With 12- to 13-year-old baseball players aiming to smoothly transition from youth fields to larger diamonds, proper physical conditioning is paramount. At this pivotal age, adolescent bodies undergo rapid growth spurts, meaning a structured fitness routine is not optional. It is essential for performance, long-term athletic success, and, most importantly, reducing the risk of injury.
Continue reading “Building Athleticism in 12- to 13-Year-Old Baseball Players”
Many young ball players face a common hurdle: they lack the athleticism to play defense at a high level. To field a ground ball or charge a bunt efficiently, movements must be fluid—and that requires agility. When it comes to fielding, agility means executing rapid movements in constantly changing, unpredictable environments.
So, what exactly IS agility?
Continue reading “Improving Defensive Fielding in Young Athletes”
Here is Part 2 of our Best of 2025 articles here at RPP. If you haven’t done so already, please check our Part 1 here.
It’s another year in the books, and that means it’s time to look back at the Top 10 articles you, the readers, found most popular. Even though I’ve been focusing more on my Behind the Seams podcast, I still feel the need to write. So here they are — Part 1, counting down numbers 10 through 6…
In the field of sports performance, we are always looking to improve an athlete’s force and velocity production. By building a bigger “motor” we can improve “horsepower,” giving the athlete the ability to move at higher speeds. In baseball, this can equate to a player throwing harder, bat speed, or getting down the baselines quicker (first step quickness). However, when we build a bigger motor, we also must build better “brakes”.
Continue reading “Training Deceleration in Baseball Players”
DNS or “Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilization” is a training method that was developed by Czech physiotherapist Pavel Kovar in the 1990’s and was brought to the forefront of training 10 years ago with the release of Frans Bosch’s book, “Strength Training and Coordination”. It’s fair to say that it has since struck the baseball player development realm by storm.
Continue reading “Dynamic Neuromuscular Training for Pitchers”
There are many players on the road to athleticism, but spending day-in and day-out on the gym floor, I can tell you that there are 3 simple, yet big, players that I see as big contributors on the road to athleticism.
Continue reading “Three Big Players on the Road to Athleticism”
