your confidence drops. We call this the confidence rollercoaster. Your confidence changes from moment to moment depending on your immediate performance.

Monday night’s game with the L.A. Dodgers and Houston Astros is a prime example of how self-confidence can benefit your game. Dodgers’ pitcher, John Ely, in his fourth career start, gave up one run and five hits striking out eight batters. Ely contributed to the 6-2 Dodgers win over the Astros.

“I’m just out here doing what I have always done. I just have complete confidence in what I bring to the table and the fact that if I execute my pitches the way I want to, I feel like I have the advantage. That is the way you have to feel every time out. If you doubt yourself, you’re going to give up hits,” said Ely.

Every time you go to the field, you want to have confidence in your game. Your confidence must not waver because of your opponent or the quality of your practice that week. A stable level of confidence is developed over years of practice and training.

Use your practice, training and preparation to develop the foundation of your confidence. After mistakes, you’ll want to remind yourself of why you deserve to feel confident. Is it your work ethic, your improved curve ball or your ability to come back after mistakes? Remember your strengths to help you feel confident.

“Ely’s going to make you hit it; he’s going to make them do the work. He changes speeds so well, I think that’s really the biggest reason why he’s had the success early on. He’s not afraid to throw the fastball any time. And behind in the count, he’s not afraid to take a little off,” said Dodgers’ manager Joe Torre.

Your mental game of baseball tip is to base your confidence over years of practice and play. Don’t wait until something good happens in the first inning to feel confident. Likewise, don’t allow a single mistake to shake your confidence. Rely on what you can control, such as your practice and preparation to keep your confidence when things don’t go according to plan.

Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester is one of those players who thrives in crunch time. Lester pitched his way out of a bases loaded scenario to help the Sox beat the Angels 5-1.

“It’s nice to be able to fight out off that and get the ‘W. When you’re able to get out of those jams, it just builds confidence. So when you get into games that really matter, you can draw back and say, ‘I’ve been here before,”’ said Lester.

Some players tend to freeze under pressure when the team depends on them. You might over think your performance and analyze too much, which leads to tight and tentative play.

How can you perform your best under pressure?

Pressure is really self-induced and comes from within yourself, not the situation itself. It’s best not to put pressure on yourself to get a hit or pitch a strike. Try to avoid thinking about the consequences of the game or your actions. Don’t think about “what-if” scenarios, which doesn’t help you perform in the moment. Instead, think about your strategy or the little things that help you perform in the moment. A batter may think about standing tall. A pitcher may think about his target.

You also want to draw on your confidence in those moments. Remind yourself of the times when you performed your best, just like Lester suggests. Replay those good performances in your mind to help you feel confident as you go up to bat or pitch to the next batter.

You can also rely on having an effective at-bat or pre-pitch routine. Use your routine to help you get into a confident and focused mindset, and stay in the moment. By focusing on what you need to do, you shut out distractions, and can focus on one pitch at a time. But keep it simple: plan it, see it, and do it!

You can also check out The Focused Athlete  to help you shut out distractions or The Relaxed Athlete to help you develop a pregame routine.

When you make assumptions about what others might be thinking about your game, you engage in “mind reading.” You don’t really know what others are thinking about you. Mind reading is just a distraction to playing your best. And it can cause you to avoid making mistakes and play tentatively.

LA Dodgers rookie pitcher Clayton Kershaw’s game started to go downhill in the second inning against the Milwaukee Brewers. The LA Dodgers were unable to rebound losing the game 11-6.

“It was kind of a snowball effect. It stings, it hurts, I didn’t give our team any kind of chance. It’s just not a good feeling to let your teammates down, to let everybody down. But it’s one game,” Kershaw said.

As a pitcher, you can feel that your team depends on you. Even though your position is important, keep in mind that each player on the team plays an important role. Worrying about what will happen is you let down your team doesn’t help you perform.

“The way I always think of it is, you pitch good, you can soak it in that night. You pitch bad and it’s going to hurt tonight. That’s the great thing about baseball: You play every day. Tomorrow is a new day,” said Kershaw.

You’ll have good days and bad days on the mound, just like any other pitch who is human. The key is not to lose confidence after a poor outing. Find something positive from each game and move onto the next. You’ll want to assess your performance objectively without emotion. Don’t beat yourself up for poor pitching or a loss. A better option is to assess what needs to improve the next game and move forward with a healthy dose of confidence.

Want to learn how to keep your confidence at a high level? Check out The Confident Athlete CD program at Peaksports.com

Recently, the Detroit Tigers blew a 6-1 lead game against the Texas Rangers. The Tigers were able to regroup and clenched an 8-6 win in the ninth inning. Brandon Inge played an important role in the Tigers’ victory with his second homer of the season.

“Sometimes you hit a spurt where no matter where you hit it, it ends up being an out. But that ends eventually. You try not to get too frustrated with things. I felt it was a matter of time. I needed to relax,” said Inge.

