Mota Has The Stuff But Lacks Confidence

Joe at Mets Today writes about the fragile state of Guillermo Mota:

With Mota’s stuff and potential to dominate, Willie had to keep pushing Mota out there and hope he could string together a few good outings to get his confidence back up. Unfortunately, Mota has failed miserably time and time again, and the spots Randolph chose to test him were questionable. There’s the “tough guy” school of thought which says a man must prove his mettle by overcoming the most difficult challenges. However, everyone is built differently, and not every reliever is going to respond to such handling. Mota has been struggling since the day he returned from his 60-game suspension, and has been known to be emotionally fragile. No doubt the steroid cloud around him has affected him mentally in one way or another — for example, he may feel like he needs to juice to be effective; or, he may feel like he has to prove to people that he doesn’t need to cheat. Even without the steroid issue, Mota has had confidence issues based on his poor performance. Further, the hometown fans boo him unmercifully before he throws a pitch. He’s a professional, so you can say that shouldn’t affect him, but the fact is, it does. Observing at his body language and the scared look on his face, it’s clear that Mota is upset with the booing and is devoid of confidence. This time last year, Mota looked mean and full of energy; now, he looks terrified and waiting for a way out.