When Rick Ankiel first lost his delivery and began throwing the ball all over the place, it was kind of amusing. We have all seen "Bull Durham" and laughed at the scene where the Bull is felled, like a tree, by a fastball.
But it was soon evident that Ankiel wasn't just dealing with a mechanical problem, that his wildness wasn't just a matter of following through on his delivery or raising his hands. He had a mental block throwing the baseball, and time and again he tried to make it work. He took baby steps. He threw in bullpens. He tried just about everything. And everything failed to work.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Buster Olney
