Greetings. I'm a long-time reader and seldom poster. I have a question regarding my son that I seek your thoughts on.
We're on a fall/winter baseball break in Texas; my son is a 14U player in the 8th grade. He's
6 foot 1, 140 pounds, and still growing. He's very committed to baseball, plays for a majors level team in the north Texas area, and genuinely hopes to play in college some day. His main goal this winter is to strengthen his arm, which leads to my question.
Does anyone have any suggestions on what might be beneficial for him at his age and stage of development regarding increasing his arm strength (i.e. long toss, weight training, both, etc.)? Are there any online programs you might be able to lead me to?
Would you take a break from baseball or jump right in? I expect that his team will start practicing again in mid-January, and playing in mid-March.
He has a strong arm for his age, but, was not one of the main pitchers on his team this fall. So, I offer that he threw quite a lot as a third baseman/outfielder at his practices and games, but, probably only pitched 1 to 2 innings over only a few weekends this fall. I solely state this to suggest that he might not (in my layperson's opinion) need a significant rest break from throwing, if any, because he was not a regular pitcher in any regard.
His goals regarding improving his throwing arm are twofold. First, he wants to improve his arm as a position player, which is his primary role. And, second, he wants to compete in the spring for a more meaningful role as a pitcher.
Thank you in advance for your time and thoughts.