Why Pitchers Should Workout Like Kangaroos To Boost Pitching Velocity

by Dick Mills on August 14, 2008

Do baseball coaches, strength or speed trainers know which type of pitching workout is best for pitchers?  Most clearly do not. 

Every 'trainer' or conditioning coach needs to fully understand why pitchers need a certain type of conditioning rather than what is currently proposed such as lots of time in the weight room to get bigger and stronger. Those who recommend that I must refer to as strength pin-heads.  They believe more strength is good for every activity in sports including pitching a baseball.

These coaches need to be able to explain how skinny pitchers are able to throw with above average velocity. Sadly, most of them can't.  Unfortunately too many dish out misinformation they can't back up with any evidence based research or just uses his beliefs as the authority.  You should listen to neither...no matter what their credentials are.

How Pitching Velocity Is Related To Kangaroos Jumping 

There is reference in our book The Science And Art Of Baseball Pitching regarding the 'kangaroo' which brings clarity to how a baseball pitcher is able to create velocity. And if you read that section of the book...it doesn't get any clearer than that.

Reading that section (31.5) should produce an 'AH' moment for coaches when they will sit back and realize the error of their former ways and how much time they have wasted on telling pitchers to build more strength.

The question that should be on all baseball conditioning coaches certification tests is: How would you train a kangaroo to jump further?

If they don't know how to do that, they will never understand how to train a baseball pitcher to be fit to pitch.

So how would you train a kangaroo to jump farther?

1. put him in the weight room and do more squats, leg press, leg curl, leg extension?

2. strap on a weighted vest or parachute?

3. strap on ankle weights?

4. jump squats with weights?

5. try to improve his jumps by quickening his take off?

6. rebounding down the field focusing on shortening the duration of his takoff?

Do conditioning, strength or speed coaches know how to train kangaroos? Not likely. Therefore they do not know how to train pitchers.

If you had two months to train a kangaroo with good potential what would you have him do?

There is a simple method for training kangaroos -- get them to jump to a level of moderate overload (fatigue), then let him rest, and repeat again. No more, no less.

This is how to train a pitcher to be fit to pitch whether it is working on his general fitness or on building his volume of pitches for games.

Some of you probably still believe that long toss makes sense. Unfortunately, it is just a waste of time even though just about every coach recommends it and just about every pitcher practices it. Long toss is good if you are an outfielder but what does throwing long have to do with pitching...since pitching velocity is not about arm strength but much more about building momentum into a long stride.

Irrelevant practice is the single biggest reason why most pitchers will never reach their full potential. And especially why they will never develop maximum velocity or pinpoint control.

It is the irrelevant practice that is causing soreness and more risk of injury.  And the 50% of time wasted today on irrelevant practice activities such as long toss, flat ground throwing, pitching drills to name a few is why pitchers are not improving based on the time spent practicing.

Video analysis is the key to pitching improvement. And so isn't building functionial strength and flexibility. This is what I have been focusing on in our Explosively Pitching DVD program since 2004.  We teach parents how to help their sons use their bodies to pitch instead of just their arms. And how to get specifically stronger for pitching without losing flexibility. Not only does this improve velocity but reduces the risk of arm injuries. http://www.pitching.com/products/

"My 14 year old son's velocity jumped 12 mph, his control improved dramatically and his arm pain vanished. For the first time since he has been pitching, he finally understands what he is doing...what causes the ball to do what it does and how his body functions to be effective...now that is priceless."