Why Failure In Training Breeds Success In Games
Today we'll look at how variable training and failure help to better a player’s mentality and preparation come game day and different drills that will help develop your approach.
The Practice Work
Tee work, front toss, and casual batting practice are all good things when learning new movements and for your pregame warm-up but there’s more to being a great hitter than just having a “good swing” and 5 o’clock power.
Hopping into a cage and taking swing after swing with no plan, no awareness for what the goal is for the day, and no thought to making the pitch to pitch adjustments is going to build confidence in the present but set up failure come game day. We all need some confidence-boosting days but too many times that’s the bulk of how athletes train.
I’ve seen countless players with all the talent in the world but shut down come game time. I believe this comes from being in unfamiliar situations that you have not practiced. As we all know failure is a part of all sports but especially in baseball and softball. We all know the saying if you fail 3 out of 10 times, you’ll be an all-star. Yet success is all that is practiced so failure becomes harder to manage when it, inevitably, happens.
Check out this quote from Chicago Cubs star, Kris Bryant, about how he challenges himself in practice: