NyMike
06-27-01, 12:35 PM
http://nydailynews.com/2001-06-27/Metro_Sports/Baseball/a-116350.asp
Each time David Walling threw from the stretch position, the uneasiness came back. It was so crippling sometimes that he could think of nothing else but the runner on first base, his concentration turned to mush.
"It was a battle for me to come set without the anxiety of needing to throw to first," Walling said. "I was too focused on the runner at first base instead of the batter, like I needed to be. I lost location on my pitches. I wasn't crisp, just totally out of sync.
"It got to the point where I wasn't the same guy anymore."
It also got to the point where he couldn't take it anymore. So Walling, 22, left the Yankees' Double-A team in Norwich, Conn., in early May, altering a career path that had already earned him more than $1 million and seemed headed toward the major leagues.
People who knew him believed he had quit the game for good. Executives in the Yankee organization were uncertain whether he would return. They talked cautiously, mostly refusing to comment other than to say they were in touch with him and that he was on the "Temporarily Inactive List," which allows minor-league players time off for personal reasons.
Now, after taking more than a month to reflect on his career, the righthander has decided that he will try to return to baseball. He will take all of July off, work at home in San Diego with pitching coach Tom House and also see a sports psychologist.
"The idea is to get him back to the team in August," said Jeff Riolo, Walling's agent. "That's a projected date. We'll see what happens. If not August, then spring training next year. I don't want pressure on him. It's better to get it right and move on.
"He's made some progress and he's made the mental decision he'd go 100 percent to fix it."
Walling would not talk to the Daily News, refusing a request for an interview through Riolo. But Walling did talk to his local paper, the San Diego Union-Tribune, for a story published in Monday's editions. Several remarks from that story appear here.
The 6-3, 220-pound Walling was the Yankees' first-round pick in the 1999 draft, 27th overall and signed a deal worth about $1.1 million. He had a marvelous debut season at Single-A Staten Island in 1999 and was so good the next year at Single-A Tampa — a higher-level team than Staten Island — that he earned a promotion to Double-A, a launching point for serious prospects.
He struggled, but he learned, too. Player development execs admired the way his breaking pitches improved.
But his problem flared for the first time last July. One Yankee source said that it bothered Walling so much that he thought of leaving the team then.
"He felt like he could tough it out and it didn't happen," Riolo said. "This kind of thing generally doesn't, I'm told by the experts we've talked to. David worked out over the offseason, trained and saw a sports psychologist from the Yankees, but it was still there.
"It's probably one of the most difficult things for an athlete to accept, something like this," Riolo said. "It's not a cause and effect thing. You can't see the first time it actually started, or why. Ask Chuck Knoblauch."
This season started well for Walling. He was invited to spring training with the Yankees and he spent nearly four weeks at Legends Field with the big-league team. He was assigned to Norwich and began pitching well again. He even made a start at Triple-A Columbus when the Clippers needed a spot start. He lost, but impressed the Yankees with his ability to handle the quick change and better competition.
But what turned out to be his final start at Norwich was ugly. He allowed eight runs on 13 hits in 41/3 innings in a 9-1 loss to Portland on May 2. Norwich manager Stump Merrill remembered coming to the mound and saying to Walling, "You've got to learn how to get through this."
"I spent a lot of time with him," Merrill said. "That's why I'm disappointed that he left. I tried to teach him how to compete better and I think we were getting some place."
Shortly after the bad start, Walling was gone and no one, including Walling, knew if it was the last time he would wear a uniform.
He visited his girlfriend in Oklahoma. He went to see his old pitching coach at the University of Arkansas, Tim Montez. Montez and Walling have a bond that started in junior high. Montez later recruited Walling at each college coaching job he had — three in all. Finally, they ended up at Arkansas together, where Walling was a dominating pitcher.
Montez watched him throw, helping him keep in shape, and they talked about where Walling's career was going.
When they first spoke, Montez thought Walling sounded down, a stark contrast to the honest, easygoing guy Montez knew. "Kind of depressed and confused," Montez said. "He said (baseball) wasn't any fun and he wasn't looking forward to going to the park. That's not like him.
"I told David, ‘You can't sit and be passive. If it's important to you, you have to take every measure to get back into it. He knows that perception is everything and he doesn't want to be blackballed. He's very aware of that.
"Baseball can be very tough on a young man. When someone doesn't know the real person, rumors and assumption come in." Montez and others who know him have faith that Walling will return.
"To his credit, he stepped away to maybe take the pressure off," said Steve Vickery, Walling's coach at El Capitan High School. "He's the type, when he puts his mind to it, he can do anything. I know he'll do this."
Walling believes it, too. He told the Union-Tribune: "I have a lot of expectations about my career. This is a roadblock delaying my timetable.
