It’s hard to believe I’ve been doing this for a year! There have been some ups and downs and I’m not where I thought I’d be, but it’s been fun and I’m not done with it yet.
When I started this last May I figured I’d do this for about six months, then be throwing in the mid to high 90’s, I’d work out for some teams, get picked up and be on my way. Obviously, that’s not how it’s gone so far.
I began this journey because I realized that if I didn’t change something (get waaayyyy better) I’d be stuck in this cycle of Indy ball or low level minor league baseball until I decided to give up, and I didn’t want that. So I tried to be honest with myself when thinking about what would get me to an elite level. I landed on a few things, but for the purpose of this blog it was mainly velocity and mental performance.
When I started this, my velo in training had been 92-94mph, but I knew that as I got older to even get a foot in the door with an affiliate I’d have to take that up a notch. I also needed to start performing better when the stakes were high. It seemed like I’d be throwing great in training and then go to a work out and have an ok day, but it certainly wouldn’t live up to my expectations. My command would be brutal and my velo would be down. So I set out to change this.
I started with my strength and power numbers in the weight room and decided to improve those, which I did considerably. I also needed to improve my mobility and my delivery. My arm action wasn’t great and my body didn’t always move well through my throwing motion. So, I started trying to change some things and Ben helped me out with a throwing program. I did it and my numbers were solid right off the bat. After my four week on-ramp I was 92mph from flat ground, which was very promising. But, the numbers never really improved too much from there because I would have arm discomfort and have to deload a bit, then I’d pick it back up and it just felt like I could never get fully comfortable.
Then I got a bacterial infection in my left elbow that turned into a tumor and I had to have surgery to remove that. That took a toll on me mentally because until it was actually removed we didn’t know that it was an infection, so that was a bit freaky. Anyway, after the surgery I had two weeks where I really couldn’t do much physically while the wound healed. I built back up again and got up to 93mph off the mound, but that was pretty much the peak.
Since then I’ve been in a cycle of having some pain during throwing, deloading, and trying to build back up again. I’ll tweak my training because I’ll figure out this one thing seems to be bugging me, or not working the way I intended it to and then go from there. So, this has been a crazy learning process so far. I’ve had to figure out what does and doesn’t work for me, and things that can also help my athletes.
I think I’ve gotten to a point now where I basically know what I need to do to get to elite velocity, it’s just a matter of putting in the time and focused reps to make these changes happen. I’ve gotten strong enough and that’s given me a lot of confidence(I hit a 540lb deadlift a few weeks ago), but at this point adding 5, 10, or 50 pounds to my bench, squat, or deadlift probably isn’t going to yield any velocity gains, but improving my movement sequencing and very specific mobility probably will. The plus side is I know I can throw at least 94mph in training because I’ve done that plenty of times, so it’s not like I’m crazy far out on a limb here. The frustrating part is not being at that point right this minute because I know I can do it.
This year has been a microcosm of my baseball career to this point-I’ve had some really exciting highs, followed by some steep drop-offs and pretty brutal lows. Occasionally, I think to myself, “Man, I wish I knew at 15 what I know now. I could’ve made this road so much easier on myself.” But the problem is that doesn’t help me at all, and I probably needed the rough times, grinding, getting hurt, trying to figure things out to make all the progress I’ve made. I’ve been forced to get way out of my comfort zone and ask for help. I’ve met quite a few experts in the fields of throwing performance and strength and conditioning and there’s no way I could’ve made it to this point without them. Their knowledge has forced me to learn and improve myself and my coaching so I can keep up.
I’m just beginning this journey to the show and I’m not done yet. I know I’m right on the edge of getting to where I want to be. It’s going to take a few relatively minor changes that will require major work, but I’m glad to put in the time and effort.
Thank you for following me through year one of my journey to the show, and check back later in the week for more content!