Trevor Bauer might just be the most polarizing pitcher in the game today.
- He long tosses well beyond the length of a football field BEFORE every game he pitches.
- He never runs poles.
- He has at least seven pitches he can throw and over ten others he’s worked on in the past.
- He crow hops and throws as hard as he can on his FIRST warm up pitch between innings.
Those are just a few things that make Bauer, well, different. Here are a few more:
- He was a Freshman All American at UCLA.
- He led the nation in strikeouts his sophomore and junior year.
- He won the Golden Spikes award (Heisman Trophy of College Baseball) his junior year.
- He owns UCLA’s career records for most strikeouts, wins, and innings pitched (among others)
- He was the 3rd overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft.
I was pumped to get the opportunity to spend some time with Trevor and dig a bit deeper into why he does what he does and the reasoning behind some of his “wacky” habits.
What I quickly found out was that regardless of all the flack he gets in the media, Trevor knows exactly what he does and why he does it. It’s fascinating to talk with someone who knows himself and his training inside and out.
Everything baseball that Bauer does has a reason behind it.
That’s a great goal for all aspiring ballplayers!! KNOW yourself as a player. When you are able to do this, you get the most out of your training, performance and future in the game.
In this quick four minute video Trevor breaks down his pitching philosophy, shares how he mentally prepares on gameday, how he deals with failure on the mound and more.
“Whatever stuff I have today, I have to go out there and compete with it and do my best with what I have.”
–Indians’ Trevor Bauer on his mindset before a start
