Sometimes You Eat the B’ar – Andre Ethier

There are times when I know I need perspective and lack the means to gain that perspective. In the middle of chaos, details become more meaningful than ever. Perspective is lost and the meaningless becomes all that matters.

And there is nothing I can do about it.

No matter how hard I try, perspective is just outside of my grasp.

In times like these, I have to do what so many people do all the time and what is so hard for me. I’ve got to let go.

It was also hard for Andre Ethier to let go. Reports of Ethier’s frustration with the minutia of bad at-bats that would turn into bad games has been well-documented. Before last year, the Dodgers right fielder struggled to reach his full potential. Most “experts” said it was because he couldn’t get his head around the things he had no control over. Like hitting a ball hard and right at someone.

In 2010, Ethier seemed like he had finally found his mental “sweet-spot”. His start to the season had him contending in all three triple-crown categories well into May. He carried a sub-par Dodgers team for a month and a half. Then he got hurt.

A player can’t control injuries.

And Ethier wasn’t the same again in 2010. He didn’t blame the injury, but it had to affect him both mentally and physically. His swing changed. His mentality changed. It had to.

Fast-forward to Thursday, this year’s opening day. Ethier’s boys in blue will face the Giants in the first game of the longest season in professional sports. An article in the LA Times this week talked about Ethier being unsure about where he stands with the ballclub. Lucky for Dodgers fans, he’s getting better at letting things slide off his back and not worrying about things he can’t control. – OM