MLB teams turning to mental skills coaches

PHOENIX - They’re the ones nobody ever sees.

They’re not introduced in the opening-day pageantry. They don’t wear uniforms. They don’t have lockers in the clubhouse.

Some even have weird titles, just to protect their anonymity.

Yet, behind the scenes, there are proving as invaluable as any staff member in a Major League Baseball organization.

Mental skills coaches, employed by a record 27 baseball clubs to open the 2018 season, are valued more than ever.

“If you said mental skills before,’’ Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon says, “that was an absolute sign that you were weak among the old-school guys. Deep down, there were a lot of guys who wanted to talk to them, but they knew that if they were seen talking to them, it would be seen sign as a sign of weakness. And the manager might think less of him.

“That was an absolute fact, and even today, I don’t think that stigma has been totally erased. To think that psychology is an indicator of weakness, truly is an ignorant statement. When people are fighting it, it’s only because they don’t understand it.

“It’s no different than your hitting coach, your pitching coach, your infield coach. A mental skills coach is going to help you think better, think more clearly in the moment, and control your emotions.’’

In the words of the late Yogi Berra: “Baseball is 90% mental. The other half is physical.’’

Seven years ago, there were 20 mental skills coaches seven years ago who were being used by major-league clubs. There now are 44 who are either full-time employees or are consultants to teams and members of the Professional Baseball Performance Psychology Group.

You don’t think the Cubs are now turning to Ken Ravizza, one of the pioneers of mental skill coaching, after striking out a National League record 58 times in their first five games? You think former majorleague pitcher Bob Tewksbury is simply reminiscing about his 13-year career when huddling with the San Francisco Giants about their franchise record-low two runs scored in the first four games?

You think Los Angeles Dodgers allstar closer Kenley Jansen will be left alone after giving up a game-losing homer in his season debut, and blowing a three-run lead for another Dodgers loss in his encore?

Only the San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves and Kansas City Royals do not feature some form of a mental performance department.

“We spend so much time on physical instruction,” says Andrew Friedman, Dodgers president of baseball operations, “that it just makes sense to have resources on the mental side as well. It helps guys because things are so more visible, and dissected in so much more detail, there’s more pressure.’’

Says New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman “Our job is to put our players in the best position to find success, and that means not just physically, but mentally and emotionally at the same time. We’re trying to exercise all of the muscles, including the brain.

“I remember when I first approached George Steinbrenner years ago, and I hired Chad Bohling I said, ‘The Yankees should be using every tool in the tool box, and this is one tool we don’t have. George said, ‘Go for it!’ ’’

Bohling, whose title originally was director of optimal performance, is now beginning his 14th season with the Yankees, and leads a staff of five mental skills coaches in the organization. Bohling was not directly involved in all the Yankees’ managerial interviews before hiring Aaron Boone, but also is utilized in their interviews with their potential top draft picks.

“He’s a vital resource,’’ Cashman said, “for our entire company.’’

Tewksbury, a former pitcher who won 110 games in his 13-year career, is baseball’s lone mental skills coach with a master’s degree in psychology who also played in the big leagues. He was an All-Star who finished third in 1992 Cy Young Award balloting, and was released twice. He was a 17-game winner, and a two-time 13-game loser.

He grew up in an era when players were afraid to be seen talking to a sports psychologist, and now has written a book detailing his work: “Ninety Percent Mental: An All-Star Player Turned Mental Skills Coach Reveals the Hidden Game of Baseball.’’

With clubhouse camaraderie not as vibrant as it once was — and players likelier to retreat to the relative solitude of electronics — human connection remains important.

“There’s so much down times and this game is so result-based,’’ Tewksbury says, “and the combination of the two causes a lot of anxiety. Just to be able to have someone talk about it with can relieve some of that pressure.

“The demands of the player have become different. They’re at the clubhouse earlier, the games are longer, and when the game is over, they just shut down.’’

It may be a team sport, Ravizza says, but it’s really an individual sport within a team.

“Thing about it,’’ Ravizza says. “The pitcher stands alone on the rubber. The hitter stands alone in the box. You’re all alone.’’