I throw 90, on a good day. In the Minor League baseball world, that’s slow. Like bottom 5% bad.
But, if we zoom out to the entire human population. I’m in the top 1%, if not top .5%.
That’s pretty tight.
Life is all about perspective. Also, never compare yourself to others.
Wake up
Drink water
Cold shower (cause I’m more mentally tough than you)
Go for a walk
Get into staring contest with the sun
Win
Drink black coffee (cause I’m better than you)
Hammer a dozen eggs
Lift heavy weight (I’m stronger than you)
More coffee
Read books
I strongly dislike the word “grind” when it’s associated with anything with baseball.
Absolutely nothing about baseball is a grind, it’s a game that you’re literally choosing to play.
Off-season, same thing. Everything involved with baseball is a game, quit saying “grind”.
In the baseball world, I throw slow.
I sit 87-90. Top 91
But. I do other things well (otherwise I wouldn’t still be playing)
Reasoning I’m saying this is; lean into the things you do really well, never lose them. While working on the things you don’t do well consistently.
Velo over the years:
HS Senior: 77-80
College SO-JR: 84-86
1st yr Indyball: 85-88
3rd yr Proball/Signed by Twins: 87-90
5th yr Proball: 88-91
You can get there with below avg velo:
•Make most of every opportunity
•Be extremely lucky
•No yourself and your situation
Maturing as a pitcher is gaining velo for the sole purpose of throwing everything harder and using your fastball less.
Fastballs are dead, off speed and breakers first.
Buy in
It could be the worst, least thought out program ever. But if you buy in, put in 100% effort and focus each session you’ll get better.
On the flip side, it could be the best program ever. If you 1/2 ass it, you’re not gonna get better.
It’s not cool to not care. Buy in.
Maturing in your training is realizing each day is just a small blip on the grand scale of everything.
Good days/Bad days, don’t matter. One day doesn’t affect a week/month/year.
Stack a couple good days to have a good week.
Couple good weeks for a good month
And so on
First time throwing in Minnesota since college, first time throwing in front of a lot of friends and family professionally, special day to say the least
And had to make an emergency call this morning and bring this guy out of retirement for a day
If you throw hard, good job.
If you don’t throw hard you better
•Command the zone w/ everything
•Have some bastard offspeed
•Be left handed
•Be really lucky
•Be away from the “average/normal”
•If none of these things, I hope you’re good at something away from baseball
Velocity is king
If you have ++ velocity you can get away with:
•Poor Command
•Lack of Plus Offspeed
•Being a bad teammate
•Feel
If you have poor velo you can get away with:
•Sneezing if others aren’t around
•Having spread once everyone else has ate
•Shagging during bp
95+ is quickly becoming, if not the new 90mph already.
It’s the easiest thing to get you noticed at the next level.
But but but little Johnny hasn’t walked a guy since he was 3.
Well little Johnny can’t break a window with his fastball so no one cares about his BB/9.
Don’t be the perfect scenario guy when training.
Meaning; you need everything to line up just right for you to train/perform at peak/near peak performance.
Life isn’t perfect, it’s going to fuck with you. You should be able to perform at near peak whenever/wherever.
The chances you play baseball at the college level or higher is very small.
The longer you can whole heartedly believe that you’re apart of that percentage, the better your chances of getting there will be.
You still have to work.
But that belief, I think, plays a big role.
Freshman and possibly even sophomores in college should probably skip college summer ball and just train.
Can still get “innings” from live at bats. But you’ll be able to have 3-5 months of pure focused training.
Better chance at changing your career outlook doing that IMO.
Normalize upper body pumps for arm care
•It promotes blood flow to the necessary areas
•It’s fun
•Big arms are fun
•Hitting arms is fun
•Basically it’s fun and it does the thing
Being a good person (including being a good teammate) will get you further in LIFE than being good at a sport.
We’re human beings before we’re athletes.
80/20 lifestyle
80% of the time be strict with your training, diet, lifestyle, etc
20% of the time, do whatever you wanna do. Have a drink (if of age), eat a donut, stay up late, skip a lift, etc
Life is about balance, keep the mentals right
Pitchers typically overestimate how good hitters are, even with balls “middle middle”.
More good is going to happen, especially early in counts when pitchers just set their sights middle middle.
Take your recovery seriously, but don’t get domed up about it.
It’s not that complicated.
