Why Untrained Baseball Pitchers Improve Velocity Faster
by Dick Mills on December 08, 2004
Improvements in training and conditioning are obviously a big factor in maturing baseball pitchers ability to throw the ball with more velocity. And there is a good reason why untrained baseball pitchers have a better chance to improve pitching velocity.
When you put growing baseball pitchers on a throwing program where they throw more often… you will see jumps in velocity. The more you throw the stronger the body gets for throwing…not just the arm. Baseball pitching remember is a full body activity.
If a developing baseball pitcher only plays catch once a week or so and then steps up the intensity of his throwing routine, he will often see jumps in pitching velocity.
So the idea is that the potential for improvement in baseball pitching velocity is much greater for a pitcher who has a low fitness or training level. Boost that baseball pitcher's training and you will more than likely see velocity improvement.
The other extreme is that pitchers who are fit or in condition will have less of chance to improve pitching velocity simply by training more since they are already fit.
And then once a pitcher is conditioned it doesn't take a lot of training to maintain his performance levels and maintain velocity.
This is the reason that throwing weighted baseballs for example seem to increase velocity when in fact it is the increase in the training effect that creates the improvment in velocity. The undeveloped pitcher throwing the weighted balls is just required to throw more often. And as stated an untrained pitcher will improve his velocity when he just throws more often…whether it's a weighted ball or not.
That untrained pitcher would more than likely improve his pitching velocity by going out and throwing a football, or a javelin for that matter or playing tennis.
Remember not every developing pitcher is going to respond to the same training the same way. No matter what pitchers do for training whether it's long toss, throwing off a mound or weight training or explosive training they will not all see the same % gains. Why? Because individuals respond differently to comparable training because they have different bodies. This is one of the reasons why it does make sense to copy somebody else's training program like a major leaguers. It may work for him…but not for you.
Early matures will develop muscle size and definition faster and can dominate certain sports and in baseball pitching in most cases will throw with more velocity. For the late maturer no matter how much long toss or weighted ball throwing or weight training is done, he will have to wait the arrival of puberty before he sees any significant gains in velocity. Parents need to know this.
We have to be careful what we conclude to be the reason for velocity gains in developing pitchers. It is usually growth and development or just going from an untrained state to better conditioned state.
You can also see improvements in velocity by making mechanical adjustments that allow the body to move faster or put more muscles on stretch more quickly… which is the absolute best long term method for improving pitching performance overall.
But whether a late of early developer nothing is more important than developing good pitching mechanics.
Dick Mills
If you have questions about this blog post or on any phase of pitching—mechanics, strength and conditioning, mental training, strategy send those questions to dickmills@gmail.com and I will answer them here.
If you want an explosive body and explosive mechanics you need to get my Free Report at www.pitching.nexcess.net. We won't waste your time. We show you how to recognize exactly what is holding back most pitchers…find the problem—fix the problem. I show you a comparison between two high school pitchers and a major league pitcher who throws mid to upper nineties. You will see the biggest problem that reduces velocity in the majority of pitchers.
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