What Baseball Hitters May Know That Could Hurt You On The Pitcher's Mound

Hitters can smell fear. Ask your teammates. They'll tell you. They'll tell you that they know when a pitcher they're facing is afraid, when he isn't confident, when he isn't in control of his game.

Are hitters smarter than pitchers? No way. But they do know when the pitcher doesn't have his stuff together. That's because they get to watch pitchers -- pitch after pitch -- from the dugout, before they step in for their first hacks.

Pitchers on the other hand don't have this luxury. Pitchers don't usually get to see hitters before they're actually in the batter's box.

That's why I've always thought it was of the utmost importance for you (more so than any other position player) to be conscience of how you carry yourself on the bump. You know, how you handle your stuff; how you act and react out there.

Little things -- such as your body posture; working fast; jogging to the mound; keeping your facial expressions stoic; etc. -- are all important. Very important.

During my playing career I came up with quirky little rule. I call it my 10 percent rule. It's simple. Act as if you're 10 percent better then you are. That's the first step in being a successful pitcher. That's because in order to "act" as if you're 10 percent better than you are, you have to know who you are.

Now I'm certainly not advocating arrogance here. Arrogance will keep you from improving. Instead, possess the confidence that you know you can beat anybody on any day of the week with your best stuff.

That's how I thought about myself when I was on the mound. What about you? How do you think on the mound? How do you think about yourself?

If you're confident, I'll bet the confidence you exude may get some hitters thinking: "Jeez, this pitcher's got something figured out." And whether you do or don't, the hitter will at least be thinking about you (and not about what he's out there trying to do).