hammer the nail

If clarity creates composure, then intent creates action. What are you intending to do when you are at the plate?

What is the vision in your head? What picture have you painted? Or have you not thought about it? We all know that hitting is about being ready to hit. We have all heard the saying “yes, yes, yes…no.” When at the plate. That is absolutely true. Our safety must be off, and we must be on go, but can we take it a step further? Why do we take such confident swings off the tee, or in flips, or in BP but hesitate in the game? My theory is that we anticipate the ball to be in a certain area during practice and don’t have any apprehension. Especially off the tee, it’s sitting right there for Pete’s sake. How could we have a similar feel in a game?

Let me ask a multiple-choice question. If you had a hammer and you could either hit a butterfly fluttering around your head, or hit a nail that is already placed partway into a wooden board, which one would you take a more confident, connected, efficient,  and convicted swing at? Well, most hitters go to the plate trying to hit the butterfly. What if you went to the plate with a predetermined “nail head” that you were going to swing through? Similar to when you practice off the tee or in flips. Once you set the zone you are attacking, that takes away some of the apprehension that comes with being in the batters box. Set your “nail head” and be fully committed to taking a healthy hack when the ball arrives in that area, just like in practice.

Good luck and hammer the nail!