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More Information and Suggestions for off-season Baseball TrainingPosted Friday, October 10, 2008 by Michael Caron More Information and Suggestions for off-season Baseball Training
"Medicine-ball training targets the center of the body," says Gambetta. "It bridges the gap between strength developed in the weight room and the application of that strength to a baseball skill."
For pitchers, Gambetta recommends a variety of medicine-ball drills: stepping and throwing the ball overhead with two hands; twisting to one side and throwing with two arms; single-arm bounce throws; situps, with the ball extended overhead and passing it to a partner; lunging forward, then twisting to the side of the forward leg; stepups onto a box, with the ball held at the chest; stepping forward and throwing the ball from between the legs; and standing back-to-back with a partner, and arm's length apart, and passing the ball by twisting toward that partner.
Position-player workouts include many of the same exercises, plus slamball (which is played and scored like handball except the ball is thrown); passing the ball held waist-high off the hip to a partner standing several feet away; and throwing the medicine ball from off one hip over the opposite shoulder to a partner. All these exercises are done with balls of various weights, in different combinations of sets and repetitions, and at slow, medium, and fast speeds.
Another conditioning program includes running two days a week, weight lifting another two, and scrimmages or baseball drills on Fridays.
Running drills include stretching; 15 to 20 40-yard sprints; 100- and 400-yard relays; 100-, 200-, 300-, 400-, and 500-yard runs; two- to three-mile runs; agility running (including "high-knee," crossover steps, bounding with exaggerated strides, and skip bounding); and, closer to the season's start, base-running skills.
On alternating days players lift weights, including bench presses, squats, lat pulls, leg extensions, curls, and dumbbell incline work. They also work out on hip-running and abdominal-exercise machines.
Players do sets of eight, six, and four repetitions at 75 percent of their maximum weight-lifting capability.  |
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