You Already Have the Tools
Oct 28, 2026 ยท @Ben
Sometimes the hardest part of getting better isn't finding something new. It's realizing you already have everything you need in the tool bag, and the real work is learning how to use it. Refining the skills you already have is often the biggest step forward you can take.
The season I went looking for something I didn't need
In 2022, I led Major League and Minor League Baseball in K/9. I was averaging close to two strikeouts per inning and had over 100 strikeouts as a reliever. By any measure, what I was doing was working.
So what did I do the next season? I spent the whole year searching for a pitch I didn't have.
I was convinced I needed a slider, a pitch I didn't actually know how to throw. I cycled through 16 different grips trying to find it, and by the end I had no idea what I was doing on the mound.
What it cost me
I was uncomfortable every time I took the ball. My confidence took a hit. My mechanics started to drift. Little by little, everything that made my delivery special got altered, all because I was trying to become a pitcher I never needed to become.
Listen to what the game is actually telling you
Here's the part that stings: the game never told me to make that change. The game was telling me I was having success. The message wasn't "become someone new." It was "get even better at what you're already doing."
That's the difference between chasing improvement and chasing reinvention. One builds on your strengths. The other can quietly tear them down. Refine before you reinvent The goal is to become the best version of who you are right now. That takes a plan, and that plan should cover three things:
- Make the most of where you are now. Know what's already working and why.
- Have a plan for your weak points. Address the gaps that actually show up in your performance, not the ones you imagine.
- Keep strengthening what you're already good at. Your strengths are what got you here. Don't neglect them while you chase something new.
And if the game does start telling you that something needs to change, that's when it's time to take a real look. Until then, trust the tools in your bag and get better at using them.
How we train at Roots Athletics
This is how we approach every player who walks through our doors: figure out what makes you good, build a plan around it, and sharpen it, rather than trying to turn you into somebody else. If you want help building that plan, shoot us over an inquiry.