I know there have been some posts on this years ago, but I wanted to ask how much of a difference in velocity do you notice in Winter vs Spring. My son - a junior- has been 87-90 most of summer/fall, but was recently 84-87. The temp was 40 degrees not accounting for wind chill which I know is definitely not the best environment to throw in.
Thank you!
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I wasn't expecting someone named Sandiegobaseball referencing 40 degree temps and windchill!
Always hard to tell as it really depends what your son has been doing since last summer/fall. Did he take some time off from throwing to rest? Did he focus on nutrition and strength/conditioning over the winter? Has he been working with a coach on mechanics? Where is he in terms of his ramp up for the season?
So, with a lot of unknowns, if he is just starting to ramp up, I wouldn't read too much into the velo. If he is fully ramped up, you would tend to expect some gains as the season progressed, but probably in the neighborhood of last years numbers.
Temps can have some impact as well.
Thanks for the response. Yea, my son went back East this weekend . He didn’t take enough time off in my opinion as he steamrolled through fall. He focuses on nutrition and conditioning daily.
Could be his body asking for a rest.
Truth.
Ah just thinking of San Diego warms my bones. Agree with @25Dad that is going to depend on the busy and rest schedule you've defined
I realize for a high school junior it can be tempting to continue to pitch, and not take a break longer than ordinary as you want to be seen and recruited. That is something you're going to have to wrestle with based on your exposure strategy and arm-care strategy. All 3 of my son's were pitchers and all 3 were taking breaks from throwing mid-Oct until mid-December. When they started back up in mid-December (indoors & outdoors) it was only on flat ground. They didn't get on a mound until mid-January (indoor). When they came back they all had live arms, and were being taught new pitches. The first time my oldest threw over 90mph was indoor in February (soph year), and continued into the high school season. His high school coach wouldn't let him throw his knuckleball in games so he learned how to throw a curve ball for his third pitch before his junior season.
Just my experience.
