Take two different athletes, same size, same age, same strength. 
They have a workout for the day posted on the board. 
They lift the same weights, same reps and same sets.

 

The first guy knew he had the lift but had other things on his mind; girlfriend, school, worried what his friends thinks, not wanting to work out and generally upset about having to get the work done. He is lifting to get the lift in, did the work and called it a day.

 

The second guy uses each lift and puts focus and emphasis on what this particular lift is doing for him in his sport. How it is making him stronger, where it making him stronger and why. Stability exercises for health, explosion focus for competition, endurance for mental strength to press through when things get hard.

Now you tell me, they both did the same work, same weight same reps and everything. Which guy got better? 

I am going to go with the second guy because he was in a different mental arena.

 

Here are a few questions to ask yourself and thoughts to hopefully help guide you towards a more efficient throwing program.  

 

 

As your daily Throwing Program is starting to taper back down, from longer throws to shorter throws, there will be a zone focus attached to them.  Zone focus is defined as being able to stay Glove-side when you want to go Glove-side or Arm-side when you want to go Arm-side.  Same goes for Glove-side Top or Bottom as well as Arm-side Top or Bottom.  This will prioritize the mind to a specific location which will require that the body follows suit in reproducing what the mind wants. 

Mentally develop trust by throwing through your targets rather than to a spot.  If you throw for the pitch to end at the spot, it doesn’t have the same life as a pitch passing through the zone on the way to destroy the backstop. (There just so happens to a be a catcher’s mitt there protecting himself and the umpire from impeding doom.)

 

 

The closer you get to the actual competitive pitching distance of 60’, you can begin to fine tune your command with different grips deliberately delivered to specific zones.  This takes a more concentrated focus and a location consciousness.  Allow your body to move freely and athletically.  There is no rigid or stiff positioning that a pitcher 'must' be in.  Smooth athletic and rhythmic throws should not turn into a compartmentalization of memorized techniques.  

 

The quality of your discipline is more important than effort behind the throw.  The best guys know that it is difficult to be the best, but they accept that and do it anyway.  A pitcher's lifeline is playing catch. How do you mentally go about doing the most important thing every day of your career?

Discipline over Motivation.

-Rhoades