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Best of 2021… Strength Training, Pitching and Hitting Articles

It’s been even another crazy year for everyone, but that didn’t stop us from continuing our efforts to develop great ball players while educating the community at the same time. A few years ago, I started a series in which I posted the most popular blogs of the year. These are the articles that received the most traffic, according to our hosting statistics. It seems to be a favorite of everyone, so here we go again with the most popular baseball articles of 2021. Continue reading “Best of 2021… Strength Training, Pitching and Hitting Articles”

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Off-season Hitting Program – Frequently Asked Questions

The following is a list of “frequently asked questions” that we often receive on our off-season hitting program.  Hope it’s helpful, but please feel free to reach the front desk at 201-308-3363 with any additional inquiries at any time or set up a visit / “consult session” where we can give you an on-site tour and review the programming.

Hitting Program Q&A

Q: Will my bat speed and exit velo improve? Continue reading “Off-season Hitting Program – Frequently Asked Questions”

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Off-season Pitching Program – Frequently Asked Questions

The following is a list of “frequently asked questions” we receive on our off-season pitching program.  Hope it’s helpful, but please feel free to reach the front desk at 201-308-3363 with any additional inquiries at any time or set up a visit / “consult session” where we can give you an on-site tour and review the programming.

Pitching Program Q&A

Q: Is your winter pitching program also a velo program? Continue reading “Off-season Pitching Program — Frequently Asked Questions”

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How to Generate More Power and Velocity with Proteus

Proteus

To be a more efficient baseball player, it’s important that you have both high amounts of force (power) and acceleration in your throw or in the box. For a pitcher, it can be a deal breaker in terms of college recruiting or ultimately being an MLB prospect. As far as hitters go, having a faster, more powerful swing allows the hitter more time to make better decisions at the plate. While going from 80 to 85 mph may only require more absolute strength, once we get into more elite velocities, max strength is simply not enough. This is where the Proteus machine shines. Continue reading “How to Generate More Power and Velocity with Proteus”

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Top 6 Med Ball Drills for Pitchers and Players

Med balls are a staple in the world of baseball strength and conditioning. This really shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Baseball is a rotational sport, so med ball work provides us with real-world transfer to the sport.  It is also one of the only ways to train upper body strength-speed in the frontal plane. Baseball med ball workouts and exercises are applicable to both hitting and pitching and can be used to create more efficient movement patterns and improve sequencing. However, drills using med balls are often performed poorly, largely in part because most athletes do not possess the understanding of what they are trying to accomplish with the exercise. Continue reading “Top 6 Med Ball Drills for Pitchers and Players”

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Sean Hard’s Path to New Jersey State Champion

Sean Hard

As many of you know, senior pitcher Sean Hard and his high school team St. Joe’s (Montvale, NJ) recently won the New Jersey State Non-Public A Group Tournament.  They actually won their league, county, sectional and ultimately the state championship, all in the same year. Sean’s record for the season as a pitcher was 8-0, 50.2 IP, 87 K, 2 R, 0.62 WHIP, 0.36 ERA.  He topped out at 95 mph at the final game of the year.  There are a lot of things Sean has done right during his development and it’s important to highlight how he got here, as no one has worked harder at this craft than this young man. Continue reading “Sean Hard’s Path to New Jersey State Champion”

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How to Improve Blast Motion Plane Score (Contact)

Blast Plane Score

Blast’s Plane score measures the percentage of time during which your swing is on plane (on-plane efficiency %) and the angle you make contact relative to the horizontal (attack angle). According to Blast, this metric is relevant because players that stay longer on plane:

    • Consistently barrel up balls
    • Can better adjust with their body
    • Are more consistent with exit velocity and launch angles

There are several potential physical impediments that could lead to an undesirable Plane Score.  Issues could range from lower body weaknesses, limitations on t-spine disassociation and even weaknesses in the shoulder region. Continue reading “How to Improve Blast Motion Plane Score (Contact)”

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How to Improve Blast Motion Rotation Score (Power)

Blast Rotation Score

Given the rotational nature of hitting a baseball, there are variety of potential physical impediments that could lead to an undesirable Rotation Score (rotational acceleration and bat speed).  Issues could range from the bottom of the kinetic chain to the top, including lower body weaknesses, hip mobility limitations, t-spine related issues and even weaknesses in the upper extremities. Continue reading “How to Improve Blast Motion Rotation Score (Power)”

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How to Improve Blast Motion Connection Score (Consistency)

blast connection score

Blast’s Connection score links together what your body and your bat are doing prior to and at the point of contact.  It uses Early Connection and Connection at Impact metrics as the basis for your score.  Maintaining good connection at impact (90 degrees) for all pitch locations is an indicator of dynamic adjustability.  According to Blast, players with good Connection score:

    • Display better swing adjustability in all pitch locations
    • Have better plate coverage
    • Generate more power to all parts of the field

There are variety of potential physical impediments that could lead to an undesirable Connection score, with Early Connection having slightly different potential set of issues that Connection at Impact.

Continue reading “How to Improve Blast Motion Connection Score (Consistency)”

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How to Stay in Shape w/ In-season Workouts During Summer Ball

in-season workouts

Summer is recruiting season for most high school ball players, and they obviously need to perform at their best.  However, it is important to understand that while playing baseball makes athletes better at playing baseball from a technical viewpoint, it does not help them get stronger or able to maintain specific training adaptations as the season progresses. This is generally due to the fact that… Continue reading “How to Stay in Shape w/ In-season Workouts During Summer Ball”