Velocity increase

quote:

Someone told me I wouldnt gain any and that my velocity was at its max cause I havnt been throwing and my arm was fresh..

This really doesn't make a lot of sense to me. How can being fresh not allow you to be at maximum peak?

Anyway - it will take you a couple of weeks in a good throwing program to get back up to where you were over the summer. I'm going to say that if you were at 88 - 89 last summer then you have a good chance at being over 90 by this summer but a lot of it depends on how hard you work at it starting now.

Spend more time long tossing right now than throwing bullpens. As the season approaches then you can increase the number of pens but keep the long tossing up in the preseason.

Wow! Not so fast young man. Just because the arm is fresh doen't mean it is in shape. Slow down on the pens and do your core excersises, including bands. Get your legs, stomach, and scalps in good condition first. Keep long toss to no more than 90 feet for the 1st couple of weeks - go 30ft, 60ft, 90ft and work backwards to 30ft.(after a rigerous stretching excersise).
Once the core is in shape, then you can slowly progress with the pens and then only at 70% max effort. Velocity at this point could cause much soreness, hamper your progression, and screw up your mechanics.
Work the body first, then the arm.

I would agree with Clint, but also add in incremental increase in your long toss and flat ground throwing. No need to get on the mound just yet. My son plays basketball also and I know the difficulty in fitting it in to your schedule, but you must figure it out somehow.
You are only 4-6 weeks away from season start depending on where you live so get in a least 2x/wk this week and then get to 3x/week. I would recommend the Jaeger approach to LT - www.jaegersports.com and would also get some of his bands.

BTW Clint his legs will be in pretty good shape from Bsktball, particularly since most movement is explosive. I would try to hit the weight room with compound lifts, and certainly he will need to work his core and upper body strength.

Now to answer your question. Normally I would expect a 2-3 MPH increase from preseason to in-season velocity, but you are now approaching your physical and genetic max so you will approach your max asymptotically - so like Clint suggested you may have to work really hard for some small improvements - you will not know until you get there.

BTW keep us posted as I am curious where you end up at. Good Luck!

Thanks for the response... I just have been asked to throw some light bullpens for a couple of D-1 schools.. They know I play Basketball, they just want to see my mechanics. I figured my velocity would be down just a little. I will try to get some more regular throwing and some band work in before I start throwing a lot off the mound.
Thanks again for your time.

Not sure what you mean about throwing for several D1 schools - be very careful, it is my understanding that you cannot have individual sessions for any D1 schools. This is the quiet period for colleges.

They are showcase type settings. Certain training falcilities have it set up where you pay a low fee and they invite schools. Certain schools will let you know to come out so they can meet you and watch you throw a few.

quote:

Originally posted by Clint Taylor:
Wow! Not so fast young man. Just because the arm is fresh doen't mean it is in shape. Slow down on the pens and do your core excersises, including bands. Get your legs, stomach, and scalps in good condition first. Keep long toss to no more than 90 feet for the 1st couple of weeks - go 30ft, 60ft, 90ft and work backwards to 30ft.(after a rigerous stretching excersise).
Once the core is in shape, then you can slowly progress with the pens and then only at 70% max effort. Velocity at this point could cause much soreness, hamper your progression, and screw up your mechanics.
Work the body first, then the arm.

90 feet? Infielders, catchers and my 8 year old make longer throws. Did I forget to mention outfielders? Follow the Jaeger formula. Make you sure you warm up before you throw. Do arm circles and the Jobe's stretch tube exercises first. I'm borrowing this from Jaeger: Warm up to throw, don't throw to warm up. Long toss is about making nice easy long throws as far as your arm feels good. The work begins when you've reach your comfortable maximum distance and then bring the throws down. Look at Jaeger Long Toss on You Tube to get a better idea.

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Someone told me I wouldnt gain any and that my velocity was at its max cause I havnt been throwing and my arm was fresh.. I topped out at 86

Dont listen to this person. Keep working hard, and dont listen to people who put ceilings on what your going to be capable of.

Clint Taylors point was my 1st thought when I saw your post.

I agree with Deemax. Have seen guys pick up big velo gains later on. Jeff Francis is a big example. As a college freshman he was barely hitting 89mph.

In general, the biggest increases seen by most top-flight pitchers are between their sophomore and junior seasons. If I remember rightly, when I looked at it a few years back, I found the average velocity increase is just under 4 MPH for PG-attendees with the top pitchers achieving an average of 5.71. Velocity gains between the junior and senior seasons taper off substantially and the average is around 1-2 MPH. I surmise that the difference is work ethic.

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Dont listen to this person. Keep working hard, and dont listen to people who put ceilings on what your going to be capable of.

Simple advice from deemax and great advice, too!

Bum,

The problem with all the averages is that the average never pertains to any one individual. There are many things that have to be considered... Physical maturity, Mechanics, Knowledge, Coordination, Strength and conditioning, etc.

Keep working...oldest son went from 87-88 as a senior in HS to 90-91 as a senior in college to 93-94 second year in pro ball. You never know what you can do until you do it.......or quit trying.

PG, you are right.. I remember this discussion from a few years back. It is impossible to ascertain expected velocity increases as it applies to an individual pitcher. All one can do is hope for the best and do your best for some hope.