Which lifts are safe for baseball?

To me....

Deadlift is king.  Total body strength and teaches you to apply force to the ground. 

I think Cresseys guy squat, they may just front squat. 

Rows

Zottman Curls

Pullups, body weight and weighted

Bench.  Dumb bell, heavy is good. 

A bunch of others but those are my favorites.  

Medicine balls can be great tools too. 

any of the strength coaches or experts also want to answer?

If a player's ego keeps him from developing he's was never really committed anyway.

Front box squats and DB press are two of the best lifts for players, especially in season.

We do a shoulder circuit with just 5 or 10 lb plates with our kids. And DB stuff on a table for scaps.

Back squatting is not bad for baseball players, but squatting can cause the shoulder to compress and potentially be pushed into a high risk position where you can potentially impinge / compress the components of the shoulder.  This will depend on the person, the weight, and the squat technique.  Everyone is different.  If you squat and feel that you are starting to have a shoulder problem, adjust your bar type or change to front squats.  No reason to continue to perform any lift if there are issues preventing you from performing the lift. Lift with a purpose - periodization 8 week cycles, no more than 3-5 reps on the last week, two weeks off, and start over by adding 5-10 lbs to your first week starting weight (adjust as needed).  This is a proven and simple strategy that will build a good base, and provide many years of lifting, with little risk of injury. You could do 12 week cycles in the same method, but for me, I would burn out and not be able to perform the expected lifts as I got further into the cycle.  Most likely due to nutrition and sleep, so I adjusted and was able to stick with 8 week cycles. Unless I was going to attempt a competition, there was no reason to perform peak 1 rep max lifts. Stick with the cycles, they work.   Drug use will change everything I just said.

I don't want to speak on Cressey's behalf but I believe that his goal is not to necessarily strike fear in anybody that performs these exercises, rather he is trying to explain that there are certain exercises that are not optimal for the demands of baseball players. Are back squats bad for baseball players? In most cases I'm sure pitchers could back squat there entire career and never experience any pain or discomfort from doing them.

When you look at the anatomical position of the shoulder during back squats compared to front squats then you can see that in theory the shoulder joint is in a healthier position. The difference really isn't that big in my opinion, but Cressey has years and years of experience and research. He is working with million dollar athletes and he is trying to minimize the risk of injury as much as he possibly can. So back squats my not be bad, but they are not optimal. They are not the best possible variation that a baseball player could perform. 

If a player can receive the same benefits using lunge, split squat, and other squat variations as opposed to back squats then it would make sense to do what is necessary to increase performance and decrease injury risk.

Thanks guys, good answers.

Stay away from broad-stroking as to what is defined as good or bad. That is determined by the athlete. Example- if an athlete has a forward rounded posture, bench pressing should be avoided. For many athletes- there are always progressions, regressions, and alternatives that can be used to obtain a result. The bottom line is there are not many absolutes and by making broad claims you can limit the athletes potential to make some nice gains.

We have not backsquatted our athletes in years due to the fact many both youth and pro are unable to perform a healthy squat without any weight- with the exception of Justin Verlander. He showed the ability to execute the lift- but rather than focusing on weight, we focused on tempo since he had been derailed a year earlier during a heavy squat day. Most athletes when they squat without weight fall forward- this syndrome is an indicator that back loading the spine will place extra stress on the lumbar spine- so that is why we avoid it. Again- as I always state- exercises must be athlete specific and must consider their ability to execute from a biomechanical standpoint.

Deadlifts are good- but we focus only on hex bar deadlifts and straight leg (only once the athlete shows the ability to translate backwards and let the glues hold the weight). Many athletes now a days lack the hip mobility and the patterns needed to hold the weight effectively. A traditional deadlift can really hurt players that lack the hip mobility and core strength- which is most youth players.

with shoulders we focus a lot on scap protraction and retraction- as well as ITYW patterns. front squats are good- but many players also complain of issues with the weight sitting on their shoulders the heavier it gets. we will do suitcase squats holding dumbbells at sides- focusing on pulling shoulders back as well to work the retractors. As for pressing- our pitchers typically stay away because a tight pec is the root of most arm injuries- instead we choose protract/ retract pushups and cable pressing that uses the core in a rotary fashion and the pec as a secondary anterior push muscle group.

Hey Coach!  thanks for posting info.  Much is confusing, I'm just a dad trying to figure it out.  My son is 14.  Do you have a recommendation for a trainer of your ilk in the Houston area?  

http://fairchildsportsperformance.com/staff/

Go see Ben and tell him Dana with the yankees sent you

Thank you, Dana.