Major League Baseball

How mental coaching helped Brewers' Corbin Burnes win a Cy Young

Published Jun. 29, 2022 8:02 p.m. ET

By Ben Verlander
FOX Sports MLB Analyst

Pitching hasn’t always been as easy as it appears for the ace of the Milwaukee Brewers, Corbin Burnes.

Burnes is on top of the world these days. He’s coming off a 2021 campaign in which he sported a dazzling 2.43 ERA, leading Major League Baseball, and he has one of the best pitches in baseball in his cutter.

So it might appear that dominating on the mound has always come easily for Burnes, but as it turns out, that’s not exactly the case.

This week, on "Flippin' Bats," I sat down with Burnes to discuss his journey to where he is today.

Watch "Flippin' Bats with Ben Verlander" on YouTube, or subscribe on podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts.

In 2019, Burnes’ first full season in the big leagues, he really struggled and was ultimately sent down to the minor leagues.

"I got to the point where I had to get away from the game," he said. "It was bad.

"I went back to Arizona and tried to hit the reset button. Wanted to try and salvage the season with a good September. And that’s when I started working with Brian Cain, a mental performance coach."

That decision was one that would change the course of Burnes' career for the better.

Corbin Burnes on how a mental performance coach changed his career

Corbin Burnes tells Ben Verlander about his struggles in 2019, when he got bumped from the Brewers' rotation and sent to the minors. Burnes then started working with a mental performance coach, which helped him become the Cy Young-winning pitcher he is today.

"So much of baseball started flowing over into my life and my relationship" he said. "So it was like, we gotta find a way to separate baseball and life."

He began working tirelessly with Cain on that separation.

"For me, it became about really creating a process and a routine, being able to flip that switch when I got to the field and leaving life at home."

That routine allowed Burnes to get through the pandemic shutdown of 2020 and subsequently dominate on the field that season.

To this day, Burnes takes his mental coaching with him. From breathing techniques to focus techniques to arm care, it’s about creating a routine he can stick to.

Burnes on getting called up to MLB & debuting in front of 6,000 fans

Corbin Burnes tells the roller-coaster story of his call-up to the big leagues, including going from the rotation to the bullpen, debuting against the Marlins in front of 6,000 fans and throwing his first pitch to the backstop.

"I’m never worried because I know I’m prepared," he said. "I’m never worried about what’s going to happen that day or how I’m going to do that day. I’m just able to literally take it one pitch at a time.

"I can always control what I can control on the mound. For me, that made baseball so much easier and much more fun, and I can actually enjoy my time on the mound."

These days, that time is much easier to enjoy, given how dominant Burnes is on the mound. But it was quite a process for him to get to where he is today.

He persevered through his struggles, got better any way he possibly could and now is the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, dominating once again in 2022.

Ben Verlander is an MLB Analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the "Flippin' Bats" podcast. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Verlander was an All-American at Old Dominion University before he joined his brother, Justin, in Detroit as a 14th-round pick of the Tigers in 2013. He spent five years in the Tigers organization. Follow him on Twitter @BenVerlander.