10 Keys To A Productive Off-Season for Your Pitcher

Hey There Friend!

I'm gearing up to start both my IN-PERSON training programs and my ON-LINE course, "The Complete Pitcher". This means that off-season for pitchers will be coming soon!

I thought it might be helpful for you to hear some things that I believe are KEY as you transition from COMPETING to TRAINING this fall:

1. Allow your pitcher to let go of RESULTS (meaning where the pitch goes) for at least 10-weeks. It's important for every pitcher to be able to focus completely on her process for a few weeks. When a pitcher "changes" something with her mechanics or spin or effort, etc., she will lose some command as she is working to create new habits. It's can be very frustrating for her (and you) IF she is worried about WHERE the ball goes WHILE she is developing new habits.

2. Create an AT-HOME workout area to make it easy to get in some work DAILY. Pitchers that have to "go somewhere" to workout are more likely to miss workouts because something "comes up" and they can't GO to that spot to practice. Set up a net or tarp in your garage that your pitcher can throw balls into OR make some sock balls that she could throw into a wall in her room. The more CONVENIENT practice is for her, the more likely she will do it!

3. The FREQUENCY of practice matters MORE than the LENGTH of your practice sessions when it comes to creating a new habit. Your pitcher will remember what she repeats the MOST OFTEN. Want her to correct something mechanically? Learn a spin? Use FULL effort consistently? It's MORE beneficial to practice 10 minutes DAILY than to do 1 or 2 workouts for an hour each week!

4. PLAN your workouts. It's possible to invest time in practice and NOT get better! If you just "go throw" without a focus, you won't see big RESULTS. It's important to know WHAT you want to accomplish each time you workout.

5. Have ONE THING you'd like to improve each time you practice. If your pitcher gets better at one SMALL thing each day, just think about the progress she will make by the time she starts competing again next spring!

6. Pay attention to the DETAILS! They matter! The LITTLE things are the BIG things when it comes to mechanics, spins, targets, etc. They MUST be important to you and your pitcher if she is to make real progress during training!

7. If you want to throw hard during games, you MUST throw HARD when you train! There isn't an on and off switch when it comes to speed. You must EARN every MPH by pushing your pitcher to MOVE her body faster. Focus on explosiveness with the lower body to get the stride foot up, out AND set as fast as possible WHILE the upper body "keeps up" and stays relaxed.

8. Push your pitcher to do things that make her uncomfortable both physically and mentally during training. If your pitcher always "feels good" during practice, she will have more difficulty working through challenging situations during competition. 

9. Remind your pitcher that FAILURE is a necessary part of real growth! If she never does anything "wrong" when she trains, she isn't pushing herself outside of her comfort zone (see #8)! Help her see "messing up" as an opportunity to learn and improve and be BETTER next competition season because of it!

10. Make sure your pitcher pays attention to her self-talk and body language during training. Off-season is THE TIME to work on improving both of these very important parts of her game. If your pitcher struggles with her mindset and her "appearance" during times of struggle, we want her to learn HOW to change this during training. She can PRACTICE improving her mental game during the off-season JUST LIKE she works to develop her physical skills!

Ok...I couldn't stop at 10!

I have ONE more thing and it's a BIG one!

11.  Help your pitcher understand that it's better to be EXCEPTIONAL at ONE thing than it is to be average at many! It's not HOW MANY types of pitches she can throw that will make her great. It's how DOMINATE she is with the tools she OWNS!

As a general rule, here's what we want a pitcher to be able to possess:

• Solid mechanics at FULL EFFORT

• Great command of the zone with her fastball

• Changes speeds with confidence in and out of the zone at anytime in the count

• ONE Movement pitch that she creates great deception with (gets swing and misses) and can throw both in and out of the zone

If your pitcher doesn't have these things YET, help her get them BEFORE focusing on OTHER pitches!

These are some of the things that I believe are most important as you begin to prepare to transition from COMPETING to TRAINING this fall.

If you need help with how to tackle any of these things with your pitcher, drop me an EMAIL and I'll give you some help my friend!

All My BEST,

Myndie