The game ends, and you know your batting line.
You know how many runs your team scored.
You can probably describe the pitch you wish you had back.
But what will you do with that information tomorrow?
For a baseball player, that is where performance journaling can become useful.
A short daily entry gives you a place to prepare your attention before competition, review your decisions afterward, and choose an adjustment for the next days practice.
You already make time for throwing, defensive work, and swings.
It’s time to give your mental preparation a place in that schedule.
The examples I share today from MLB players Carson Kelly, Tyler Stephenson, Jameson Taillon, and Konnor Griffin show several ways to do it. Each connects writing to the demands of a baseball season: getting ready, responding to adversity, and learning from a game whose results do not always reflect the quality of your decisions and performance.
Prepare before you compete
In the Carson Kelly broadcast, the reporter describes a notebook he writes in daily.
His preparation includes a personal word, affirmations, and keys to simplify his approach at the plate.
After games, he reviews the positives and negatives from his at-bats.
That gives a journal a purpose on both sides of competition.
Before the game, choose the behavior you want to bring to the field. We call those setting your intentions
After the game, assess whether you followed through. We cal that doing your reflection.
If you write that you compete one pitch at a time, define the response that supports it. After a frustrating called strike, will you release the tension in your grip, breathe, and return your eyes to the pitcher? When you strike out, how will you prepare to play defense?
An intention becomes easier to train when you can describe what it looks like. Write words that lead to a baseball action.
Use a consistent moment to open the journal
The Taillon broadcast describes Jameson arriving at the ballpark and writing while still in his street clothes. This is his trigger. He records intentions, affirmations, and notes, then puts the book away and changes into his baseball gear. The announcers describe that transition as a move toward executing what he wrote. This is also flipping the switch from person to player a process he repeats post game to flip from player back to person.
Choose your own place for this in the day. You might write when you arrive at the clubhouse, before you begin your warmup, or before your team’s preparation meeting. You may do it in your car when you arrive to the field. Find a moment that fits your schedule and allows you to be ready for team activities.
A pitcher could write, “After a miss, I will reset and commit to the next location and target.” An infielder could write, “I will check the situation and get ready before every pitch.” Then look for opportunities to practice that behavior in your preparation.
The entry should point you toward something you can do as soon as you close the notebook.
Find wins that traditional stats can miss
In the Tyler Stephenson clip, the reporter describes a daily routine of recording three wins and three gratitudes, even after difficult games. He also describes a weekly review of things Stephenson wants to start, stop and continue doing.
A daily win can be a decision or response you want to repeat. You took a pitch outside your zone. You backed up a throw. You stayed engaged after being taken out of the lineup. You communicated with your pitcher during a difficult inning.
Name the evidence. “I stayed positive” is difficult to evaluate. “After blocking a pitch and getting hit in my arm, I took my glove off, took a breath, checked the outs and runners, put the glove back on, sent some glove love to the pitcher and was ready before the next pitch” tells you what you did.
The gratitude entry gives you room to recognize support and meaning beyond that day’s results. Write what is true for you. The people who support you, the chance to train, and something you appreciate away from baseball can all belong there.
Review a hitless game with Griffin’s attention to detail
Konnor Griffin describes journaling when he arrives at the field. He writes three hitting reminders: being calm, having rhythm, and trying to drive the ball back up the middle.
He also explains how he responds to a zero-for-three game. He writes three things he is grateful for, then reviews his at-bats and identifies positives, including good takes when he stayed with his plan.
That detail is worth practicing. A strikeout can include a disciplined decision you need to keep. A hit can come from a swing at a pitch outside your approach. Review enough of the at-bat to see both.
For example, a hitter might write, “I took two breaking balls below the zone, then missed a fastball I was prepared to hit.” That entry gives the player and hitting coach a more useful starting point than “I was terrible today.”
Be honest about mistakes while keeping a record of the decisions that helped you compete.
