St. Louis Cardinals: Brett Cecil learning from Chris Carpenter

St. Louis Cardinals reliever Brett Cecil has returned from the disabled list with a new mindset.

Most fans are not happy about getting Brett Cecil back, the outcry is a mixture of anger and sadness thus far. But the St. Louis Cardinals expensive reliever is coming back with some changes mentally. The interesting part is that former Redbird arm Chris Carpenter is being credited with Cecil’s newfound focus.

Carpenter is working as a special assistant to pitching at all levels for the Cardinals. Whatever was said to Cecil while he was on the shelf seemed to work in Triple A. The southpaw tossed four scoreless outings during his rehab with Memphis.

Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch covered this change, and we will have to see if it works. According to Hummel’s article, Carpenter suggested Cecil read the book, “The Mental ABCs of Pitching.”

Effects For Cecil

The good news is that Cecil understands that he hasn’t been pitching well. That means he understands baseball. However, a different mindset and a reset could be good for him. The St. Louis Cardinals could really use one of their big monetary investments to pan out.

In order to make room for him, Tyler Webb had to go down to in order to make room for the returning Cecil. While I still consider it an improvement, numbers tell a different story. A big money reliever should not be sporting an ERA over five.

Will It Work?

There is only one way to find out. It is not like he could really get worse. Unfortunately, his issues do not appear to be in the mental game. To me they are in his approach on the mound. I’ve been saying for awhile that Cecil needs to lead with his curveball, just as he did when he was successful with the Blue Jays.

That being said, Carpenter is my favorite player of all time. I trust in his work. If there is anyone who can truly aid the mental game of any pitcher, Carp is the guy to do so. Cecil earning his money is the best outcome here. The worst is that Cecil does not improve, and the St. Louis Cardinals continue to live with the awful performance.

I am of the mindset that Cecil will show improvements. Call it blind optimism if you wish. But at least he is working towards improvements. The mental part of the game is huge, so we will just have to see how it goes.