Plan Your Off-Season Throwing Program for Game Success
When your current pitching season is over, it's time to recover, rebuild, and refocus in the off-season to prepare for the next season. But, at what point do you put down the baseball and not worry about having to throw hard or performing in a game? And, how do we best prepare ourselves to be successful next season?
The answer is simple. Ask yourself what makes you successful as a pitcher in games? Not in the weight room, not in long-toss, not in a weighted ball program, and not on social media. At some point, every pitcher will learn their playing time will largely be influenced by success in games. Success in games will always be the ultimate determining factor of your value and your value to the team.
Once you are successful in games, the next test is how long you can succeed in games. However, most pitchers will embark on a training regimen in the off-season that has less to do with transferable success in games as a pitcher and more about gains in the weight room and throwing velocity. This mindset is the current culture of pitching training across all levels of baseball, and if you take a close look, it's not working at the highest level, so why would it work at the youth level? It doesn't.
Major League Baseball has spent over 550 million dollars in arm injuries from pitchers over the last five years, and the development of consistent starting pitching is becoming a rare commodity. It's a significant problem for baseball, and those involved at the top are scrambling trying to understand the issues. For example, The Phillies failed to have one minor league pitcher reach 100 innings this season while dealing with systematic arm injuries at their lower levels. Matt Gelb of The Athletic recently wrote an article on the Phillies detailing the Phillies had admitted dysfunction in their minor leagues due to investing millions of dollars in failed approaches that involved the training mindset mentioned above.
“The Phillies hired people associated with Driveline and entered into an exclusive and expensive agreement with the company that allowed for in-person and remote assessments, access to consultants, and educational materials. That agreement will soon expire, according to sources, and it will not be renewed. The Phillies, a team executive said, discovered the Driveline culture did not embody the kind the Phillies wanted in their farm system. Feedback was handed down and rarely traveled up. Perspectives that challenged Driveline precepts were not considered valid and, worse, not respected. ”
Last year, I wrote about a pitcher's life cycle, which I strongly encourage you to read. A pitcher's ideal life cycle could also be considered a pitcher's traditional life cycle, which centers around the season and game performance. This life cycle was naturally created for us years ago by transitioning from one sport to the next during the calendar year and lack of playing options or demand to extend playing outside of the season. For example, a youth pitcher would typically finish his season by August and shut down before school started in the fall. Not far behind, an MLB pitcher would shut down in October and resume play in Spring Training.
However, over the last several years, the cycle of obtaining optimal performance never stops. The private sector generates millions of dollars from extending players' desire to perform past the season and into the off-season, becoming the new life cycle.
I wanted to write this article to provide a simple, effective, and logical plan a pitcher can use in the off-season and pre-season to prepare himself for success in his upcoming season. Most importantly, structuring and scheduling off-season throwing strategy, volume, and intensity will be critical to facilitate game success. Therefore, before you embark on your off-season program, ask yourself a series of questions.
Did I have to miss any time due to injury?
Was I frequently sore in my throwing arm after a game?
Did I have pain in my throwing arm during the season?
Was my performance in games consistent or inconsistent?
Did my velocity increase, decrease, or stay the same throughout the season?
How do my current ability, arsenal, and performance compare to my teammates?
How long have you actively been throwing at high intensity?
Has your previous off-season program helped you during the season?
The list of questions can continue, but the main point is identifying a few core strengths and weaknesses from your season that you want to address as you head into your off-season. Most of the strengths and weaknesses you will address can be placed into three areas; function/health, skill, and performance.
Inevitably, after a pitcher chooses his plan moving into the off-season, a recurring question surfaces: How much throwing is acceptable during this period? The answer is you can throw so long as it is a sub-max intensity and avoid situations where you must throw at max intensity, especially games. Thus, a pitcher can throw during the off-season to keep his body and arm active and continue to work on his pitching skill but not have to be ready to pitch in a game.
I have provided a throwing program is to be used as a general guide to preparing yourself for game success. To use the throwing program correctly, you will start by asking yourself a few questions.
When did my season end?
When will my next season begin?
What do I need to prioritize as part of my throwing program?
Our throwing program is broken up into three different phases throughout the calendar year.
Off-season: Recover, Rebuild, Refocus
Final evaluation and or game. Reflect on previous season performance/success. Set specific goals for next season. Begin to recover, rebuild, and refocus to increase success for the next season. A pitcher will make gains in pitching mechanics, arm and body function, speed/strength capabilities. Throwing will be kept at a minimum and low intensity.
Pre-Season: Prepare to Execute
A pitcher's throwing volume, intensity, and bullpens should scale during the pre-season to simulate a recovery cycle that will help him tolerate the upcoming season's demands. The focus should be on pitch execution and consistency and a gradual increase in volume and intensity.
Season: Optimal Performance & Recovery
The focus should be to maintain a high level of success in games by executing pitches at a high level. The daily throwing program should facilitate proper recovery and workload to tolerate season demands.
The time spent in any particular phase above will vary depending on each pitcher and their season end and start times. But the philosophy behind the throwing program remains. We want a pitcher's off-season and pre-season to be geared toward transferrable success in their season. This approach involves staying healthy, being available, and performing towards their best capabilities/potential while providing value to their team.
To download a sample guide to follow in preparation for your next season, you can click the button below.
If you have just pitched an entire season and find yourself continuing to train and throw at max intensities well into the off-season, why? Specific circumstances may be required to pitch in games into late fall, but most pitchers, especially youth, should take a break from games and high-intensity throwing. During the off-season, a pitcher can throw to keep his body and arm active and continue to work on his pitching skill but not have to be ready to pitch in a game. You don't have to enter into an off-season velocity program that involves high-intensity throwing to throw hard during the season. It's simply not true. You can choose the training that focuses on your body's ability to accelerate and decelerate that doesn't involve throwing. With any exercise, make sure your current level of function can handle the demands of intended training.
If you would like to DVS Baseball to take a look at your current off-season throwing program, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.
