By Jonathan Massey-
An elderly Cherokee was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said, “A battle is raging inside me… it is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.”
The old man looked at the children with a firm stare, “This same fight is going on inside of you, and inside every other person, too.”
They thought about it for a minute, and then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”
The old Cherokee replied, “The one you feed.”
When I sit down to write these blogs, the first question I always ask myself is, “What would I like to have known more about when I was sixteen, seventeen, or eighteen years old?” This week, I asked myself a second question which was, “If I could do it all over again, what would I have done differently throughout my career?”.
If I am being completely honest with myself, the answer would be I wish I had competed more. Well, to be more specific, I wish I knew what it meant to truly compete. In my mind, competing meant being the most prepared guy out there and putting my team in the best position possible to win the game. While yes, those things do go into being an ultimate competitor, there was something I wasn’t doing that prevented me from being a true competitor.
Growing up (and to this very day), I had a super analytical brain. It’s probably why math came super easy to me, and why English was my worst subject. Now, having an analytical brain is not a negative. In fact, it can be very beneficial in training. But when did having an analytical brain really “hurt” me? That’s right, you probably guessed it, when I was in games.
When I would miss my spot, instead of changing my target, my focus would turn inward to my mechanics. If I missed high and arm side, I would tell myself to be firmer with my glove side. If I missed high, I needed to ride my pelvis longer and aim a little lower. If I missed two inches in, I’d aim two inches out. There was always a mechanical issue for why my ball didn’t go exactly where I wanted it to. To me, this is the sign of a guy who is 100% locked in on competing.
When I say that I wish I’d competed more, I mean I wish I had become better at turning off my analytical brain, and just went out there and competed my butt off.
Now, why did I lead out with the story of the two wolves? Because in order to be the best player you can be, you need to have the two wolves inside of you. In this scenario, one wolf is your analytical brain, and the other wolf is your competitor brain. When you are training and all you have is your competing brain turned on, you’ll find it difficult to make significant changes to your delivery. You’ll be too focused on either how hard you are throwing or where you are throwing to feel what is happening in your delivery. The big key is that you need the right wolf turned on at the right time – the analytical brain during training and the competing brain during games.
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Important TBR Updates
- Information and dates for our 2022 3-Day Elite Pitchers Bootcamps can be found on our website. Call the office or fill out the online registration form(s) to reserve your spot! https://www.texasbaseballranch.com/elite-pitchers-bootcamp/
- We’ve just released the information on our Extended Stay Summer Program. Ranch athletes receive messages like the one above at the start of every training day. If you’d like more information, go to https://www.texasbaseballranch.com/events/tbr-summer-program/ There’s a $500 Early Bird Savings through March 31st. Space is limited each week so don’t delay.
