Too Small to Play Ball

Opening

I recall a Friday night late in the season when Cliff had just gotten through with a senior league game at our local little league park. Cliff was 12 years old now and playing on a regulation field. That means it had 90 foot bases and, of course, a 350-foot fence. Cliff at the time was around 4’10” and 80lbs. He had hit the ball well that night, however, a good hit for Cliff was one that barely got out of the infield. As we were riding home that night, I looked over at my son who was feeling somewhat rejected and said,

“Son, today you’re a boy playing on a man’s field, one day you will be a man playing on a boy’s field.”

The title, “Too Small to Play Ball,” is a play on words. No one is too small or too big to do what you set your mind to do. But there in lies the secret, “set your mind to do.” This book can help you do just that. If you are around sports much, you have a firm understanding that size is brought up often and can be a major defining factor. Sometimes it can be the difference in even getting a chance to play.

In sports like golf, tennis, soccer and swimming, size has not typically been a factor. In today’s sporting world this is changing. Baseball players’ size has also increased over the years. Just look at the number of home runs hit in today’s game compared to the past. The mental concepts and practices outlined in this book can and will help all student athletes overcome this barrier. The better mentally prepared you are, the better your chances of success. If you happen to be big, strong, and fast, and sports’ success comes easy to you, then you need this book as much as the smaller athlete. Because, sooner or later, if you do not develop the mental mastery dynamic covered in this book, you will not have the discipline and mental toughness to work through the inevitable failures that will occur. You must stay focused and have the mental edge to get to and remain on top.