All you need:
• Eat high quality food
• High quality sleep
• Drink hydrating water
You don’t need anything else, and don’t let anyone tell you different
Wanna throw harder in your velo days?
Do it with someone who you know throws a tick harder than you, just out of reach to where you can possibly get to the number but not so far away there’s zero chance.
Compete, yell, get angry, play loud music, be a psycho.
I stunk at my job yesterday.
Today, I’m at a new coffee shop with my wife while she study’s and I read a new book/listen to Zach Bryan and try to play chess.
Baseball is a big part of my life but it’s not my whole life. Bad days will happen, it’s apart of life and the game.
Coaching the throw for the youngsters, most coaches screw them up cause they need to fix what they think is wrong.
Nothing is wrong, he’s 10. He just needs to play.
Let him throw ball hard. Make sessions fun, don’t teach anything.
Wanna fix something super bad? Fix yourself
El plan for today:
Coffee (Black)
Touch grass
Fungo golf
Good music. Key for optimal vibes
Crush pages
More coffee (w/maple syrup)
Possible scratch off
Touch more grass
Work on handstands
Throw the foosball around
Movie night with the fellas
Crush more pages
Sleep
Wanna throw harder?
Have you seriously tried throwing harder?
In game for most people is going to be their highest output and best chance to “unlock” more velo.
So next outing, throw some more ego FB’s and go move the needle a bit for yourself.
If an athlete doesn’t have injury history, throws hard but has “terrible” mechanics don’t touch him.
Chances are you’re just going to make him worse.
Throwing isn’t about looking aesthetically pleasing. It’s about producing force efficiently.
Sometimes it’s not a 1:1 thing.
Not wanting to try during your velo day cause you don’t wanna be embarrassed if it’s a low number is a self fulfilling prophecy.
1) Who cares, you’re training towards a goal, that’s what’s important
2) Whoever you were around that made you think/feel that way, get rid of them
Scared money don’t make no money - Jeezy
Wise words from a wise man, translated into baseball terms:
1) Scared players don’t make plays.
Or if you like pictures:
“Command guys” are evolving people, we’re doomed
George Kirby lead qualified pitchers with a .9 BB/9 while averaging 96 on his heater, touching 99.
For context, Greg Maddux had one season w/ a lower BB/9 in his career. With the strike zone back then being quite enormous.
Pitchers, not everything in your arsenal needs to be a whiff pitch. Having something that generates weak contact can be just as valuable.
Generally speaking, your high whiff stuff isn’t going to be your high IZ stuff as well. Find your bridge pitch and use it accordingly
Some of you out there wondering how you aren’t getting signed as a free agent just go look at
@TreadHQ
story on Instagram.
Stupid movement plots with mid 90s heaters.
We’re in a new age with these minor league free agents. You don’t stand out anymore simply w/ a mid 90s FB.
Unbelievably lucky to call this beautiful woman my wife
Traveling countless hours, sitting through all sorts of weather, unwavering support of me and my career, I couldn’t be more grateful for her and all she’s done for me
Velocity is almost always going to trump pitch shape.
The higher the velo, the less concerned with pitch shape you should be.
Slower velo, you should game to maximize spin efficiency to maximize pitch movement.
If you throw 105, I don’t care if it’s “dead zone”
Coaches please stop fucking players up.
Make sure what you’re about to say to your players is well thought out and actually needed.
I would rather have a coach who doesn’t say a word to athletes over a coach who gives shit advice leading to making an athlete worse.
Premium velocity with subpar command will get you in the door, let you hangout for dinner and breakfast in the morning
Poor velocity with plus command makes you jump through a second floor window to get in the house and as soon as dinners over they call you a cab
Day after outings when you’re definitely down for a couple days, it’s fine to not throw. In fact it’s probably better.
Move the body around with a lift, big fan of ISO’s for arm care on day afters.
Not a need to throw, probably not going to get better from it honestly.
Spring training HHL update:
Cutter velo ≈ last years FB velo
FB avg ≈ 1-2 mph harder than last year while topping at 92.4
All breaking ball velo up
≈2 mph on avg.
HHL isn’t for everyone but there’s something there for sure.
Good coaches are good coaches.
They don’t have to be or are:
-Affiliated with a big league team
-Apart of a well known facility
-Played at a high level
-Have a lot of followers on social
The list could go on.
