Timeframe to get back to full strength

No real data to figure out when to get to full strength but what is  your shutdown period?  My kid, and his entire program, shutdown from mid-Oct to the mid to end of December.  Which is somewhere in the 75 to 90 day range.  If you are talking about a true shutdown like that my guess is he wont be at full strength by mid-Janurary.  

joes87 - when you say mid-january, when are you assuming he starts throwing again (or asked differently, are you assuming a 75 shut down period?).

phillyinNJ - No expert here, but part of shutting down is having a plan to ramp back up.  I know there have been some threads that discuss this but not exactly sure what to search.  I do know there is a progression starting with short toss, moving to longer toss, adding some flat ground throwing and then finally throwing from the mound.  That is overly simplistic, but once you find a good program that fits, it should dictate the amount of time to get back to 100%.  As far as shut down period, 90 days is good and necessary if the kid had a heavy pitching season.  The lighter the load, the shorter the shutdown needs to be.  So, you have two time periods that you need to establish (shutdown, ramp up) at which point you can find your answer.

Mid January would be when you would start ramping up again assuming 75 days.  If you wanted to shutdown for 60 days you would still only have two weeks of throwing time before a mid January showcase.  Again I would assume you are not going to be at full strength by then.

LHP,

i've looked on here and couldn't really find a solidified time period for the ramp up...he had a light overall pitching year as he threw more innings this fall than the spring and summer together.  His team starts off practice on 5 Dec, but that is only practicing twice a week, so figuring in the holidays and cold weather, that might be only 10-12 practices...

Last year we kept on throwing throughout the end of fall season to the pickup of team workouts (just playing catch and a little long toss)...so this is something new.

Is he doing any off-season band work?  That helps my kid get back into throwing after shutting down.

yes, he is doing jaeger band workouts almost daily...we were hoping this would limit the timeframe needed but wasn't sure...

I would think 3-4 weeks is plenty but that's coming from a small sample size.

Mid January is really pushing it IMO. He should be off throwing for 60 days minimum which puts him at the end of December to begin light throwing. Then trying to get ready for mid January is unrealistic. He is a 2018 for crying out loud - why the rush?

Pitching is not only about arm strength but touch and feel and the whole process of getting ready for a season is about a 60 day process, and this assumes he has a place to throw, In NJ? 

I would get him on a weighed ball program first to warm up for the season and then start throwing baseball after about 30 days of developing the arm. I would check out drivelinebaseball or ron worlforth's program. My son's former college program send weighted balls home for the holidays with all of the pitchers to get ready for the season and they were sand so all he had to do is find a wall to throw against. 

Sorry, but my advice is to remove this showcase from the equation. Develop a good shutdown/ramp-up plan, with no regard to mid-January. I'm sure he's anxious to show well, but it probably isn't going to make any difference in the long run if he's 75 or 80 (unless he's trying out for a new travel team). It will matter when he's a junior or senior getting closer to 90. Focus on safely ramping up for his high school season. JMO

ok, thanks for all the feedback...I value everyones feedback on here, so really appreciate it. 

BOF...He's wanting to rush back into it, so I'm trying to keep him grounded...he's in my living room air pitching everynight, so he's a little antsy to say the least.  Like i said earlier, this is the first time he hasn't thrown...

Have your son take a look at the MLBs pitch smart webpage.  Third point down discusses shutdown. 

http://m.mlb.com/pitchsmart/risk-factors

BTW, my sons program, works with a major MLB trainer.  His primary job is working for an  MLB team.  He volunteers his time to work with our program.  He works very closely with one of last years extremely hot pitchers.  He is the one who has setup our off season program and has mandated the shutdown period and ramp up periods.  He has based what we are doing off what the MLB guys do.  I guess what Im getting at is, let your son know that shutdown is important and that every major MLB pitcher shuts down for 60 to 90 days every year.  That does not mean they are not working out, just that they are not throwing. 

Also, Dr. Andrews / ASMI recommendations.

http://www.asmi.org/research.p...on=positionStatement

with all of this, it's not picking up a ball at all...correct?  no catch, no longtoss, no nothing....