"I will ovecome this, no doubt about it."
Each time David Walling threw from the stretch position, the uneasiness came back. It was so crippling sometimes that he could think of nothing else but the runner on first base, his concentration turned to mush.
"It was a battle for me to come set without the anxiety of needing to throw to first," Walling said. "I was too focused on the runner at first base instead of the batter, like I needed to be. I lost location on my pitches. I wasn't crisp, just totally out of sync.
"It got to the point where I wasn't the same guy anymore."
It also got to the point where he couldn't take it anymore. So Walling, 22, left the Yankees' Double-A team in Norwich, Conn., in early May, altering a career path that had already earned him more than $1 million and seemed headed toward the major leagues.
People who knew him believed he had quit the game for good. Executives in the Yankee organization were uncertain whether he would return. They talked cautiously, mostly refusing to comment other than to say they were in touch with him and that he was on the "Temporarily Inactive List," which allows minor-league players time off for personal reasons.
Now, after taking more than a month to reflect on his career, the righthander has decided that he will try to return to baseball. He will take all of July off, work at home in San Diego with pitching coach Tom House and also see a sports psychologist.
"The idea is to get him back to the team in August," said Jeff Riolo, Walling's agent. "That's a projected date. We'll see what happens. If not August, then spring training next year. I don't want pressure on him. It's better to get it right and move on.
"He's made some progress and he's made the mental decision he'd go 100 percent to fix it."
Walling would not talk to the Daily News, refusing a request for an interview through Riolo. But Walling did talk to his local paper, the San Diego Union-Tribune, for a story published in Monday's editions. Several remarks from that story appear here.
The 6-3, 220-pound Walling was the Yankees' first-round pick in the 1999 draft, 27th overall and signed a deal worth about $1.1 million. He had a marvelous debut season at Single-A Staten Island in 1999 and was so good the next year at Single-A Tampa — a higher-level team than Staten Island — that he earned a promotion to Double-A, a launching point for serious prospects.
He struggled, but he learned, too. Player development execs admired the way his breaking pitches improved.
But his problem flared for the first time last July. One Yankee source said that it bothered Walling so much that he thought of leaving the team then.
"He felt like he could tough it out and it didn't happen," Riolo said. "This kind of thing generally doesn't, I'm told by the experts we've talked to. David worked out over the offseason, trained and saw a sports psychologist from the Yankees, but it was still there.
"It's probably one of the most difficult things for an athlete to accept, something like this," Riolo said. "It's not a cause and effect thing. You can't see the first time it actually started, or why. Ask Chuck Knoblauch."
This season started well for Walling. He was invited to spring training with the Yankees and he spent nearly four weeks at Legends Field with the big-league team. He was assigned to Norwich and began pitching well again. He even made a start at Triple-A Columbus when the Clippers needed a spot start. He lost, but impressed the Yankees with his ability to handle the quick change and better competition.
But what turned out to be his final start at Norwich was ugly. He allowed eight runs on 13 hits in 41/3 innings in a 9-1 loss to Portland on May 2. Norwich manager Stump Merrill remembered coming to the mound and saying to Walling, "You've got to learn how to get through this."
"I spent a lot of time with him," Merrill said. "That's why I'm disappointed that he left. I tried to teach him how to compete better and I think we were getting some place."
Shortly after the bad start, Walling was gone and no one, including Walling, knew if it was the last time he would wear a uniform.
He visited his girlfriend in Oklahoma. He went to see his old pitching coach at the University of Arkansas, Tim Montez. Montez and Walling have a bond that started in junior high. Montez later recruited Walling at each college coaching job he had — three in all. Finally, they ended up at Arkansas together, where Walling was a dominating pitcher.
Montez watched him throw, helping him keep in shape, and they talked about where Walling's career was going.
When they first spoke, Montez thought Walling sounded down, a stark contrast to the honest, easygoing guy Montez knew. "Kind of depressed and confused," Montez said. "He said (baseball) wasn't any fun and he wasn't looking forward to going to the park. That's not like him.
"I told David, ‘You can't sit and be passive. If it's important to you, you have to take every measure to get back into it. He knows that perception is everything and he doesn't want to be blackballed. He's very aware of that.
"Baseball can be very tough on a young man. When someone doesn't know the real person, rumors and assumption come in." Montez and others who know him have faith that Walling will return.
"To his credit, he stepped away to maybe take the pressure off," said Steve Vickery, Walling's coach at El Capitan High School. "He's the type, when he puts his mind to it, he can do anything. I know he'll do this."
Walling believes it, too. He told the Union-Tribune: "I have a lot of expectations about my career. This is a roadblock delaying my timetable.
"I will ovecome this, no doubt about it."