MLB Strength Coach Available for Advice

Hey coach, I'm new here and this is my first post. 

 

I have a question regarding weight training. Do you prefer a body part split training ( monday legs, tuesday chest...) or a whole body workout for adult ballplayers.

Hey! For adults I like the total body due to the increased caloric burn that typically goes with it. This will help keep you lean and reduce joint pressure.

Vertical jump is definitely a good indicator of total body power which would also translate into greater throwing velocity provided mechanics are strong.

Lateral Jumps or skater jumps are also a good indicator as well for Lower body power.  Three tests that would typically show great lower body power are a vertical jump,lateral jump,as well as a broad jump. Typically we would see higher velocity's or greater running speeds with those the possess good test scores in these categories as well.

Strength is definitely a great way to improve total body power which will also lead to greater throwing velocities. Power is basically fast strength.

Becoming a masher from a singles hitter comes from developing greater strength and power bottom line. If Dustin Pedroia didn't create the level of power that he currently has he would be a typical singles hitter. But... He is explosive.

You have given some great advise so far , thanks for volunteering your time!

 

What does your typical pitchers in season workout schedule look like.  What do you have your starters do following a start?  Do they have a complete shutdown the day after a start?  And how do you follow that up, when do they throw again?

 

Do you have your starters throw a minimum amount even if they get bounced in the second inning? Ie. Finish up the game in the bullpen?

Thank you very much!

thank you very much.

Another for you.  Cressey says competitive swimming ia horrible for pitchers shoulders.  Amounts to overuse.  Elsewhere I have read while all swimmers seem to have impingement (whatever that is) it doesn't seem to affect them due to all the strength they have built in their shoulders.  Thoughts?

I'm looking to hopefully get to about 160 lbs. by around April, and I'm currently 145-147 and 5' 11". My first question is: Is this even a realistic goal? And my second is: If yes, how would you recommend reaching that goal? Thanks for your time!

Many  swimmers actually have the bursa removed to avoid bursitis or they have their cortacoid bone shaved to avoid the ill affects from impingement.

 

       
       
I really wish I had any idea what you are talking about!!  My younger son is a phenomenal swimmer.  My baseball player could probably be real good but scared off by a cressey article.

My son had cortacoid impingement.  He suffered from terrible busitis (or in his case they called it tendinitous) in his front shoulde front of armpit. To fix the problem he had his cortacoid bone shaved. The doctor told him swimmers suffer from this ailment and many have the bursa sac in the armpit to avoid the issue before it becomes a problem. I am talking Olympic type swimmers.

As far as what Cressey said, swimming definetly could cause more issues for pitchers.

Thanks coach.

 

One more question: is it true that weight training, especially dead lifts, may "stunt the growth" of young athletes? If so, when is an appropriate age to start dead lifts and weights?

What are some exercises that can be done on a daily or almost daily basis to maximize throwing arm health?

I liked to create everydays for our our throwers. ITYW patterns for the shoulders were always a staple in our program. 3 sets x 10 each. We would build this into our pre-throwing warm-up. These along with kneeling protraction/ retraction worked very well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A24-iVJLIwI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gw0Y8sUzaFQ

 

These are two simple videos.

Hi- we dont start lifting our kids until about 13 years old. We spend the younger ages teaching the movement patterns and using bands, medicine balls but we do not introduce traditional weight lifting until about 13. By this point, if educated on movement, their form should be perfect since they spend 2-3 years prepping their body during its growth phase to get ready for lifting.

There is a difference between swimming and competitive swimming. Swimming is actually an excellent activity for baseball players to get the shoulder working, flushing the shoulder the day after, and for overall non-impact conditioning. All of our starters were put in the pool the day after their start for multiple years and we had some of the healthiest pitchers in the game for a 5 year period. The true issue is not whether swimming is bad- its whether the athlete has enough range of motion and has full range of motion of the shoulder. If the athlete has restricted motion- basically a shoulder that is pre-set for impingement, it is not swimming that is bad- that is just going to be what triggers a bomb that is all ready going to go off.

