Mental Toughness and the New World Series Champs

Obviously, a team like the Phillies doesn't get to be World Champs without some mental toughness, but I thought I'd just point out a few examples.

Brad Lidge -- Gave up two big homers in the playoffs when he played for Houston in 2005, one lost them the game 2. They went on to lose to the White Soxs in a sweep. He was a scapegoat and traded to the Phils. He could have wallowed in the bad memory, especially come playoff time again. What did he do? He was perfect. He had 48 saves out of 48 attempts and shut down the Rays to win game 5 of the World Series to clinch it.

Geoff Jenkins -- Geoff could make the Hall of Fame for the Brewers, but after a slump, the Brewers lost faith in him and trading him away to the Phils. A previous starter now just a pinch hitter, Geoff was asked to start off the continuation of game 5 as a pinch hitter for the pitcher. It takes a while to get warmed up and into a groove, so starting the game as a pinch hitter is a tough ask. What did he do? Hit a deep double that led to a go-ahead run.

Jimmy Rollins -- Jimmy is a star -- the TO of baseball, but not TO in one very important way. Jimmy is a team player. After Jenkins hit his double, Jimmy laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to advance the runner. Good for the team, but not so good for Jimmy's own highlight tape. Didn't matter. Jimmy wanted to win for the team, and that's what it took.

Charlie Manuel and the entire team -- Ask any of the players why they won and they talk about chemistry. They trusted each other. They wanted to battle for each other. They wanted to win for their manager and the fans. In his own folksy, simple, southern way, Charlie built a real team, a group of people stronger than their individual parts.

Well done Phils.

Page navigation

My Blog » Mental Toughness and the New World Series Champs

Comments

Leave a Comment