Major League Baseball

Iannetta focused on winning job behind plate

Published Mar. 13, 2010 11:19 p.m. ET

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Chris Iannetta tried to distract his mind by reading novels.

Didn't work.

The Colorado Rockies catcher attempted to divert his thoughts by dabbling in drawing, sketching pictures that caught his eye in magazines.

Again, didn't help.

No matter what he did, Iannetta simply couldn't flip the baseball switch off. Over the winter, he was constantly thinking about throwing runners out, what pitches to call in certain situations and, the one that really kept his head spinning, how he was going to turn things around at the plate.

Taking over for a respected veteran like Yorvit Torrealba and digging out from a .228 average will tend to send a brain racing.

``It was in the back of my mind the whole time,'' said Iannetta, who trains in Providence, R.I., during the offseason. ``My mind is always going and a majority of the time it's thinking about baseball.''

Iannetta couldn't avoid thinking about last season, even if there were parts he would just as soon forget.

He started out as a the Rockies' catcher, only to lose his job due to a prolonged hitting slump. Once he lost his spot, it was hard to get back, especially with the way Torrealba handled the pitching staff and was hitting.

But Torrealba didn't return to the team this season, signing instead with San Diego. Now, Iannetta is competing with another veteran, Miguel Olivo, for the starting spot.

So far, both are having solid spring campaigns. And both have designs on being in the lineup come opening day on April 5 in Milwaukee.

For Iannetta, this spring is about improving at the plate. He doesn't want to endure another slump like last year.

He hit a combined .209 in June, July and August. Something needed to be fixed - fast.

So he began experimenting with a toe-tap approach at the plate, just a way to get him feeling more comfortable in the batter's box and his swing in line.

Working with first base coach Glenallen Hill, Iannetta slowly began to refine his technique. In limited action through the final month of the season, he hit .417.

More than anything, though, the toe-tap technique gave his mind something else to think about. No longer was he overanalyzing everything, which was causing him to press even more.

``I took the end of August and September as a positive and just remembered that and said, 'OK, this is the player I am,' said Iannetta, who didn't see any time in the NL division series against Philadelphia.

Over the winter, he was all about baseball. No real vacations, other than attending a few family events with his wife, Lisa.

Iannetta was logging quite a few hours at the gym, hitting in the cage, stretching, working on his mechanics behind the plate - anything to get him ready for this season.

There were days when he struggled with confidence, but that's where his wife helped.

``She keeps me in check a lot,'' Iannetta said. ``She understands me and how much I love the game. She's there to pull on the reins and say, 'Stop beating yourself up. You know how good you are.'''

The Rockies helped in that regard, too. They showed their faith by signing him to a three-year deal in December, a gesture he appreciated.

``It eliminates a lot of worries, things that are on your mind,'' Iannetta said.

Like being sent back down to the minors. Or, even worse, being let go, never playing the game again.

Those were the thoughts that ran through his head as he tried to work his way out of a slump last season. Not exactly conducive for snapping out of a funk.

``You keep the negative stuff in the back of your mind just to motivate you even more,'' Iannetta explained.

Through Friday, Iannetta was hitting .500 with four RBIs. He's also developing quite a rapport with the Rockies' pitchers, a trait for which Torrealba was renown.

``Chris is very good, very good,'' Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez said. ``He's learning every year, getting better.''

Rockies manager Jim Tracy has noticed the same thing.

``Every aspect of his game improved,'' Tracy said. ``His communication with pitchers, the offensive approach that he's taking - he's in a very, very good place with everything that he's doing.''

That's what happens when the mind keeps racing, focusing on one thing.

``I think about the game all the time,'' Iannetta said. ``When I'm not in the game, I'm replaying games in my head. I'm imagining the next day or picturing myself in the batter's box or calling a game or throwing out a runner. My mind is always going, thinking baseball.''

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