How the heck do baseball players manage to ever do anything? ⚾
From a botched defensive play to a clutch home run, Bryce Harper and the Phillies offer a masterclass in flushing failure and locking in on the next opportunity
Here’s a thing most people know about me: I love the Philadelphia Phillies.
I still say being there when they won the 2008 World Series and the beer-soaked parade up Broad Street after the final pitch was one of the greatest days of my life.
My love for the Phightins’ is something I’ve given to my kids. It’s a fandom that I try to keep positive, and one that no longer causes me malaise when they lose. Basically, I enjoy the good stuff, am critical of the bad, but don’t let any of it impact my day.
That doesn’t mean I didn’t let out a loud yell (literally) as I heard Scott Franzke’s call of Alec Bohm’s game-winning home run during Game 2 of an incredibly entertaining Wild Card Series against the division rival Atlanta Braves.
It was what led up to that 10th-inning moment that led me to this No Distractions post.
Phillies superstar Bryce Harper pulled a 1993 Kim Batiste as he turned a horrific non-catch — that absurdly (and to the chagrin of Phillies starter Christopher Sanchez’s ERA) was not ruled to be an error — in the bottom of the 7th into a game-tying blast in the top of the 8th.
That’s right, in a matter of minutes, Harper’s entire Phillies tenure was turned upside down.
'A world of emotion' in just minutes for Bryce Harper
How did he manage to focus on that next chance to make a difference?
After the game, he said he realized he had to “come up big” after missing the catch he said he should have made.
He channeled his inner "Showman" to tie the game by blocking out all the distractions. This opportunity for baseball redemption from failure to hero took a lot of focus to block out the noise.
"Obviously, a world of emotion there. Obviously, that’s a ball I should have caught. Sanchy was throwing the crap out of it, and if we get that out right there, they probably don’t score. But you've got to flush it as quickly as possible knowing that Lee is coming in the game. And, obviously, I was hearing it pretty good from Braves and Phillies fans behind the dugout, so you’ve got to show up in that situation." — Bryce Harper
Kyle Schwarber’s home run got Harper thinking of tying the game up.
"Kyle had a great at-bat, and then I wasn't not trying to hit a homer, I can tell you that."
This is why professional athletes are just wired differently, especially the great ones.
Imagine if we could each take a mistake and quickly find a way to learn from it and rectify the situation. Of course, our result won’t be hitting a baseball over 400 feet.
By the time you read this the Phillies might have already had their fate sealed in the deciding wild card Game 3 in Atlanta, however that shakes out, for now Harper put together a masterclass on focusing on the next pitch coming your way.
Go Phils!
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