Even major league baseball players can get the yips. When it happens, players often have to change their way of doing things. Sometimes it can even end their professional careers.
Pitcher Steve Blass helped lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a World Series win in 1971. He pitched two complete games that series, and he allowed just two runs during those eighteen innings.
However, he suddenly lost control on the mound during the next season. He walked 84 players that year and struck out 27. He never really recovered and finally retired in 1975.
In 1983, Los Angeles Dodger second baseman Steve Sax had trouble with his throws to first base. He committed thirty errors that season, and the yips became known as “Steve Sax Syndrome.”
Sax was able to work his way back, though. In 1989, he even led the American League in fielding percentage and double plays.
Chuck Knoblauch was one of the league’s top second basemen before he developed the yips. As a New York Yankee in 1999, he began having problems throwing to first base. Sometimes the ball would even sail into the stands by mistake. Eventually, Knoblauch was moved to left field. He never returned to second base.
Rick Ankiel pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals for two years. Then, in 2001, he could no longer pitch strikes consistently. The team moved him back to the minor leagues, where he tried to get his pitching form back.
Finally, he made the move to the outfield. He returned to the Cardinals in 2007, batting second and playing right field.