You don't have to be "old school" type to understand how many baseball training programs are floating on the internet these days. Everywhere you look on social media - Facebook, "X", Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, you name it - players, parents, and coaches are lured into the online workout rabbit hole determined to unlock the "secret" to elite velocity. I know guys who chronically change their routines and their personal coaches each season because the magic 90mph hasn't arrived quickly enough.
90mph has a small chance of coming to a 15-year-old. Unfortunately, it looks like 90 is an everyday thing when we keep viewing the same video of the rare, gifted arm (yes, they are out there) throwing 92-94 on our smart phone.
The operative word here is rare. This does not happen as often as it seems, and when it does, it isn't a sure-fire ticket to pitching success (throw strikes, please).
A quick story...
The Schooners faced a young pitcher a few summers back, who committed to one of the top college programs in the country (I'm not going to name the school but think of the top 3 programs in the country and you will have guessed the school) after his freshman year in HS. Obviously, an impressive talent.
He struggled, to state it mildly, in our league. Without control of anything, he couldn't make it past one inning any time we saw him. He soon transferred from the Power 5 school to an obscure Junior College to try and figure out how to be successful - it was a little too late, sad to say.
I'm afraid that the flood of videos showing the very small minority of talent creates a fictional world of pitching for the majority of us.
It can be stressful, confusing, and frustrating.
Is there one method that is better than another? I would argue that they are all effective in their ability to create self-discipline, build physical power, and add size. Let's face it, if you are working out regularly, positive results will emerge. The trick is in knowing when you have reached a point where your physical progress has stalled. No matter how hard or often you work out, there is no more improvement.
What is the old saying, "Sometimes we are the last to realize we have a problem?"
Don't panic, find a person or people whom you trust, listen to their feedback, and make some changes if you are in a rut. You can always return to your old style if needed.
For young ball players - ages 8 through 12 - the young pitching body is a mixed bag of aches, pains, good days, and awful days of throwing. It is part of learning. Don't force more on a young body when less would be better.
Remember that a young arm has a soft, still developing bone structure and is constantly put through the struggle of buzzing a fastball into a puny strike zone up to 85 times a game.
As an analogy, think of planting a maple tree sapling, maybe 18 inches high, in your back yard. Maple trees can grow to be huge and hearty, but on the way to maturity, the trunk and branches are soft and pliable. If that tree is planted in a place where there is a lot of wind, like on a hill or coastline, these constant harsh conditions will slowly force the tree to bend and grow with a slight tilt. We have all seen trees that look like they are leaning to one side.
That is what happens to a young arm. The constant fastball throwing is like a tornado on the elbow and shoulder joint. Ask any adult who "threw their arm out in Little League" and you will understand that too many "storms" on a young arm can cause long term damage. It is important to be smart, careful, and patient with your development. You will find success at the pace best suited for you! Let it happen.
Here are some thoughts to help you become the best pitcher possible in the smartest way:
Strength training is a very small part of the answer, but it is important more than ever. It used to be that young bodies were better off waiting until their teen years before diving into lifting weights. Now, we are asking much more from young players with regard to playing time but neglect the appropriate training time that would prepare the body for the heavy workload while avoiding injury. Youthful muscles are not supposed to be as strong as teenage or adult arms, but young children can still get stronger - at their own pace with proper workloads. Consult a trained professional, preferably with some baseball playing experience - that helps with understanding the specific needs of the individual.
Balance is something that is overlooked too quickly when it comes to power pitching, but it is critical to developing consistency and adding speed. It requires muscle strength to balance on one leg or hold a side plank, for example. The smaller muscles that surround the joints are easy to neglect because they don't show off size gains like the biceps, triceps, quads, and chest, but superior body control begins with the small "balance" muscles. Don't avoid them! It is easier for a 10-year-old to develop good balance than it is to a 17-year-old who never worked on it before. Pitchers, save yourselves the frustration and start working on your balance!
Mobility is a word regularly heard among athletes and training professionals. There is much to be gained by building strength, but strength gains are useless without the ability to move the larger muscles effortlessly through a maximal range of motion. If you find a stretching routine that helps increase hip, back, and shoulder mobility, stick with it and make it part of your overall training work.
I repeat, stick with it.
Throwing programs are an important piece of a pitcher's training. What does a good throwing program look like? Who has the best throwing program? Again, there are many good routines - from many highly qualified pitching coaches - that can jumpstart a pitcher's arm strength. There is no one perfect way. Here are some thoughts to keep in mind about throwing programs:
- Long toss is anything that is longer than a regular "catch play" distance. If you are putting a little effort in reaching your throwing partner, that is long toss. Some people like to throw across the outfield, high and far. Others like to keep the long throws on a line, sometimes getting there on one hop. At some point, there is a need for maintaining form as you exert yourself throwing far.
- One good long toss day per week will help maintain arm health and strength. More than one day is fine, just give the arm a few days off in between.
- Off season throwing is a subject that has many varying opinions on what is best. They are all good. I think there is a need to rest the arm during the off season, but light tossing is an acceptable "rest" routine. Restraining the arm to move in a throwing motion can give a pitcher unwanted frustration when it is time to get it going in the spring. It is important to maintain the touch. Off-season throwing does not need to be off a mound. Plyo ball routines are a good way to maintain arm movement along with light catch with a partner.
- If you don't have an official "throwing routine" set forth by a coach, just remember that playing catch regularly (daily) is a great program to follow. The repetitive motion helps keep you away from shutting down due to injury.
Velocity surges come in different ways for different pitchers. It can be frustrating to hit a personal best fastball velocity, and not hit it again for weeks or months - this is quite common. Just as elite sprinters do not continually break a record each race they run, pitchers should continue to work hard and keep increasing expanding their "cruising speed", in other words, the speed where they comfortably can stay over 60-80 pitches. The occasional "spikes" in speed will also grow but maximizing consistent fast ball speed is what you train for.
And - prioritize command before velocity 99.9% of the time. There are moments where you may need to "let it fly" and show off your maximum effort fastball, but do not allow yourself fall into the velocity trap.
It is good to take a look back six months or one year to compare yourself and your velocity to where you currently sit. Most certainly, you will see a huge positive trend if you have been working hard.
As always, be patient, keep looking forward - not to the side (other pitchers) as you keep developing your game. Study the game, don't fall into a "fictional" baseball world by watching too many videos. Teach yourself, talk to those you trust, and let your fastball get better the right way - your way.