{"id":1183,"date":"2019-06-03T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-06-03T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/reports\/how-the-arizona-diamondbacks-are-introducing-meditation-and-mindfulness-for-players-and-staff-alike\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T05:12:33","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T05:12:33","slug":"arizona-diamondbacks-meditation-and-mindfulness","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/arizona-diamondbacks-meditation-and-mindfulness\/","title":{"rendered":"How the Arizona Diamondbacks Are Introducing Meditation and Mindfulness for Players and Staff Alike"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n Jun 03, 2019 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

How the Arizona Diamondbacks Are Introducing Meditation and Mindfulness for Players and Staff Alike<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Zach Brandon, the team\u2019s Mental Skills Coordinator, explains the need for a patient approach that demonstrates how mental skills can be a useful performance tool.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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\u201cYour mind can become your best friend or your worst enemy very quickly in this game,\u201d says Zach Brandon.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n
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By John Portch<\/h6>\n

The Mental Skills Coordinator at Major League Baseball\u2019s Arizona Diamondbacks is talking to the Leaders Performance Institute about\u00a0<\/span>the team\u2019s increasing use of mindfulness and meditation as a tool to enhance engagement and presence in the moment.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur thoughts can have a lot of power but we shouldn\u2019t view our thoughts as law,\u201d he continues. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to believe everything that we<\/span>\u00a0think and we don\u2019t always have to get caught up in judging the thoughts that we have. A huge part of mindfulness is present moment awareness but it is also about seeing things through\u00a0<\/span>a non-judgmental lens.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the course of our conversation Brandon ex<\/span>plained that being able to manage your thoughts can be a game-changer for teams willing to commit to a sensible, measured approach that tackles the stigma around mental health and wellbeing.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A resource for all<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Diamondbacks publicly announced the hiring<\/span>\u00a0of their three-person Mental Skills Team, headed by Brandon, in February 2019. One of the notable differences in the clubhouse has been the provision of mindfulness sessions each day. \u201cFor players who are interested, we have sessions of 10-15 minutes in l<\/span>ength,\u201d Brandon explains, adding, \u201cwe do a few throughout the day, some in English, some in Spanish; we have a lot of Latin American players and try to be cognizant of their needs and provide them with the same level of support as any other player.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At thi<\/span>s point in time, all sessions are provided in-house: \u201cWe\u2019re fortunate to have an office at our Spring Training complex; it\u2019s really more of a lounge that the players use.\u201d That daily visibility for Brandon and his colleagues, Mental Skills Coach, Charley\u00a0<\/span>J<\/span>auss<\/span>, and Player Mentor, Daniel Bard, has had a normalizing effect. \u201cWe\u2019ve had players come in when it may not be a scheduled block for mindfulness, but most value being with and investing in the group,\u201d observes Brandon. \u201cWe\u2019ve added these sessions into t<\/span>heir daily schedule and I think the consistency gives players something they can incorporate into their routines. Those who are interested in partaking have the ability to do so daily.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He advocates the use of apps such as Headspace but perhaps the Mental\u00a0<\/span>Skills department\u2019s masterstroke has been the introduction of audio meditation sessions that players can use beyond the confines of the clubhouse. \u201cWe don\u2019t only want sessions offered during the morning for guys as a way to start their day.\u00a0 For some playe<\/span>rs they have difficulty winding down when their heartrate is up and their bodies have been activated for a while. We also provide mindfulness sessions at the end of workout days and, through the audio sessions, encourage them to use it at home as well. Som<\/span>e guys have found that it works better in the morning, to start off the day, and for other guys it\u2019s the evening or after a workout when it helps them the most.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The audio format also enables easier dissemination among the Diamondbacks\u2019 farm system, which\u00a0<\/span>consists of teams across the United States and the Dominican Republic. Brandon says: \u201cAt the end of the day, we\u2019re based here in Arizona and we want to make sure all our affiliates have access and are able to do this on their own when we\u2019re not around.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Co<\/span>aches are catered for too. \u201cIt has been important for us to incorporate coaches, getting them involved, and we\u2019ve had a really good turnout thus far. At the end of the day, coaching is a performance, so if we can help them to use mindfulness to manage stre<\/span>ss and be in the moment and let go and not be too critical of themselves in certain situations when they have to be able to make difficult decisions, then we want it to be a resource for them too.\u201d They are also some of its most important proponents.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The f<\/span>ocus on the minor leagues in particular will reap benefits in the long run. \u201cWe\u2019ve had a presence in our major league club but the main focus has been our minor league system. As they progress through the ranks, and hopefully they\u2019re one day playing in the<\/span>\u00a0major leagues, and now it\u2019s just become a normal part of their routine.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Getting a foot in the door<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon took up his current position with the Diamondbacks in November 2018 and the nascent mental skills department began with a focus on \u201c\u201cbuilding relat<\/span>ionships, learning from the current coaches and staff, and helping\u00a0<\/span>them understand what it is that we do.