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Ør- Remembering a Pioneer Of 's Mental Side

To help drive home the point, Ravøza the players with a miniature toilet sports peychologist cut left Alongtime small enough to fit in the pocket of a a wide nrath thmugh the game. b fixture in the d to flush awaY ByBILLYWTU a or a fielding mistake. When tlle Cat State Fullerton baseball "We all thought ít was Pretty tunny - team was floundering midway through it's a toy," said Kurt Suzuki, that team's the 2004 season, on apace to become the captain, who is now a veteran c:ltcher first tosing teamin the program's history with the . "But as we an unusualteam meet-ingvras called' The bought into it, it reallY helPed." players were brought before a kindly Ravizzadied this month at age 70 after gentl,eman with wearY eyes, a w¿¡rm a heart attack He left a lasting impact on smile and a Wrlford Brirnley mustache. that team, which also included Los Ange' The man was Ken Ravizza a kinesiolo- les Dodgers thi¡d baseman Justin Tl¡rner gy professor at the universiry. He got a¡d P. J. Pilittere, who is now the Yan- right to t¡e point: Forget the last game, kees'assistant hitting coach, and on a forget the last play and forget the ex- considerable swath of baseball. Pøge 3 cuses. Continuedon STEVE GREEN/

Ken Ravizza in the dugout before a Cubs game ea¡lier this year. Rav- izza changed the way athletes think about the games they play. How a Pioneer of the Game's Mental Aspects Left an Impact an Baseball

Flom First Sports We , iuas introduced to Pavzza, was a ceautl¡or of two base.

and Harvey Dorfman in bring- $an¡ - meeting a minor celebrity. Tg- Fe mental garre into major leaguie clubhouses. Duffy eventually graduated to Dorf-

up, tabbed and dogæared, with him dur- ing the season. It is his personal slump buster. _ "Honestly, to me, it's everytling,', Duffy said of tbe mental game. .¡I didñtt start ntit Igot tto unde re- game of the College lVorld Series, which ally have to trust your work and have a the transformed Titans won. Their cham- good .pionship mental state to not run to the video rings are engraved with the room after an 0-for4 with two lineouts." words that drove pitch. them: Nort He continued: iA lot of slumps stå-rt "Ken mþht as well have been on the rvith some bad luck and a run to the video field with us he was that vital," pilit- STEVE CREEN/CH|CAGO CUÀS room for the last l0 at-bats. The next - Ken Ravizza with the Cubs'Joe tere said. Maddon, an early supporter of his theories. thing you know you feel like a Littte you don't know everything working for them. The focus Fullerton in2004, who is now at the Uni- your brain goes on sports psychology has become more versity of Oregon, said the value in positive Rav- and it's on performance rather izza's lessons was that they when the cubs won tnåoålïrå%"¡e, component could be ap- of baseball is the sixth tool than 'what's your problem?' you're an plied broadly. fwo years ago, one of Ravizza,s proudest elite athlete; you're moments was the pep tålk not here by chance. "The same tools he was teaching my Jason Hey_ How can we help you get ward gave to his teammates while better?" playBrs to handle the stresses ot basã¡ail they This view reflected job were waiting out a rain delay in the ninth is in tittes. could be used in a job intervieq exams or Sports psychologists inning of Game 7. are now often re. if you had a bad day or a bad week," Hor- ferred The gist: Forget about anything to as mental skills coaches, which ton said. "Nine out of l0 things bad question might be that had happened that night might be semantics but also reflects how terrible in your life or your game, like wot¡ld be: but he blowing a late ptay - they are increasingly seen as akin to a lead - and like the from 200 pitching or a hitting coach. team that had the best record in baseball- Gary She C_ha! Bohling, that first sports psy- Heyward's speech book-ended a talk team - Ravizza had chologist hired by the yankees and now had delivered in spring training. gist, said: Ravízza the team's director of ment¿l condition_ had gathered the Cubs on the for people wl¡o a¡e weak-minded." ing, said Ravizza field, where he had lined up 162 base- was skilled at taking Baseball is rooted in failure. The best "There's still remnants of that, but it's generic concepts in psychology balls, plus about a dozen morè, and sepa- and a[ hitters are out two-thirds of the time. So changedi said Maher, who has been plymg rated them with seven bats. The objects with them to high-level athletes in a hanging on to hop€ is the India¡ls for 24 .,The vital, even for elite r€presented the number of games seasons. pliayers manner they could understand. athletes. the know this is a hard game, Cubs would play over the course of the and tfréy ri,ant George Horton, the coach at Cal State Matt Duffy, the third baseman for the season, including the playoffs, and the bats dir¡idedtltem by montìs. fhe messqge?

that seaqon with the Cubs. "For ad ath-

..

i This is why Ya¡rkees pitctrer Masatrúro. Tanaka has an inscription in Japanese on the inside of his glore reminding hlm to

You.'ve got to understand how to handle failure,'a major leag¡re plaþr says.

pilch like a $'arrior. Or why Luis Sev- erux) 'wrcte - patience in Spanish'- of his cap last sea- s()n to slow down. Neitlrcr hadworkedwith Rav- izz4butthe broader'message in ùreir re- minders - be in üre momen-i - is a tenet of his teaching. Wtien Suzuki stands in the batte/s box, readying himself for each pitch, he has aroutinethat he traces back to college: He fixes his gaze on the trademark of his bat and takes two deep breaths. These habits a¡e familiar to an in- creasing number of ballplayers, no mat- ter who has iñfluenced them..But they may resonate a littlè more with those

power of a toy toilret. "You car¡ always hea¡ him in the back of your mind," Suzuki said. "Flush it. Let it go."