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.

I know from my experience as a mental coach that athletes tighten up because they worry too much about the outcome, which leads to trying too hard or playing with a tentative mindset. When you’re tense about outcomes and not focused on the current play, pitch, or shot, you can’t step up your performance in big games…

Playing in a big game or the playoffs should be the most fun for athletes. It’s your season-end reward. It’s the fruit of all your hard work during the season. However, in order to enjoy the big game, you must have faith or trust in what you have practiced all season. Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers pitcher, is a good example of this…

Read how Justin Verlander steps up in big games…

Baseball players can also follow a specific routine before a game. They may eat the same pregame meal, arrive an hour before the game and go through the exact same warm-up for each game. Some players might prefer to skip the pregame warm-up and just go out and compete.

A baseball routine helps you warm up your body physically, but also helps you prepare mentally for the upcoming game. A routine can help you focus on the right things, build confidence and maintain the right level of intensity. Former MLB player, Kevin Appier uses a consistent routine to get into the right mindset before the game.

“Just preparing the same exact way. I mean, you don’t have to worry about, like, building adrenaline or anything because it’s obviously going to be there. As far as concentrating on not getting too pumped up, that type of thing, the first time I was in the playoffs, I really had to concentrate on that, on settling myself down. This time around, I haven’t had that issue. I’ve been at real good levels like that.”

“But anyway, my preparation stays exactly the same. I stay with the same routine. I won’t go into the whole thing, but it’s identical to what I do during the season. That’s one of the things, like we’ve been saying, it’s, “Same old game.” Games mean more, but you’re doing everything you could during the regular season, so you shouldn’t change now.”

A consistent routine is important, but it is best not to judge your pregame warm-up. A warm-up routine is simply to prepare your mind and body to compete. You don’t need to win warm-ups. Players who focus too much on performing perfectly in their warm-up might tend to doubt their ability, try to fix their mistakes and start to panic before the game.

As you go through your physical warm-up, you’ll also want to prepare your mind. You’ll want to develop a routine that helps you stay focused, confident and in a trusting mindset before competition. You must park other life distractions, rehearse your performance and review your game plan before the game.