A good coach is a good coach
Sunday Day Game Schedule:
-Wake up before the birds and chirp at them
-Walk a 5k
-Read pages
-Consume enough caffeine that the Hulk would be buzzing
-Watch game from the pen
-Sunday tradition, if you’re in Wichita you know what that is
Good morning to everyone except coaches/trainers who use big worded jargon when explaining something to an athlete.
You’re not smarter for knowing big words.
Being able to distill/“dumb down” the thing you’re trying to explain so the athlete understands it makes you smarter.
Good coaches come from everywhere, with countless backgrounds
They could be in major cities or small towns
They could be ex-big leaguers or didn’t play baseball at all
Good coaches, are good coaches
Too many other coaches, players, and parents judge the book by its cover
If you work at a baseball facility give more attention to your less talented players over your more talented ones.
Turning bad players to good players is more valuable to your facility than turning good players to great players.
Let’s see how good of a coach you actually are.
Long distance plyos to promote better spin efficiency. And possibly more intent
Driveline plyos (no seams) will work better than Marv.
Rip the yellow/grey ball, if you cut it even slightly the ball will cut a ton. Immediate feedback to know you weren’t spinning it efficiently.
Pitchers
Just cause the trackman, or Rapsodo tell you your new pitch is legit doesn’t mean it will be sick in the game.
Execution is going to dictate that. And once you’re facing hitters with the new pitch, what they’re doing with it will tell you how good it is.
Your max lifts, vert, command score numbers, pull down velo, plyo velos, metrics on pitches in pens, even what your mechanics look like.
None of that matters.
The things that actually matter are:
Do you perform and excel in game
Do you stay healthy
Creating a great environment and getting athletes PRing through hype and the newest DaBaby album is good.
But it’s different from getting athletes moving better and creating velocity that way.
PR’ing in a quiet room is WAY cooler than PR’ing to your favorite song.
You see so many kids as soon as they commit to play college ball take it easier with their training both on and off the field.
When you step on campus you’re competing with 21/22 year old men.
It’s time to step on the gas once you’ve committed, not the brakes.
Kneeling Yeets in 2024
3oz ball here, don’t get too excited
Also, I don’t care if my knees are moving and one leg came through. It doesn’t matter that much.
Chasing high velocity is here to stay for a long time. Being able to throw 95+ is valuable, and rewarded.
Can’t imagine that changing anytime soon.
Most if not all offensive stats get worse as the velocity they face goes up. So of course orgs/facilities/players chase that.
Everyone likes talking about recovery, recovery tools, etc.
It’s over hyped. Theres a lot of us out there that are over “recovering” and under trained.
Don’t get me wrong, recovery is good.
But the body actually needs a stimulus to recover from in the first place.
East/west guys play longer toss (90-120) with your runner 2-seam, changeup, sweeper, cutter. See the movement, check in with it.
North/south guys just rip long toss with your 4seam. Keep eating peoples shins when you pull down. We all appreciate it.
Fully convinced almost all athletes would be better off not watching any video on themselves.
Give the video over to a trusted coach, have them look it over and have them tell you what they see.
Watching yourself and trying to critique yourself can cause visits to the SuperDome
True pronators need plus velo (95+) because they’re going to struggle holding velo on their breakers (struggle holding supination which results in less velo)
Supinators, typically will be able to throw their breakers with closer velo to their FB.
I think kids should be exposed to failures every single time they step into the facility.
Could be failures in:
The warmup
The game/activity
Throwing
Mound work
Literally can be failures in anything.
Let them sit in the failure and figure it out too, don’t hold their hand.
Trackman and the numbers it gives you aren’t what matter… fully.
The guy in the box and what he does with your stuff is what matters.
Yes having a good plot and quality stuff based on what trackman tells you is important. BUT, getting outs and missing bats is importanter.
The higher your “training age” in the weight room the less it’s going to help you.
Yes, it’s cool to have a 500 deadlift but if being strong is all that mattered Brian Shaw, and Thor would throw 110.
Use your training economy wisely, know what you need and don’t need.
Does it still count as “painting a pitch” when so many catchers and pitchers are taught to just set their sights middle-middle?
To me, it just seems like a Bob Ross happy accident instead of a paint job on the black
Practicing good sleep hygiene and having a good pre bed routine isn’t sexy but probably is the most beneficial thing you can do for yourself.