 

Roy Halladay would swim 3-5 days per week competitively during the off-seasons and felt it benefited him greatly. The bottom line is this: SWIMMING/ VOLLEYBALL/ TENNIS/ or Even just playing catch can cause a faulty shoulder with poor range of motion and strength to explode or impinge. Lets not blame swimming- lets blame the shoulder. Again- I am speaking from over a 5 year practical study on this- not a bold claim. Most orthos do not have the understanding of functional medicine and training so they tend to generalize: YOU SWIM AND GOT HURT, THEREFORE IT MUST BE SWIMMING.

Again- this is mentioning high level swimmers that may already have a postural disfunction. Look at swimming much like pitching- injury can occur if range of motion is limited, strength deficits exist, and postural dysfunction is present. These bold claims should be watched as they are mostly based on the writers perspective- not live, long-term case studies. My role in MLB was to protect a 300 million dollar payroll. If it was bad to swim do you really thing we would of put our players in the pool 2-3x per week? Our players loved the pool, felt great benefits as a result of the reduced impact, and actually felt recovered. We would put them in the day after. Saying not to swim  and generalizing that for the scope of an article is doing players a poor service.

It is possible- but my first question to you is why?

In order to do this you would need to increase your caloric intake and make sure you have enough wood- meaning food to build a bigger house- meaning your body. With that said, working to add an extra 300-500 calories per day would be helpful, while also engaging in a structured weight lifting program. Again, weight is not everything. Skill and ability + optimal strength and power is everything. I always tell players be less focused on the weight, and more on the performance/ training. Sometimes the addition of more weight will hold you back and take away some of your strengths, ex. speed.

Agreed.

I appreciate that clarification.  So many times a study comes out, like the ones done on swimmers, and (using this example) baseball folks read it and apply the results.  However, competitive college swimmers are spending hours a day in the pool.  A guy mixing in swimming laps for 20 minutes once or twice a week for low impact cardio is a whole different thing.  

In the amateur world it is very difficult to find good training.  I once asked a baseball trainer, or maybe I should say "trainer", about weighted baseballs.  He freaked out and said that it would almost guarentee injury.  I asked about overload/underload training that is done in other throwing endeavors, like track and field.  He suggested my son throw a football.  So, a 7 oz baseball is the devil but a 15 oz football is fine.  I obviously left and never came back.  The guy was just saying stuff without any real thought going into what he was saying.  The swimming thing falls under this as well.  Weighted balls, long toss....there is a lot of this in baseball.  

I am taking your advice about the heavy bag and cutting that out however.  What you said about shoulder compression forces made sense. 

Thanks.  

Doesn't cressey discourage almost all excercises except the dead lift? I read that back squats, all Olympic lifts, almost all presses ( especially barbell bench and anything overhead) and many other lifts are bad for baseball. Which exercises are left then?

Perspective: I was a college swimmer (sprinter) and I played baseball, C/3B.  I never had any problems with my shoulder or my throwing motion.  I can recall that my baseball improved immediately after swim season because of my conditioning and the strength of my back.  

What is your opinion on weighted baseballs for velocity gain? I've been told they are "guaranteed" to add at least a couple MPH to any thrower.

 

Is there a specific protocol you recommend with them?

 

By the way, I really appreciate your helpfulness. I'm going to start doing those shoulder exercises whenever I throw.

You didn't pitch did you? The whole point here is not that getting in the pool is a bad thing. Its about whether pitchers should be pitching competively or doing laps. 

Its not in a pitchers best interest and I agree with Cressey.

My point about swimmers having their bursa sac removed is to avoid bursitis. That's how injurious that overhead motion is. 

So does doing laps if you are a pitcher make sense? 

Not to me.

I think Pitchers will start to wear dresses soon (no offense to those that already do).

As a parent of a pitcher who pitched college and professional ball and has the scars to prove it, I find your comment rather childish.

This thread reminded me of the care and protection of quarterbacks that Jack Lambert was protesting about in his statement about quarterbacks should wear skirts.  Maybe I should have said skirts and not dresses.

My 2016 RHP does Olympic lifts.  He started Fall of 2014 as part of his offseason training and qualified for USAW Jr Nationals where he competed in June.  He competes this Sat and will most likely qualify for Jr Nationals again - his late birthday gives him another year of Jrs with the USAW just like he had an extra year of Little League.  

 

We've had various coaches tell us it helps or hurts his pitching.  Only one was adamant that it would hurt so 2016 no longer goes to him.  He might be a better weight lifter than pitcher and his pitching has never been better than it was this past summer so he has no reason to stop either for now.  