For my kid yes.  No picking up a ball.  His team still has multiple pitcher workouts a week.  They spend time on physical development and not on throwing.  He is also a 1b and an outfielder.  During those workouts he keeps a bucket next to him.  Anything he fields goes into the bucket rather then be thrown in.  

Joes87,

In the interest of accuracy... Many of the games best professional pitching prospects are pitching in winter leagues.  While their innings might be monitored they have not shut down. Many will have a very short time to shutdown before spring training.

So to say every MLB pitcher shuts down for 60-90 days every year, simply isn't true. It's really hard to tell anyone that, when Winter and Fall Leagues are being played in Arizona, Latin America, Mexico and Australia.

I do agree with a shut down period, just saying it doesn't always happen the same way for every pitcher.

No prob with this.  I do advocate a shutdown period.  I have found that it is good for my kid as well as the other ones I know of.  I also agree that not everyone is the same.  Though, IMO, kids need to shut down for a while.  

The way my son's coach does it most players will not pick up a baseball.  The only exception are catchers who are still allowed to do receiving/blocking training, but they aren't allowed to throw the ball at all, it's more like receive then roll the ball to the side and wait for the next one.

You've got to decide if it is more important to shut down and rest for a while, or try to add MPH for the showcase in January.

You can't realistically do both.

In order to add velocity, you need to strengthen muscles and refine mechanics.  It's hard to do that without throwing. It's even harder to work on control and secondary pitches...

Comit to resting or preparing - whatever you think is the best course for your kid at this point.  Just don't try to do both at the same time.

As for this particular showcase...  No offense to PG or other organizations, but I would think January is the worst possible time to have a showcase.

Sounds like you're already using J-Bands, so you may want spend $10 on the Jaeger's new "Year Round Throwing Manual".  Read it and decide if it's the right fit for you.

Arm health should be the number one priority.  Velo will come from proper mechanics, arm health, age/maturity and a good strength program.

Don't rush it Philly.  If he's meant to throw hard, it'll happen.

Many say it is the wrong time, and it is if a player is not ready for it. For many it is the worst possible time.

However, there are many that have truly benefitted from the World Showcase. It's far from one of our biggest events, but for Carl Crawford it was critical for.  Carlos Correa became the first pick of the draft largely due to his performance at that event. (He went two straight years).  There have been many pitchers raise their draft value, some became first round picks. There have been over 750 that attended this event that were drafted some 5 months later. There have been over 100 from this event that have now played in the Major Leagues. Not saying it was all because of this event, just saying they attended.

These things happen when over 100 of the very highest level scouts are in attendance. The underclass that happens the week earlier has turned into a very important event for us. It has helped us see thousands of talented underclassmen, many that go on and play in our National and All American Game later. We don't get kids ready to perform at their highest level, but the talent we see is amazing. If not ready, they should not be there.

Once again, these events are not for everyone.  Players that lack skills or aren't in shape should avoid these events. There is always a lot of "heat" (scouting directors) even been some GMs that are there every year.  We tell all the top players they need to be ready or they should stay home. Many times they decide to stay home. Others sure look ready based on what we have seen.

It is a Little off Topic but is it really sane to do a Showcase mid january?

no MLB Player would Play max effort in january, there is a reason why there is an offseason.

there are probably Scouts at those Events but if you have the Talent why not Show it in the summer/fall Showcases? there will be Scouts too and if you are good they will notice.

not sure what the issue would be or if its sane or not...it's a local/regional showcase that will be held with about 20 plus colleges there, there is no travelling involved.  2018 is not a PO, so hitting, fielding, 60 (or 40) will be done as well...

not saying it is totally stupid but I read somewhere that after a layoff it takes just as many days to get back to full strength. that is probably an arbitrary number, especially since he is doing some Fitness but I would still expect at least 6 weeks until you are in top shape after a 3 month layoff.

maybe kyle can tell us more about that.

Way too variable to say. Read Pitch Smart guidelines, ASMI's guidelines, Alan's guide to year round throwing, and come up with a plan that makes YOU happy and comfortable while understanding the advantages/disadvantages of the plan. That's the best advice I can give to anyone.