Detroit Tigers pitcher Dontrelle Willis was placed on the disabled list on Thursday due to social anxiety disorder. This is not the first episode for Willis who also had a stint on the DL earlier this year with the same problem. Willis still maintains that he feels no nervousness on the field and that he believes the problem is mechanical.
I have been following the emerging diagnoses of SAD in baseball with interest. Unfortunately in the case of Dontrelle Willis, it seems like some pieces of the puzzle are missing. Unlike Zack Greinke and more recently Khalil Greene, there isn't any evidence that Willis is struggling with anxiety. One of the cardinal features of SAD is that the sufferer is acutely aware of the anxiety that comes with speaking or performing in public. Unless I've missed something, this just doesn't seem to be the case for Willis. We may very well see in the near future stricter standards for diagnosing the disorder among players. At the very least, full disclosure about how the diagnoses are being made would go a long way to maintaining fan support.
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