Sports Psychologist: Sox Need To Get Back To Basics

The white knuckle September ride for Red Sox fans continues for at least one more night. The Sox won Tuesday night, edging the Orioles 8-7 to stay tied with the Tampa Bay Rays in the wild card race because the Rays beat the New York Yankees.

On the brink, the Sox are heading into a must-win contest Wednesday night — it's the final game of the regular season — and the outcome will determine whether Boston gets a playoff berth, whether they'll play a tiebreaker for the chance, or whether they are totally out of the running.

But the Sox have had the worst September in MLB history. And if that's stressful for us fans, what must it be like for the players?

"I don't know if they're down in the dumps per se, but the confidence is at a low and the momentum is at an all-time low, seeing as you had this nine-game lead going into September and all of a sudden you choke it away. Nothing good can come from a mental game perspective," said Patrick Cohn, a sports psychologist from Florida who has consulted with many professional sports teams.

On Morning Edition Wednesday, Cohn explained how the Sox can get their momentum back.

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