Begin with three minutes before practice
Use this short entry before your next practice or game preparation. The time limit is a starting point; keep the routine practical for your schedule.
Write your intention. Choose a behavior you control. A hitter might write, “I will commit to my approach and reset between pitches.” A pitcher might write, “I will finish my preparation before beginning my delivery.”
Write your three keys. Use cues you have developed with your coach. For a hitter, those might be “See it. Stay loose. Be on time.” A pitcher might use “Breathe. See the target. Commit.” Make the words meaningful to your role and preparation.
Write your response to adversity. Finish an if-then sentence. “If I chase a pitch, then I will breathe, return to my zone, and prepare again.” Or, “If I make an error, then I will check the situation and get ready for the next play.”
Read the entry, briefly picture the response, and close the journal. Now find opportunities to carry out the plan.
Spend five minutes learning afterward
Start with three wins and three things you are grateful for. Then answer three performance questions:
- What went well?
- What could be better?
- How will I make that improvement?
Keep each answer specific. A hitter could record this:
- Well: I laid off the slider below the zone in my first two at-bats.
- Better: After a called strike, I rushed and expanded the zone with two strikes.
- How: At tomorrow’s practice, I will rehearse my reset and two-strike approach in a recognition round with my hitting coach.
That final answer creates work you can actually do. Bring it into the next session and review whether you followed through.
Include defense, baserunning, and your contribution to the team when they matter. If you did not start, evaluate how you stayed ready for your role. Keep the entry brief enough that you can complete it consistently and still identify a useful next step.
Evaluate execution as well as the outcome
The Taillon broadcast describes him reviewing video and assessing how often he executed his pitches. The announcers discuss how his assessment could be similar across starts that produced different results.
Pitchers can apply that idea with clear definitions. Agree with your coach on what you are evaluating. Commitment to the pitch, completion of your routine, and location are different things. Recording them separately helps you identify the source of a problem.
For a particular pitch, write the intended target, what you executed, and what happened. A pitch at the intended location can become a hit. A location mistake can become an out. Both deserve an accurate review.
Use available video and the perspectives of your catcher and coach. If your memory is uncertain, say so. The goal is to understand the outing well enough to choose useful work for the next bullpen.
Make the entry fit your position
Catchers can review preparation for hitters, communication with pitchers, receiving focus, and responses after a difficult inning. Keep your offensive result from becoming the only measure of your night.
Fielders can review positioning, readiness before contact, and decisions with the ball. “I made an error” needs more detail before it becomes a practice plan. Did you rush the transfer? Lose track of the runner? Begin the play without knowing where the throw belonged?
A player coming off the bench can record preparation for a pinch-hit appearance, attention to the opposing pitcher, or a useful defensive reminder shared with a teammate.
Your responsibilities determine what belongs in the journal. Record enough detail to improve your next opportunity.
Review the week and choose one adjustment
Once a week, read your entries together. Look for a recurring behavior. You might notice that your best at-bats begin with a clear plan, or that your defensive focus drops after a strikeout.
Choose one thing to start, one thing to stop, and one thing to continue. For example: start a deliberate reset before returning to defense; stop replaying the last at-bat during the next inning; continue checking the situation before every pitch.
Coaches can help players translate those observations into a practice opportunity. Ask for a performance takeaway the player chooses to share. Personal entries can remain personal while the baseball lesson becomes part of your work together.
For the next seven days, write before and after you train. At the end of the week, identify a pattern and choose one adjustment. If you miss a day, resume with the next session.
Give yourself something clear to execute today and something specific to learn afterward. That is a useful place to begin training your mental game.
Your Next Step!
If you’re a player, coach, or parent who cares about gaining a competitive edge, you’ll want to join my Baseball Mental Mastery (BAMM) Course Insiders List. I designed BAMM to give you a complete system for mastering the mental game of baseball to compete with confidence, consistency, and mental toughness — and registration opens soon!
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