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Monday, October 6, 2008
Pitchers: Shut 'em down!
LISTEN UP! This is for all of you pitchers out there that are looking at your offseason and
wondering which direction to go. One of my favorite sayings is; "If you don't know where you're going--any
road will take you there."
First things first...SHUT YOUR THROWING DOWN 6-8 weeks. In
some ways it's no different than a bodybuilder needing rest to allow his muscles to soften and to stimulate them into
new growth. The throwing arm takes a fair amount of abuse during the spring and summer--and sometimes the fall.
The holidays are a great opportunity to build your fitness and to stretch and build some muscle and allow the arm a chance
to refresh itself. Some pitching coaches, like Paul Kosinski at The Strike Zone, use the down time to build better mechanics
and to help pitchers gain an understanding of the workload and purpose of the work that lies ahead. Eric Porter, of
Academy Elite Baseball likes pitchers to simply focus on cardio and core work and college football; "There's no reason
a kid should be throwing off a mound between Halloween and Thanksgiving...none. I like our staff to get after it in
the gym and in the classroom, go to homecoming, spend some family time--go see Grandma...anything--just stay off the bump
for awhile."
Finally, make sure you and your pitching coach have a specific plan in mind when training begins.
Most pitchers I see spend way too much time aimlessly throwing. Develop a slow curveball you can throw for a strike
in off-counts. How about developing a new lane you can command for your fastball to make your decent split become dominant.
How about learning to pitch inside? These are all worthwhile pursuits you should discuss with your pitching coach.
White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper told me once, "Phil, I've never seen a pitcher succeed without purpose.
They need a plan. That's a pitching coach's main gig."
Work hard guys...your teams' success will
be dictated by the work you do this off-season!
11:11 am cdt
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