This term, translating to momentum, is increasingly used in the psychological world of both individual and team sports. Baseball match commentators often seek to place this word when they sense that the winning spirit is shifting sides. Let’s focus on this concept and attempt to analyze it on the specifics of our bat sports.
When a team or individual is on a roll, the most unlikely turnarounds seem impossible. However, momentum is one of the most used terms to explain success or failure in sports, although it is quite misunderstood.
We also know it by the names « Big Mo », « Hot or Cold Hand », « In The Zone », « Focus », « Baraka », while psychologists call it « Psychological Momentum ». But does it really exist? Is it just a temporary change in confidence and mood, or does it actually change the outcome of a game or a season?
Example definition: « The positive or negative change in cognition, affect, physiology, and behavior caused by an event or series of events that affects the perceptions of competitors or, perhaps, the quality of performance and the outcome of the competition. Positive momentum is associated with periods of competition, such as a series of victories, during which everything seems to be going well for the competitors. Conversely, negative momentum is associated with periods, such as a series of defeats, where everything seems to be going wrong. »
As baseball is a statistical sport, most analyses on momentum focus on the quantitative aspect to try to prove or refute its effect on individual statistics or team wins and losses. No scientist or baseball statistics expert has succeeded in proving through numbers the characteristics of this tipping moment.
However, we can define what happens in the mind of a player or a team when this moment arrives: the player(s) feel an increase in their energy and motivation, and have the feeling of controlling the situation. Furthermore, during a shift towards positive momentum, the player’s self-image also changes. They feel invincible, and this elevates the « performing self » to a higher level. It is noted that the more the player is performing, the more aware they are of this moment and the less they need it in the end, as they try not to suffer from it.
Momentum can first be spotted by a triggering element: an incredible action, a referee’s decision, a wake-up call from the crowd…
Then, a psychological change occurs. Again, depending on the athlete, their base confidence will determine the strength of their reaction to events, to the point of having physiological changes such as cramps and panic in negative situations or a feeling of renewed energy after positive events.
Then, in the case of a collective, an entire team experiences the change in behavior. It would stem from all these internal perceptions. Coaches and supporters would be able to notice real changes in the players’ style of play, who react in a chain of positive or negative dynamics.
Then comes the change in performance: momentum is the exception and not the norm during a match. Without the triggering event, there should not be notable changes in the dynamics.
Finally comes the tipping point: This is when the balance of momentum shifts from one team to another.
Take the concrete case of the semi-final match between the Rouen Huskies and the Montpellier Barracudas in Division 1: Replay: here
After two hours and eighteen minutes of play, we reach the ninth inning. The Barracudas lead 8-0. There are three outs left to make, and Montpellier secures the victory. At this point in the game, the Rouen players have almost put away their gloves and think the game is lost. On the other side, they are reassured, after the defeat in the first game, they think that the split of games in Rouen has been ensured. But here’s the thing, the story won’t be that one after all…
The Japanese pitcher Sigura, after the superb performance of Nayral, makes a first base on balls with a ball that hits his catcher and puts him somewhat in difficulty. Is this the triggering moment? Followed by another base on balls and a strikeout… then a passed ball that puts a runner on second, and finally a new base on balls: bases loaded – which triggers a visit to the mound by the coach and follows the first point on a new base on balls.
Change of pitcher, as the triggering moment has been embedded in this phase of play. Then, Rouen begins to realize the nervousness of the Montpelliérains and begins to believe that the shift is possible. Indeed, on the first pitch by Guiraud against Viger, it’s a double, and the score is already 8-4. You know the rest, the momentum has changed the balance, and Rouen wins 13-12 in the eleventh inning.
In this match, everything is very explicit and easy to see, in others the momentum is more subtle. It’s because of this type of progression that we often say that a match is never won until the last action has taken place.
Patrick Cohn, sports psychologist, tries to define for us the psychological process in a player’s mind: « You stop playing the game you’ve been playing to be in this position. And at the moment you switch to trying not to mess up, you go from a very offensive mindset to a very defensive mindset. If you focus too much on the result, it’s hard to play freely. And finally, you worry more about the consequences and what’s going to happen than what you need to do right now. »
There is no doubt that we will continue to hear references to momentum during matches. When this happens, you can conduct your own mini-experiment and observe the reactions of players and teams during the next part of the game to see if this « precipitating event » actually leads to a moment of game change.
