Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Rick Ankiel famously struggled with the yips after melting down in the 2000 NLDS. But what he wasn't famous for, until a recent interview with 590 The Fan in St. Louis, was his method for combating his wild pitching at the start of the 2001 season.
In an interview about his upcoming book The Phenomenon: Pressure, The Yips, and the Pitch that Changed My Life, Ankiel revealed that he drank vodka before taking the mound in a 2001 start against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“Before that game, I’m scared to death.