Touching the Bases With Nate Eastman: How to Bust a Slump

"Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self- satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best you are capable of becoming."

-John Wooden, Former UCLA Men's basketball coach

In baseball as a hitter, you will experience many ups and downs throughout a season.  Baseball is a game of failure and as a hitter it’s how you manage your failures that separate you from a good and a great player.  The best players in the pros are the ones who get hits three out of every ten at bats, or a 70 percent failure rate.

It has been said that blocking a penalty kick and hitting a baseball are the two must difficult things to do in sports.  Consider a pitcher who throws anywhere from 85-90 miles an hour.  The ball will reach home plate in 0.4 seconds—as a hitter, one must see the ball, decide whether or not he is going to swing at it, and then swing, all within 0.4 seconds.

As a baseball player you hope you never get into a slump, but it’s only a matter of time until a baseball player goes through a slump.

The toughest part of going through a slump is maintaining your confidence and keeping a consistent mental approach. The most successful baseball players are those who can stay the most consistent the longest. The thing is, almost any kind of swing can be successful. Look at Hunter Pence (San Francisco Giants OF) and Marco Scutaro (San Francisco 2B). They have completely different swings, but they’re both good hitters.  And they’re both confident in the swings they have, so it works for them.

At times, I feel as if I’m trying to do too much instead of just seeing the ball and hitting it like I was earlier. Maybe I’m overthinking what the pitcher might be throwing. Or I’m trying to pull the ball in certain situations instead of just staying up the middle.

But with every problem, there is a solution.  When you’re in a slump you must remind yourself of all the hard work you put in, and just trust your hands.  As a hitter you have one of two options: either continue to get down on yourself and extend your slump, or Be confident in your approach with positive self talk and visualize yourself getting a hit.