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He continues: \u201cPrior to Spring Training, we tried to take advantage of our entire Player Development staff being in Arizona and gave them an overvi<\/span>ew of our new department. We emphasized the value of the coaches in our work and the role they could play in helping us reach the players. We see our relationship with them as a \u2018partnership\u2019 and wanted them to know we are here to support them as well as t<\/span>he players.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon explains that organizational buy-in was an essential first step. \u201cWe prioritized that early on because there\u2019s three of us for 250-plus players and the organization, so we\u2019re not going to be there day in and day out. The individuals wh<\/span>o are going to be best at identifying which players are going to be able to benefit from our help or be in a position to have a conversation with a player, encouraging them to use or practice mental skills, are going to be the coaches who are there every d<\/span>ay; the athletic trainers, the strength coaches.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEarly on, the main thing we did was encourage them to come in and try it themselves so that when they shared it with the\u00a0<\/span>players<\/span>\u00a0they had an idea of what it was all about.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The mental skills department is a<\/span>lso giving them a helping hand on that front. \u201cWe\u2019re creating a cheat sheet or an infographic, particularly for coaches.\u00a0 The goal is to give them a resource so they recognize when a player is having difficulty, getting too emotional about certain pitches\u00a0<\/span>or certain plays in the game; or the player is having difficulty from getting caught up in distractions. It might be that mindfulness is a tool they can leverage to help those players.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor us, the focus early on is creating conversations with coaches and\u00a0<\/span>players about what mindfulness is, what it\u2019s not, and also encouraging them to share their experiences too and not have it be just driven by us.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the beginning, the goal for us has been that we want the mental skills program to be flexible. It can ad<\/span>apt and ebb and flow in whatever direction it needs to go; and with that it needs to be collaborative. We\u2019re getting feedback from them, what\u2019s working and what\u2019s not working, as well as sharing our ideas too.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Your mind gym<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One question we wanted to ask B<\/span>randon: what if a player or coach finds that mindfulness isn\u2019t working? \u201cWhenever it\u2019s been an individual\u2019s first time doing a mindfulness session, one of the things\u00a0<\/span>we tried to emphasize was to not have any preconceived expectations,\u201d he replies, in the m<\/span>anner of someone who has faced such reservations in the clubhouse.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey may walk out of there feeling like they were on a whole other planet and it was this great out-of-body experience. That may happen but you might also walk out of there saying that was<\/span>\u00a010 minutes of me battling with my own mind because I couldn\u2019t shut it off and concentrate and I kept wondering if I was doing things right or not. You may have 10 minutes of that or anything in between.\u201d By the same token, they might experience both good\u00a0<\/span>weeks and bad weeks and so, as Brandon says, \u201cyou manage their expectations going into it.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He will also try to compare mindfulness sessions to what the player is doing out on the field. \u201cThere\u2019s not too many instances where you\u2019re a pitcher and you\u2019re try<\/span>ing to develop a new pitch and the very first time that you go and practice it in a bullpen that it works perfectly. It usually takes some time and some fine-tuning and the same goes for hitting. I think it happens all the time with performance on the fiel<\/span>d and it\u2019s helping them understand that this is no different; you go to the weight room to get stronger \u2013 the mental skills room is essentially your mind gym to strengthen your mind and help develop your mind\u2019s ability to refocus and quiet distractions, bl<\/span>ock out the noise, and just not be too critical of yourself. You\u2019re helping them to understand that this takes time.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Not only will it take time for the player but the organization as a whole. \u201cMy hope is that it continues to grow and it becomes something\u00a0<\/span>that becomes a normal part of everyday routine that our players do. Everybody has a physical warm-up \u2013 maybe mindfulness becomes that everyday mental warm-up that our players can rely on and use.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s conversations around technology and how short atten<\/span>tion spans are nowadays and how difficult it is for younger generations to focus and whatnot; practicing mindfulness is just going to continue to be valuable practice and a tool for individuals to alleviate some of that and try to give players that mental\u00a0<\/span>break, to recharge the batteries and learn how to allow their minds to be free but also, when they need to, to be able to focus it back.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandon emphasizes that it will be the players themselves who will prove essential if mindfulness and meditation are t<\/span>o grow at the Diamondbacks and beyond. \u201cOver time, as the \u2018new-ness\u2019 of our department wears off, we hope to see the players themselves become the biggest advocates of mindfulness. When we start seeing them encourage each other to practice it, then we\u2019ll k<\/span>now that our influence is really making strides.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Diamondbacks\u2019 culture is evolving, one player and one session at a time.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n

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Zach Brandon, the team\u2019s Mental Skills Coordinator, explains the need for a patient approach that demonstrates how mental skills can be a useful performance tool.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1184,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[21],"pathway":[],"topic":[],"sport":[],"class_list":["post-1183","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-performance"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow the Arizona Diamondbacks Are Introducing Meditation and Mindfulness for Players and Staff Alike - Performance Institute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/arizona-diamondbacks-meditation-and-mindfulness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How the Arizona Diamondbacks Are Introducing Meditation and Mindfulness for Players and Staff Alike - 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