Happy New Year! It’s time to start our Winter baseball training! We begin our training together this week and will train together about once per week. To get the most from your winter training, continue your training on your own. You can improve your skills by:
1) Working out – building strength, speed, and endurance.
2) Refining your baseball skills and mechanics.
Coaches will provide options that take minimal space and equipment. Putting in extra work now will make next season even more fun.
Our approach to off season training – consistent and worthwhile.
How to make consistent training more likely:
- Prioritize and build a routine. Do these exercises at least 2 times this week. Each of the 3 components (throwing, hitting, strength/fitness) should take 10 minutes or less. You can likely do this all together in one 30 minute session
- Recruit and train with a partner. Even better if it’s a teammate. If in person doesn’t work suggest working out virtually together.
How to make your training worthwhile:
- Train at or above game speed. Push yourself now so you are more prepared for games.
- Take chances, try new things – nothing is lost if it does not work. It’s great to learn, and we can learn by making mistakes and then making adjustments to improve.
Workout 1 Training
Workout 1 includes throwing/pitching, hitting, and strength and fitness to help us make mechanical adjustments and to build power and endurance. Each is explained below.
Throwing / Pitching
In practice we will work on 2 throwing drills that will help build strength and emphasize the mechanics we are building.
- 20 medicine ball rotational throws
- 20 medicine ball overhead throws
Medicine ball – rotational throw:
While these are ‘medicine ball’ drills, if you do not have a medicine ball, you can sub in a soccer ball/volleyball/basketball.
Start from the stretch position, cock the ball back to your ear and use your body rotation to throw the ball.
Here is a resource: https://youtu.be/_SgVlerT6jk?list=PLaF1d8EePXKiNbfaS5YJEF-KpaH11eOKb
Medicine ball – overhead throw:
Use the same ball you used above. Start from your landing position, pull your upper body back and explode forward.
Here is a resource:
Football throws with proper throwing form – play catch with a partner, being sure to go through your checklist for throwing with good mechanics and form.
- 20 football throws
Checkpoints for body action:
- Lift (parallel to ground, at least)
- Lift & gather (knee up, head stable over backside, showing catcher back pocket)
- Separate & stride (ball drops out, glove moves forward – like a field goal position – pointed out instead of up)
- Release point (most important position to be in – eyes level, glove in front of shoulder, legs same position, toe to target, split squat position (push car home), get to release point – glove in front and arm in high five position (key to accuracy)
If miss high, throw low on the next one – make immediate adjustments/corrections
Hitting
50 swings (can be dry swing* or hitting off of a tee) – Dry swings are when we are not swinging to hit a ball. We are still taking a game-style swing. Approach each swing with a plan. Breathe. Go through your routine to ready yourself. Execute your swing – Base, Load, Action, Swing. We do the now and then we do what’s next. Make immediate adjustments with your next swing. If you were off balance, stay on balance. If you swung too high and topped the ball, swing lower.
- First 10: load 3x, then swing – load, reset, load, reset, load, swing. This helps you refine your load & step before the action & swing.
- Last 40: 1 swing at a time, execute your swing.
Main goals? hard line drive with backspin – If don’t, have better swing next time
Checkpoints – Base, Load, Action, Swing
Checkpoints for body position – Primary athletic position, feet wider than shoulders, knees inside feet, hands start close to shoulders
Envision a pitcher going through their wind up, load your hands and body, and take a hard swing. Alter where you are ‘hitting’ the pitch – middle, inside or outside; up or down.
Hit a ball off the tee. This is most effective when we envision the pitcher going through their wind up, we load, and then take a game-style style that would yield a hard line drive.
Equipment notes:
You do not have to hit baseballs off a tee. Plastic or other lightweight balls are fine.
If you have a cushion or net you can hit the balls into, that is great.
If you don’t, get a 3 foot string and a wiffle ball. Loop one end of the string around the base of the tee and the other around wiffle ball loops. Now you can hit without having to run down the ball.
Strength / Fitness
We will keep it simple this week and do a few key movements. Break each one of these into as many sets you need.
- 50 push-ups
- 50 rows (using a door frame, here is a resource on how: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8NzhNe9Res)
- 50 squats
- 50 crunchies or sit-ups (can do various types, just be sure activating abs with each rep)
Overview:
Do these exercises at least 2 times this week.
Each of the 3 components (throwing, hitting, strength/fitness) should take 10 minutes or less. You can likely do this all together in one 30 minute session but if you want to break it up, that’s fine too.
Let me know if you have any questions!
Pressure Baseball 