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Ryan Zimmerman has had a hell of a time throwing the ball lately. Nats
Insider Mark Zuckerman writes about it. Zimmerman thinks it’s a mental
issue. His teammates, while downplaying it, think it’s a confidence issue.
Here’s Ian Desmond:
“In a sense, it’s a confidence thing. He’s never come to me before about
how to hit a homer, or how to drive in a runner from second, or how to make a
diving play. So I would imagine his confidence is a little down if he’s
coming to me. I have some things that I see, but I think he’s to the point
now where it’s right there. He’s gotten 100 times better.”
Zuckerman gives the obligatory name checks to Steve Sax, Chuck Knoblauch,
Mackey Sasser, but correctly notes that, mental or not, this doesn’t look at
all like what those guys went through. He’s not airmailing things. He’s
just throwing wide or missing.
Given that it’s not classic yips, Zimmerman’s protestations aside, you have
to wonder if it isn’t physical. He had shoulder problems and, as Zuckerman
noted last winter, Zimmerman has changed his throwing motion.