One of my biggest concerns about Kyle Farnsworth when the Yankees added him to the bullpen was his reputation as being another guy with a "million-dollar arm and a 2-cent head" (well, that and his apparently prolific nightime escapades in Chicago). His arm and statistics speak for themselves (most of the time) but NY has broken down enough hyped players (with guaranteed contracts) that you can't help but be worried. So needless to say, I was relieved and somewhat amused to read that Farnsworth was putting in some reading time in order to better himself as a player.

Sometime last year, he found some answers in a book called "Mind Gym." It had been in his duffel bag for a while, since a friend had sent it to him, and one day he decided to start reading.

Within its pages, Farnsworth picked up some techniques for creating calm and confidence, for visualizing the results he wanted, and he made it a ritual, reading it during games as he prepared for a late-inning entrance.

"Talent can only take you so far," said Farnsworth, who cashed in on his best season with a three-year, $17 million contract from the Yankees. "If you don't have the right mind-set, you're not clear-minded. You can't go out there with no plan at all."

Hopefully, these practices have helped him grow as a person but I (seflishly, I know) also hope they keep him pitching like he did last year for the duration of his stay with the Yankees. Improvement in the playoffs would also be a plus but then again, as many people have pointed out, Flash wasn't exactly reliable in the playoffs either so he doesn't have a very high bar to jump over.

Via Brian.