Baseball is known as America’s national pastime, and it has been played for over 100 years. Baseball can be a lot of fun, but also extremely challenging to play, especially trying to hit a 90 mile per hour fastball. I am a very dedicated baseball player myself, and over the years I have learned numerous key things about the game. Baseball does not only require physical strength to hit and throw the ball, but it also requires a great mindset, such as, mental preparedness, concentration, and a positive attitude. Mental preparedness separates the average baseball players from the dedicated ones. A dedicated baseball player shows up to the ball field ready to play ball. He is mentally prepared to succeed in whatever situation may arise, and nothing …show more content…
A dedicated player asks himself before every pitch, “what do I do if the ball is hit to me, where do I go with it”? He knows the game extremely well and will go home after practice to study and watch more ball. Studying the opponent is also huge, it gives a team a slight advantage before the game has even begun. Sometimes news reporters post a team's record with some of the player’s stats. Finding these articles allows a pitcher and his team to make needed adjustments like pitching more off speed pitches to a better hitter instead of trying to throw fastballs. The littlest tweaks in a defense can be a game changer, which is why I watch how the opponent reacts to different pitches and where they hit the ball their last at-bat too. If a team cannot hit a curveball good or struggle with holding back on a high fastball, I pitch more of whatever they are weakest with. A devoted ball player, like myself, picks up on these things naturally and does anything to become better and …show more content…
After a couple innings of noticing this, I started to pitch more of them, but then when they were looking for a high fastball, I threw a curveball to keep them always wondering. I never allowed a hitter to feel comfortable in the box by constantly keeping them off balance. Another time my curveball was working really well and it had this twelve-six type action to it, and the hitters would hit nothing but ground balls with it. My catcher and I picked this trait up right away and we used it the rest of the game. The opponent could hit my fastball pretty good, but could not adjust to my curveball, and figuring that out helped us win the ball game. It is all these little things that form one big thing and can change an entire