What can happen when a team lets the lead slip away? Below you’ll find the top mental challenges teams face that can cause them to blow a lead:

1. Thinking too far ahead. Some teams have thought they’ve won the game before it’s over. They lose focus in the present moment, such as the current pitch, at-bat, or game plan. Help your athletes think about what’s important to focus on in the moment, such as reading the pitch or focusing on the target. Remind athletes to refocus when they’re distracted.

2. Letting up because of a comfort zone. Some teams expect to win or lose against a certain team or by a certain score. Therefore, when teams are playing better than expected, they protect their score, sit on the lead and play tentatively. You’ll want your team to stay aggressive.

3. Lack of intensity or boredom. Related to the comfort zones, teams will lose intensity and feel that they are just going through the motions. They may have reached a state of boredom, not feeling challenged. Therefore, you’ll want to encourage your team to challenge themselves. You’ll want to set challenging goals such as varying your pitches or improving your fielding assists.

4. Trying too hard to keep a lead. Some teams will protect their lead and thus play more defensively. You think that you don’t have to score anymore runs and you can play good defense to win the game. This can be dangerous when your opponents win back momentum and make a run.

A relevant story that illustrates the choices that confront you is a question that came up when I was working a high school hitter. He said the following: “I’m standing in the batters box at 0 for 3 so far in the game, and I wonder if I can get a hit! I started to get frustrated that I’m not hitting well. What should I think when this happens?”

My first response to this player was that he has two choices. The reality is that his last at-bats did not lead to a hit. I said the first choice and the wrong way to think is that you’re not hitting well today, the gods are not on your side. Every at-bat is a failure. This choice only causes you to become frustrated with your hitting and you blame yourself for not getting a hit, and think that you will continue to do the same!

I suggested to this player that the better choice is to know that you are putting in quality at-bats, but the outcome is not what you want. You’ll get a hit. You’ve got to stay patient and wait for it to happen, but nothing is happening YET.

You, too, have to stay confident, patient, and believe that you will get a hit if you stick to one at-bat at a time! Let go of the past. You must make this simple choice. Do you want to give yourself a chance of getting a hit in the later innings? Of course you do. Then you’d better make the right choice to give yourself a chance to get a hit! Forget about your past at-bats and stay confident with each new at-bat.

If you are a wishy-washy batter you change your mind as you step into the batter’s box about where you want to hit the ball. You can’t make up your mind about which swing thought to use when it’s time to execute. Wishy-washy thinking fills your mind with doubt and indecision. “Should I bunt the ball or hit it hard down the line,” you say to yourself. The doubt and indecision kills your ability to make a good swing with determination.

Usually, a player’s first decision is the correct one. Sometimes athletes talk themselves out of their plan at the plate. They start to question their ability to carry out the plan. To help you be more decisive in the batter’s box, follow these three steps. First, prepare a specific plan of what you want to do such as “wait for my pitch and hit it hard down the third base line.” Second, commit to the plan. As you move from the on deck circle to the batter’s box, commit to your plan and see yourself executing the plan. It’s easy to change your mind if you let yourself do so.

Third, use a swing cue or thought as you take a couple practice swings and settle into the batters box. Stay focused on your swing thought such as “see the ball and react” while you wait for the pitch. Recommit to your plan between pitches and don’t be wishy-washy!

How you react to those lows can influence your performance. Do you get frustrated and upset with your performance? Or, are you able to bounce back from your mistakes?

Anger and frustration can impact your performance in a negative way. You might dwell too much on your mistakes causing you to lose focus on the current task. You might tighten up and try too hard.

Matt Garza, starting pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays, worked on controlling his emotions on the field. Garza’s hard work paid off, which contributed to a 6-1 win over the Marlins in 2008. Garza was on a roll, giving up just one hit, a home run, to Hanley Ramirez in the seventh inning.

“I’ve made huge strides mentally. I think before I would have lost it after giving up that slider to Hanley (Ramírez). I would have gotten ticked off, threw a couple angry pitches, a couple more knocks might have came and we’d be talking about a different story here. I might have been out in the bottom of the seventh. But I was able to regroup,” said Garza.

Garza’s ability to regroup was critical to his performance. When you’re angry or frustrated, you’ll have to find ways to regroup and refocus on the task. You might take a deep breath before approaching the plate or mound. You might use positive self-talk to tell yourself to refocus. You might tighten up your glove or readjust your hat, for example. No matter what you do, you’ll want to put the mistake behind you to get ready for the next pitch or hit.

If you can control your emotions, you’ll be in a better position to improve your performance. Rays manager, Joe Maddon sees a relationship between emotional control and performance.

“In this game, I know for a fact, when you can correct the mental mechanics a lot of times your performance increases. You do deliver the ball better, you have a better arm stroke, you have better mechanics, etc., because you have control of yourself. You have control of your emotions, you’re able to breathe,” Joe Maddon said.

Your baseball psychology tip is to find ways to control your emotions on the field. When you find what works for you, use that mental game strategy consistently, which will help you bounce back from mistakes quickly.