Have a friend who was a mid first round draft pick by the Twins in the 90's.  

He was low-mid 80's as a Junior lefty.  As a senior he was sitting 93 or so.  What changed is he played water polo.  He didn't lift weights, didn't do any special training.  He played water polo.  He had not played water polo before or swam in a competitive way.   Which means....he got into great shape, and made dozens and dozens of throws with a weighted implement (comparative to a baseball) every day.  If you look at the water polo throw the person "churns" their legs the propels their body up, straightens their front leg and throws "around" it....I think he got a rotational benefit from the throwing in the pool too. 

He had a very good natural throwing pattern and loose fast arm naturally.  He swears the conditioning and strength gained from his time in the pool gave him the bump.  Does this mean prospective pitchers should be running off to water polo?  Of course not.  

Different things can work for different folks.  

What does that have to do with swimming?

 

Other than the couple of hours a day in the pool, not much.  

Guys let's keep these threats focused on positive things that could help our kids. I don't want to get in the middle of a He said she said banter. When it comes to swimming it's simply breaks down is this: I've had my professional athletes in the pool for years we've had no destructive outcomes as a result. The feedback is always been positive and they have always wanted to get back in the pool. So for guys that make their living throwing they would be the first to say whether something is good or bad based on the results of it. We did not have any bursa your Tatian shoulder pain or discomfort as a result so I think it's safe to say swimming is OK for A baseball player that is using it as a way to condition the body and the shoulder. This combined with a good arm exercise program and scapular training program will you all the favorable result. If there are any more questions related to this please send my way.

Olympic lifting when taught correctly and perform correctly is a great option for power development for hitters as well as pitchers. Please list can be very complicated so progression and great coaching is he sensual to protect the athlete and keep them healthy during the power development process. If you're going to engage in an Olympic training program it is important that you learn the techniques through USA W or hire a coach that is competent in teaching the skills. I would stay away from snatching with my pictures due to the overhead nature and force production that could negatively affect a lax shoulder. I would also watch the catch  phase of a power clean on the wrist.  Clean pulls are a great option.

Here is my stance on weighted baseballs. There have been studies that have shown an increase in velocity using weighted baseballs. But, at the same time when you release a weighted implement and your braking system is not built to handle the release of a weighted implement you have breakdown. It has always been my stance that velocity will increase with maturity and the increase of total body power and strength. The body will release more velocity to the athlete once it's able to handle it. We have had a hard stance to stay away from using weighted balls or releasing weighted balls rather on a throw due to the forward rounded shoulders and poor scapular strength that we have seen in most of our athletes. With that said the risk for injury far outweighed the  velocity benefits that may occur. Again, putting an athlete on a good arm exercise program alongside a total body strengthening stability and power development program will you hold the correct velocity for a throwing athlete. Velocity has for me always been generated through the relationship between the foot in the ground and the ability to create power transfer through the core and release out by hand. Most weighted ball throwing programs focus solely on strength and power through the shoulder which goes against our teaching. Again since some of you may be engaged in a program like this you may see velocity gains due to the consistent nature of being on a program but you must calibrate the braking system.

Did you make the pitchers do laps?

I did not say that pitchers have the same issues as swimmers, but that was why my pitcher as a professional didn't do laps while in the pool, due to the injuries that occur to swimmers. I was just backing up Cresseys statement. Great work out for legs!

 

Excellent advice on power lifting and weighted balls for pitchers.  The advice you give is spot on hope they read and take note. I have to wonder where some get their advice from!

Agreed in terms of the braking system.  

That said, if the braking system is not developed enough to handle a 7oz ball, that just means it is not developed enough.  Their is no reason the baseball is 5oz.  Would a guy have an automatic injury risk by throwing a 15oz football?  No.  That is because the arm is moving slower because of the weight of the ball.  In weighted ball programs the underweight balls (because of increased arm speed) is where the real danger is.  Weighted balls can be used to develop both arm speed and some throwing strength, but, only after a person has good body strength, has developed that braking system and has a very good foundation of throwing under their belt.  I think most issues occur when guys don't have a good program, jump in too quickly or use them incorrectly....longtoss with weighted balls or use them on a mound for example.  

They are another tool.  They can be effective if used correctly.  Too many guys, espcially kids want them to be a silver bullet and they are not.