[h=1]Ankiel admits he drank alcohol before starts to calm down[/h]
The story of Rick Ankiel's career is simply amazing.
The Cliffs Notes version is that he was a highly regarded pitching prospect who burst onto the scene with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1999. Even into 2000, he was a force on the mound and looked to be the next great thing.
Unfortunately, something happened during the 2000 postseason, and suddenly Ankiel couldn't throw a strike. Not even close. His career as a pitcher would soon be over. Remember this?
Ankiel suffered from what everyone likes to call the yips, and his once promising career as an ace starter would quickly fade away.
Ankiel would, however, revitalize his career against all odds and become a pretty good outfielder who had some thump in his bat, belting 76 home runs during his 11-year tenure.
He's a real inspiration to many people, and now he's come out with a book that tells the whole story, including something very shocking.
HardballTalk @HardballTalk
Rick Ankiel drank vodka before a start to deal with the yips http://wp.me/p14QSL-2B4w
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-02-20T18:21:13+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 20 Feb 2017, 18:21:13 (UTC)">1:21 PM - 20 Feb 2017</time>
[h=2]Rick Ankiel drank vodka before a start to deal with the yips[/h] We know Rick Ankiel overcame a lot to remake his career. It was more than we knew.
mlb.nbcsports.com
After his embarrassing performance against the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of the 2000 NLDS where he threw five wild pitches in one inning, Ankiel returned next year and prior to his first two starts of the 2001 season, he drank vodka before he went to the mound.
"Before that game…I’m scared to death. I know I have no chance," Ankiel said. "Feeling the pressure of all that, right before the game I get a bottle of vodka. I just started drinking vodka. Lo and behold, it kind of tamed the monster, and I was able to do what I wanted. I’m sitting on the bench feeling crazy I have to drink vodka to pitch through this. It worked for that game. (I had never drank before a game before). It was one of those things like the yips, the monster, the disease…it didn’t fight fair, so I felt like I wasn’t going to fight fair, either."
Ankiel's career as a pitcher took a turn for the worse and he made his last mound appearance in 2004. But with these new details, it may take on a life of its own once more.
The story of Rick Ankiel's career is simply amazing.
The Cliffs Notes version is that he was a highly regarded pitching prospect who burst onto the scene with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1999. Even into 2000, he was a force on the mound and looked to be the next great thing.
Unfortunately, something happened during the 2000 postseason, and suddenly Ankiel couldn't throw a strike. Not even close. His career as a pitcher would soon be over. Remember this?
Ankiel suffered from what everyone likes to call the yips, and his once promising career as an ace starter would quickly fade away.
Ankiel would, however, revitalize his career against all odds and become a pretty good outfielder who had some thump in his bat, belting 76 home runs during his 11-year tenure.
He's a real inspiration to many people, and now he's come out with a book that tells the whole story, including something very shocking.
HardballTalk @HardballTalk
Rick Ankiel drank vodka before a start to deal with the yips http://wp.me/p14QSL-2B4w
<time class="dt-updated" datetime="2017-02-20T18:21:13+0000" pubdate="" title="Time posted: 20 Feb 2017, 18:21:13 (UTC)">1:21 PM - 20 Feb 2017</time>
[h=2]Rick Ankiel drank vodka before a start to deal with the yips[/h] We know Rick Ankiel overcame a lot to remake his career. It was more than we knew.
mlb.nbcsports.com
After his embarrassing performance against the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of the 2000 NLDS where he threw five wild pitches in one inning, Ankiel returned next year and prior to his first two starts of the 2001 season, he drank vodka before he went to the mound.
"Before that game…I’m scared to death. I know I have no chance," Ankiel said. "Feeling the pressure of all that, right before the game I get a bottle of vodka. I just started drinking vodka. Lo and behold, it kind of tamed the monster, and I was able to do what I wanted. I’m sitting on the bench feeling crazy I have to drink vodka to pitch through this. It worked for that game. (I had never drank before a game before). It was one of those things like the yips, the monster, the disease…it didn’t fight fair, so I felt like I wasn’t going to fight fair, either."
Ankiel's career as a pitcher took a turn for the worse and he made his last mound appearance in 2004. But with these new details, it may take on a life of its own once more.
