Overthinking and The Throwing Yips

Throwing Yips

Learn How To Overcome The Yips

See the target; Hit the target… Sounds easy enough, right?

Throwing a baseball is just a matter of having a catch. You have done it thousands of times… in the backyard, at picnics, during practice, warming up before a baseball game and between innings.

Despite being a relatively easy task, some players complicate the matter.

Instead of the simple process of “see the target, hit the target.” there are many other thoughts that get thrown in the mix and interfere with the process.

Thinking about velocity or mechanics or even fears about the result of the throw increase the chances of an off-target throw or the throwing yips.

This over-thinking process is problematic and at the heart of the yips.

The throwing yips are a mental block that interferes with the ability to throw a ball accurately and efficiently.

The yips occur when a player overthinks how to throw to a target, analyzes what they are doing while they are doing it and worrying or fearing where the ball will land.

A player with the yips has such a significant degree of mental interference that several physical things can happen: the body tightens up, the arm angle changes, the release point varies from throw to throw or the player double-clutches the ball.

A player with the throwing yips will mentally image a bad throw slightly before they make the throw.

A player with the yips often becomes so self-conscious of their inability to make accurate throws that they try to control every aspect of the throw, making matters worse and further embedding the yips within the mind of the player.

There are many stories about major league players battling the yips, for example, 37-year-old pitcher Luke Hagerty…

Hagerty threw 94 miles an hour as a junior in college and was selected with the 32nd pick in the first round of the 2002 draft by the Chicago Cubs and gave him more than $1 million to sign.

Things were looking up for Hagerty as he had a promising MLB career in front of him. In his initial season with Class A Boise Hawks, Hagerty struck out 50 with an ERA of 1.13 ERA in 48 innings.

As he prepped to step up to the major league level, Hagerty tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow which required Tommy John surgery.

Hagerty missed over a year of ball and then it happened… Out of nowhere, Hagerty couldn’t find home plate and so, his battle with the yips began.

In 2005 at Class A Boise, Hagerty threw 6.2 innings and allowed 23 earned runs, hit 4 batters and threw 9 wild pitches. After the 2008 season, Hagerty walked away from baseball.

Hagerty compared the yips to suddenly losing the ability to write your name.

HAGERTY: “I usually tell people it’s like your signature. You know how to write your name. Someone gives you a piece of paper and a pen and you can write it. Maybe there’s variance. It was like someone gave me a pen, and it was scribble all over the paper. It made no sense.”

After a 10 year-plus layoff, Hagerty is making a comeback and signed a contract with the team that originally drafted him, the Chicago Cubs. Hagerty has already upped his fastball to 96.9 mph.

This time around, Hagerty isn’t focusing on the yips. Instead, Hagerty is focused on his approach and being aggressive when pitching.

HAGERTY: “To me, it’s about the intricacies. If I can hit 100, that entails a lot of things. I’m healthy, I’m moving efficiently, I’m being very aggressive over and over again to allow my body to adjust and produce that velocity. And my mental space is good.”

The throwing yips is all about fearing bad outcomes while successful pitching is a matter of focusing on your approach to each hitter and executing a good throw.

Let go of the outcome, focus on the process, and trust your intuitive throw.

How to Throw More Freely if You Have the Yips

Make it simple. If you notice you over thinking your throw, say to yourself, “See the target, hit the target.”

This simple phrase can remind you to stop overthinking and re-focus your attention on your approach to each hitter.

Remember that your fear of a bad throw–and what that means to you–drives the over thinking and over control.

You have to let go of what others MIGHT think so you can keep it simple in the moment of execution.


Yips CureBreaking The Yips Cycle Audio

If you can throw well when alone, but can’t take it to games, this is a mental game issue and not a physical challenge!

The Yips Cycle is a vicious cycle that causes ball players to stay trapped in over thinking and over control…

Learn to throw or pitch freely again with my proven audio and workbook program:

Breaking The Yips Cycle: Mental Strategies to Improve Confidence & Throw Freely Again

Breaking The Yips Cycle” is a complete brain dump of the TOP Eight mental training sessions I do with my personal coaching students to help them overcome the yips and play with freedom again.

The Audio and Workbook Program Includes:

  • Two CDs (CD purchase only). 120 minutes of mental training sessions to help you gain greater freedom, focus on the right performance cues, and simplify your prepitch routines.
  • MP3 Audio (Digital Download). 120 minutes of mental training sessions you can download to your computer right away while you wait for the CDs and workbook to arrive. (MP3 Audio value = $149).
  • An 8-Session Breaking The Yips Cycle Workbook to guide you through my mental game sessions and to overcome the throwing yips (Workbook value: $149.00).
  • Bonus Session: Practice drills to free up your throwing to help you improve consistency and stop focusing on mechanics when you play.

Learn more about Breaking The Yips Cycle…


Get Expert Mental Game Coaching for Yips!

Master mental game coach Dr. Patrick Cohn can help you overcome your mental game issues with personal coaching.

You can work with Dr. Patrick Cohn himself in Orlando, Florida or via Skype, FaceTime, or telephone. Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!

What are our mental coaching students saying?

“After completing your program… he was more aware of the things that made him tight. He learned to control his breathing and control his emotions.”
~Mark’s Father

“Thank you so much for talking with our team. You are a great influence. The confidence material really helped me, and I will be working on that as long as I play and after. I can now step out there and just relax and play.”
~Melissa Riesberg, Clarke College Softball

“After completing ‘The Confident Athlete’ series, I noticed a dramatic improvement in my level of play or should I say consistency. I play NCAA Division I baseball for Lamar University, and even my coaches have noticed a change in the way that I approach the game – my attitude and confidence at the plate. It has also helped me reach a new level of focus. I am able to get into that zone where I am able to narrow my focus on to the task. Thank you for helping in my continuing goal to mental toughness.”
~Tylor Prudhomm

“Dr. Cohn has put together a program that has enabled myself and our players to approach the mental game in a systematic way that is easy to use and apply. Our awareness level has greatly increased.”
~Marty Hunter, Head Baseball Coach, George Fox University

2 thoughts on “Overthinking and The Throwing Yips”

  1. I am intrigued by this material. I play senior softball and have battled the yips (throwing) for the past three years. I’ve had two shoulder surgeries which have dealt with some physical issues, but I had the yips sometimes before that. Now, it’s a constant problem. Last time I played in a game I played catcher (normally I play short field) and I could NOT throw the ball back to the pitcher. (She is very demanding of anyone catching for her. If the ball isn’t in her glove, she is offended.) It’s not just that instance, however. I just started developing a lot of fear in games that I would not make the throw (from anywhere).

    I tried to download your free report several times, but it never has appeared in my email.

    Help?!

    Reply
    • Hi Lynn, thanks for reaching out! What does that fear consist of? Do you not want to embarrass yourself by making a bad throw? Do you doubt that you can throw the ball where you need to? We also emailed you in regards to the free report, so please be on the lookout for that in your email inbox.

      Reply

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