Baseball is a game of:
Short powerful bursts of total body movement
and…
ROTATION.
Warm-ups should reflect preparing the mind and body for these two qualities. Arm care should also be included. And they should be relatively safe.
Disclaimer:
At worst, a warm-up serves to break a sweat and transition into competition. The baseball player should at least prepare the trunk, shoulders, and hips for rotational movements. At best, a warm-up can serve as a period of focused corrective exercise that counteracts the asymmetries inherently promoted in baseball.
Ideally, warm-ups should be specific to both the sport and the athlete in question. Some baseball players clearly need more mobility than others. Others need more of a focus on stability and alignment. Still others truly do need both, and would benefit from the extra time invested in an extended warm up.
With that being said, here is a general baseball-specific template
- Forward lunge with rotation reach, two right, one left (for right-handed player) X 5 reps
- Backward lunge with overhead reach X 5 reps each side
- Side lunge with inferior capsule (shoulder) stretch X 5 reps each side
- Forward crawl with mid trap extension (pull the scap with limited movement at the shoulder), keep neutral spine X 5 reps each side
- All 4s Thoracic Rotation X 5 each side
- Kneeling hip flexor stretch X 1 each side
- Kneeling adductor (groin) stretch X 1 each side
- And now, for some unconventional thinking, finish with one rep of each of the following:
Ground to 5 yard forward sprint
Ground to 5 yard sprint right
Ground to 5 yard sprint left
There’s something very physically and mentally… just …”tuffening” about hitting the ground, getting up and down. Obviously do not include this in very cold or wet conditions.
Step onto that field as a machine. Can’t stop you now…
“A whole ‘nother level!” ; )
Bonny Lane Club 