Squats

From what I know about several local (California) colleges, the average 1 rep max squat is around 325-350 lbs. About 20% of the guys on those teams can do well over 400 lbs. Power clean averages are @ 200-220 lbs up to over 300 lbs. Pitchers tend to be on the lower side, but some of this is attributable to the pitching coaches not wanting to interfere with their mechanics. For what it's worth, Troy Polamalu the football player is 5'10" and can squat well over 600 lbs and bench press over 400 lbs, but of course he is a freak. These kinds of raw numbers have very little correlation with athletic ability so I wouldn't worry about it too much.

H.S. son (Senior,18yr old, 5'10",190lbs, catcher) squats right at 500lbs max and reps with 375 and 400 lbs. Squat is his favorite lift followed by deadlift and powerclean. Max bench is 285 lbs which is a bit lower than where he should be.

JH,
Plankspanker is right about the athletic aspect...want players that can move fluidly with speed and coordination, not a bunch of lumbering powerlifters that can't raise their arms above their heads smoothly and quickly. Even catchers need to be fluid and smooth behind the plate.

Prefer seeing players doing kettlebell and full range of motion type lifts such as powercleans,etc that require more that brute strength. Baseball players need to be strong but not freakishly strong.

Also don't forget the wrists/forearms.... never saw a good hitter that didn't have stronger than average forearms.

Wow, your kid is pretty strong. I would definitely slide *around* him at home plate...

What are some good forearm exercises? We do grippers, rice buckets and 1 min hangs but I've never really thought about it. Maybe wrist rolls or wrist curls?

plankspanker - for a great burn in the forearms try this out. Take a wrist roller and set aside a 2 1/2 5 and 10 lb wt. Start out with a 10 lb wt and roll it up as fast as you can and then let it down as slow as you can. Quickly put on the 5 lb wt and repeat. Then put on the 2 1/2 wt and do it again. Now reverse your grip palms up and repeat.

Your forearms will be screaming.

If you dont have a wrist roller you can make one at home very quickly. Take a broom handle and saw off a piece. Drill a hole in the middle and attach a piece of rope to it. Now you can hook the weights to it with a d-ring. This way you can switch wts quickly. You can change the angle as well for different results. Lay on the bed and roll it up from the floor. Stand up and hold your arms above your head. Stand up and hold your arms straight out. There are numerous ways to switch it up for a different burn.

I used to do them with him when he was at home and it was killer.

S. Abrams,
My high school son sounds much like your son,HS Senior, 18, 5'10 1/2" 195 lbs, Squats 600 max, reps with 450. Benches 275, cleans 275. Sounds like they would stand toe to toe and look at each other like in a mirror.

One of the things he really fought was loss of flexibility. While his lower body looks like a tree trunk, he actually became slower. He now takes yoga 2 times a week with great results, much improved quickness and flexibility.

We attempted to talk him out of going out for Basketball his senior year but to no avail. Young son wanted to increase quickness and sprinting ability. Still scares us watching him going into a crowd and battling for position or ball but I have to admit that he does appear to be gaining quickness and can really jump. (He got called for goal tending in last nights game).

The wrist roller workout that Coach May talks about is one of the best forearm and wrist workouts I know of, he is not kidding about the burn. Oldest son used to do them daily when he was at home. Simple but effective workout. I trie to do them myself but I am no where near as strong as them, it usually gives my boys something to poke fun at me about.

Something about pain, sweat and tears in dads eyes appears to be funny to them.

32Fastball,
Sounds like their spttin' images of each other. Been trying to get my son to ease off the squats,etc. and do more powercleans,kettlebell workouts. Over the past year he has been doing listening (yeah, where did that come from?) and focusing on the more dynamic lifts and plyo work.

Flexibility is always going to be an issue our sons will have to focus on. Mine has actually gotten faster over the past couple years...not super fast but holds his own except against the very fastest kids on the team.

The yoga is a great idea...would you believe in college some of my teammates were scheduled by the baseball coach in yoga and dance classes for help in flexibility and fluid movement. We laughed until we realized they always had a date Friday night.

Son does some of the forearm workouts described; his favorites are simply swinging a sledgehammer into a tire and hanging from a bar with a 45lb weight strapped on.

No, this old man doesn't even think about trying to keep up. Can still thump his butt on the golf course and hold my own in the batting cage but that is it.

Plankspanker, yeah he wins most collisions at the plate. If he has a chance to set his feet, he sometimes tends to hurt baserunners; teammates told him he should put "notches his shinguards". Trying to get him to listen to me about how to make the tag without always getting involved in a collision so he can be more focused on the game instead of the contact; game doesn't stop just because you make the tag at home. He's pretty good about the focus thing but I think he can still get better at it.

Forearms should be worked along with other training and not worked in isolation.

Hanging from a pullup bar 2-3 sets of 1 minute at the end of the workout is great for grip strength and also decompresses your spine. Towel Pull-Ups should also be used. Rice Buckets are also a great tool. One of the best though is climbing a thick rope.

JCBaseball365,

First time I've seen the rope climbing mentioned but you are 100% dead on target.

My father was a gymnast in college and was less than a 1/10 second off the world record in rope climbing (once was a gymnastic event). Gymnast, starting SS and QB on the Freshman Football team...they tried to get him to wrestle but he just couldn't consistently make weight. Finally just settled in with baseball;at graduation was offered USC Head baseball position and turned it down; pay was better as a foreman at the lumberyard.

Have pictures of him in college; looks like the Hulk with the forearms to match. Got them driving S-irons into crossties as a young kid. He was 5'8" but sitting down would be taller than guys 6' (I always told him he was built like an ape). When I was in college, as a 45 year old he'd go to the batting cages and absolutely just school us college studs. He's 82 years old and still hits a golfball 250-260 yards.

He always said I was the better athlete...I know he was lying.

Utilizing tumbling (as some gymnists do) are excellent tools that every athlete should do to promote body awareness

Forward Summersaults 1x3-5reps
Backward Summersaults 1x3-5reps
Spider Lunges
Tripod to Stand

USC Head baseball coach? Thats very cool.

Ropes used to be in every school in the country and now cant realy be found anywhere. Chances are if you want to utilize this amazing drill you need to set it up yourself or ask your school to put one up in the gym.