I recently tried out at the Kansas City Royals open tryout camp and did fairly well, my fastball was 83mph, my change-up was 13mph under my fastball, and my curve had some depth. Considering I haven’t been on a consistent training or throwing regimen for awhile I think I did ok (the reason for the lack of training consistency is because I work full time 12 hour days, but that’s just an excuse). They said all I need to do is increase my velocity to about 89 or 90mph, which anyone who plays baseball knows is a difficult task!
I try to focus heavily on practicing throwing and working on mechanics. I know the importance of conditioning the core for rotational power, arm care, functional strength, and even nutrition (thanks to T-mag), but I can’t help but think there must be a tried and true method for increasing pitch velocity and I would wager that the secret has to do with training a certain way. I have researched on the net for countless hours searching for ideas to incorporate into my training but all I find is contradictory information about weighted baseballs, isometric training, bodybuilding exercises vs. sport specific exercises, and on and on…
This post is a shot in the dark but I’ve realized that all kinds of people log into T-mag daily that bring a plethora of information and good training advice to the table and I figured I would be a fool not to take advantage. Whether you play baseball or not doesn’t matter, sometimes the most useful and innovative strategies come from the least expected sources so please reply with any thoughts and suggestions…I’m willing to try anything to reach my goal of signing a professional contract.
Man, I think you got it. The tried and true method is topitch a lot. As far as strength training goes, you are right. Work on your ext. rotation of your shoulder and all of the deceleration muscles like the upper back. The core and leg strength are most important because as Im sure you know, most of the velocity is from leg drive and torque not the arm. I will say to focus on strength training and throw, because the more you throw the stronger you get. Adding 7-8 mph is no easy task if you are already throwing 80+ but dont get discouraged. Work on your breaking pitches too. There are plenty of guys in the majors right now who cant hit 88 or 90 mph. Dont let them tell you that your fastball has to be a certain speed. Just ask Greg Maddux.
I don’t know if there is a secret except you gotta whip your arm across with more velocity. Body Mechanics, not arm and shoulder strength, is the biggest key. Billy Wagner is such a thin wirey guy – not powerful at all but his thin light weight allows him to whip his arm around like lightning, hense he throws 100. Pedro is 5’8" an can hit 95+. KC 3B Desi Relaford can kiss 91 and he’s tiny. Point is, you don’t have to look like Roger Clemens.
Bartender 242 has some good advice. The upper back and rear delts are so important. I’d do plenty of running, pull ups palms facing away, and rear delt raises. Remember that bulk is going to work against you. A big chest will hinder your ability to whip your body around. You’re going to have to build a pitcher’s body, not a vain body.
Train almost everyday. You need strength without bulk. Olympic lifters train everyday. Leo Mazzone has the Braves staff throw almost everyday and they’ve had the best pitching staff over the 1990s, and hardly an injury!
One thing I would disagree on with Bartender 242 is this: I would NOT work on my curve ball often. There is no sense in putting mileage on your elbow before you start your career. Right now it’s important to master the location of your fastball, so you can set your change. Get that change to 15mph below a masterfully located fastball and you got a contract. You can work on the curve when you’re developing in the minors when there are pro pitching instructors to watch you. When you’re in the minors one of the first things scouts look at is your command of the strike zone. You can set up anybody with command and speed change.
If you would like to pm or give me toure-mail address I would gladly help you out. I played baseball for a Div. I college, and although I was not a pitcher I trained a couple of guys who are pitchers. Both guys went in this years draft, 10th and 20th and also one guy just signed as free agent. All of these guys are really good athletes, but I know for a fact some of it was their training. If you would pm with your stats(ie. age, weight, height…) I can give you a basic throwing and exercise program that I used with some of these guys.
Great stuff everyone. First let me clear up one thing. I wasnt trying to tell him to over train his breaking stuff, I was mearly making a point that to pitch in the majors, you dont have to throw 100 mph. Also I agree that you must get your relative body strength up and if you want strength without the bulk be sure to keep those reps low when lifting.
Also Phil, I train both baseball and girls fastpitch softball and I would love to see your take on training, so if you would like to, please send me your training plan or ideas.
Roger Clemen’s strength program is a total joke! I think it’s posted at elitefs q&A section if you want to check it out. It would explain why he always get pulled groin. Nothing but high reps using machines. The reason for Clemen’s long career is due to his superior mechanics.