•Don’t eat/drink close to bed time
•Get off screens
•Crack a book open
•Cool room, cool core body temp
•White noise
•Tape mouth
Unless for some reason you do your throwing/hitting in the weight room nothing in there is sports specific.
Get strong/fast/mobile in the weight room then do your “sports specific” training on the field.
Basically let the weight room be the weight room. Don’t overcomplicate it.
Good morning to everyone except to coaches who have the mindset of “my way or the highway”.
Be guardrails for your players, allow them freedom within boundaries. Work with them, let them be the autonomous individuals that they are.
The more you do, the more your body will be able to recover from.
The less you do, the less you’ll be able to recover from.
Use your body. Move a lot to recover a lot.
And no, you’re not going to “overtrain” yourself.
Start lying to yourself. And truly, deep down believe the lie. Constantly repeating it and believing it more and more.
Your mind is a powerful tool, and can change your everything about you and your body to its core for better or for worse.
Barely threw 1 time in 5 days cause of the holidays.
But Thursday/Friday calls for Kneeling Yeets and whatever full body velo I want.
Santa came a little late and I got 2 new PRs
Screw taking your time getting into High Intent work after 4/5 days off, just jump into it
If you’re having trouble calling pitches, I gotchu:
Here’s the 1st - 20 pitches of your next game. (If pitcher has FB, CB, CH):
FB middle
CHangeup
FB Away
FB up & In
CurveBall
FB up
CH
FB in
CB down/away
FB away
CH
FB in
FB away
CB
FB up
CH
FB in
CB
FB away
CH.
Single best training tool you can get for yourself is a radar gun.
Moving poorly? Radar gun will tell you
Moving well? Radar gun will tell you
Need to stay within a velo range on lower intent days? Radar gun is here to help
Tired of coaches over cueing? Radar gun has no mouth
Asked 2 groups of athletes to do a cartwheel and somersault
12U
High school
The 12U group was far better doing these tasks over the HS group.
Don’t stop being a kid, keep playing, keep exploring, keep running around.
Once you stop that’s when you truly age.
What you can do with a water bag you can do with greater speed and control with just your body weight and/or a lighter weight med ball.
They’re overused and we’re over complicating things with the only reason being “insert big words to sound smart to whoever asked the question”
Arm care doesn’t need to be done post throw.
Arm care is:
• Any activation done pre throw (pre throw bands)
• Upper body lifts during your workout
• Mobility work (Hangs, Back Bridges, Hand stands)
• Light Throwing (key word, LIGHT)
• Core work
• 12oz curls 😉
The way we measure caffeine in mg vs grams really bothers me.
Ex)
I tell someone I had 1000milligrams of caffeine
Response: *head explodes*
VS
I tell someone I only had 1 gram of caffeine today
Response: Jeeze that’s like nothing, good for you!
Just cause you’re:
-shaking/holding a bag full of water
-making athletes throw in a obstacle course
Doesn’t make it more geared toward skill acquisition or adaptability
Also skill acquisition and adaptability are quickly becoming the favorite fluff words of Big Waterbag.
In season, as a starter it’s probably still a good idea to ramp up arm speed in between outings.
Whether it’s a constrained throw like ten toes, or kneeling yeets
Or if it’s you pulling down a few before a pen day.
Just create a quick stimulus in between starts.
Harsh reality time.
If you go to a college’s prospect camp. You aren’t a prospect, you’re paying the Vollys “salary”.
Save the time, money, and mileage on your car and don’t go.
Use that saved money for more development, a nice steak dinner, or Venmo the Volly at that school
How many keyboard coaches would change Big Leaguers mechanics if they didn’t have any knowledge past a side video of them throwing a pen in street clothes?
1st point is, as a coach, first few times watching a new athlete. Just watch, don’t say anything.
2nd point, ask questions
Reading “You are the placebo” by Dr. Joe Dispenza, and it has me thinkin
Is our subconscious stopping guys w/poor command, poor velo from performing better?
Is there someway to trick the subconscious into thinking you’re a command guy or throw harder, leading to better results?
Cold exposure for dummies
• ≈11 minutes per week (Up to the neck)
• Water temp 60 degrees or cooler
• Releases of adrenaline and noradrenaline (increase level of energy/focus)
• Helps you not be soft
• Prolonged dopamine release (makes you happy)
• Boosts metabolism