Training

How New Facilities are Changing the Game of Baseball and the Way Players Are Developed

By mattwalker | November 18, 2011 7:32 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Brian Jordan, Strength and Conditioning Coach, Colorado Rockies

Brian Jordan, RSCC, Major League Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Colorado Rockies. In 1998, Brian received his BS degree in Applied Exercise Science from Springfield College. Following a brief internship at the United States Naval Academy Jordan was hired in 1998 as a strength and conditioning coach for the University of Massachusetts – Amherst. Jordan began his strength and conditioning career in professional baseball in 1999 as a Strength and Conditioning Coach for the Detroit Tigers. That year Jordan was the strength and conditioning coach for the AAA Toledo Mud Hens. After the season, during the 1999 off-season Jordan was hired by the Colorado Rockies as their Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coordinator in which he served for 9 years before entering into his current position in 2009.

For years, Professional organizations not just MLB, sent their players home for the off-season to rest, train and be ready for the next season essentially on their own. A lot of these athletes would get an off-season job, go back to school and in some cases just rest and get ready for the next season.

This brings us to present day professional sports. Most athletes today make enough money or have a signing bonus great enough to not have to work in the off-season. With that being said, professional athletes are now training year round for their respective sports. This is the result of many factors. One, not having to work frees up time and energy to focus on their physical development. Two, most athletes come to their pre-season or Spring Training ready to compete rather than get ready when they get there. This means guys need to be ready earlier if they want to win a job, not get hurt or embarrassed due to their lack of off-season preparation. Lastly, there are facilities and expert resources available that were not as readily available years ago. Training facilities for all athletes have popped up in the past 10-15 years widespread due to the needs and desires of athletes to get proper training and resources that relate specifically to their sport. These facilities provide a common place for athletes to commune, compete and to learn about everything from proper training to nutrition and recovery.

This past spring, the Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks opened the Spring Training Facility Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona. This facility marks what I believe is a shift in how Professional Organizations view the development of their athletes.

We had the opportunity to build what should be considered a state of the art Athletic Development Facility. The 85,000 sq. ft. facility consists of a clubhouse for all Major League and Minor League Players and staff, 6 full baseball fields, 2 ½ fields, covered batting cages, pitching mounds and a 40 yard x 100 yard conditioning field. The clubhouse has in it a Major League and a Minor League Training Room with a common wet area that has (4) 8 person hot/cold tank and an underwater treadmill, a full cafeteria for all players and staff, a video room and a 6,500 sq. ft. weight room. That is just on our side of the complex. The only thing we share with the Diamondbacks is the 11,000-seat capacity ballpark where all the Major League Spring Training home games for both teams are played.

A facility that was originally designed for 2 months of use to get ready for the season has now evolved into a year round athletic development facility. Our athletes will now have a place where in the off-season they can lift, run, throw, hit, rehab and utilize recovery techniques, all under the expert tutelage of our organization’s staff. This will allow for players to be smoothly transitioned from their off-season program to Spring Training to their in-season routines. Instructional and Fall League programs and mini-camps will also be run in the facility to further the young players’ development progress.

So, from the day a player signs, he will have the resources year round to develop every facet of his athletic development under one roof with the people in the organization whom he will work with for many years to come.

The Colorado Rockies are building this type of facility and concept in the Dominican Republic as well. This facility will be a smaller version of our Salt River Fields Facility at roughly 29,000 sq. ft. and a 2,400 sq ft weight room. In the Dominican we have 16-19 old athletes who will not only physically develop as I explained earlier but also develop the language and social skills to ease the transition from their country to here in the U.S.

Although the road to the Major Leagues for many will be long and challenging to say the least, today’s athletes have a tremendous opportunity to develop into the best athlete that their desires, work ethic and ability will allow.

For more information or questions, please contact me at: jordanb@coloradorockies.com

Acknowledgement: http://www.performancecondition.com/baseballsoftball

Pirates finding their (circadian) rhythm

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By mattwalker | September 16, 2011 3:47 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

By Rob Biertempfel, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, May 8, 2011

When it comes to sleeping, Pirates right-hander Ross Ohlendorf is a night owl. That can be great when he pitches in a late game on the West Coast but not so much when he starts an afternoon game at PNC Park.

“I tend to not want to go to bed early, and I don’t want to get up (early),” Ohlendorf said. “If I sleep 7 1/2 hours, I usually feel pretty good. Nine, I usually feel better.” The turnaround from a night game to a day game is quick, robbing players of sleep. Travel also disrupts players’ sleeping habits. A two- or three-city road trip usually involves switching at least one time zone, which throws off a person’s internal clock. Making matters worse, teams tend to fly overnight and arrive in the next city in the wee hours.

“Going coast to coast, it definitely messes with your sleep patterns,” Ohlendorf said. To help manage their sleep routines, the Pirates this year hired Bill Sirois, senior vice president of Circadian, a firm specializing in 24/7 workforce performance and safety solutions.

The Massachusetts-based company advises construction workers who toil on the graveyard shift as well as globe-trotting CEOs. Sirois’ firm consults the Cleveland Indians and three NFL teams that he declined to identify. ”We’re hard-wired to be daytime creatures,” Sirois said. “But now we work, play and do so much else at night, and that can be difficult. It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.”

Even a small change to a sleep pattern can be disruptive, Sirois said. He cited a study that showed auto accidents increase by 8 percent the day when Daylight Savings Time begins.

“Just an hour’s shift or loss of sleep can have an impact,” Sirois said. “Translate to finely tuned athletes, and you can understand why a guy will hit three home runs one night then strike out four times the next.”

That could explain why Ohlendorf’s career stats in day games are slightly worse than those in night games.

Last year, the Pirates as a team hit better in night games (.245 batting average, .683 OPS) than day games (.234, .663).

Perhaps Sirois is having an effect. The Pirates just took four of six games on a swing through Denver and San Diego. They are 5-2 in day games on the road. Just five weeks into the season, the Pirates already have won more road series (five) than they did all of last season (four). They are 11-8 on the road after winning just 17 of 81 road games last season.

Pirates head conditioning coordinator Frank Velasquez figures that in order to become winners again, the team must first become the Slumber Company. ”Not everyone has to lift weights, but everyone has to sleep,” Velasquez said. “So why not improve our quality of sleep, especially considering how much we travel?” Last season, the Pirates went 2-11 in the Western time zone, 3-3 in the Mountain zone and 8-28 in the Central zone. Velasquez puzzled over that awful road record all winter.

“We’ve researched different areas of recovery,” Velasquez said. “We do cold tanks, we do hydration and nutrition, and we stretch these guys out to keep them feeling good for as long as we can. One area we’d really never covered was sleep.” Sirois addressed the players and coaches in January at the Pirates’ minicamp in Bradenton, Fla. He continues to work closely with Velasquez, charting the players’ travel routines and their sleep patterns at home and on the road. Researchers have identified several different sleep personalities based on factors such as when a person falls asleep and wakes up without prompting and the number of hours slept. The extremes are what Sirois calls “morning larks” (early risers) and “night owls” (those who sleep in past 9 a.m.). Most people are “robins,” meaning they usually awaken around 7:30 a.m. Sirois wants players to remain on their natural sleep patterns as much as possible when traveling. On the Pirates’ recently completed Western swing, Velasquez charted game start and end times and time spent in transit. He also tried to track how each player behaved: Did he go to bed right away or stay up until what would’ve been 6 a.m. on the East Coast? ”When we go from home to the West Coast, usually the second and third days are the toughest,” second baseman Neil Walker said. “Your body starts to adjust, but you’re fighting it. By the sixth inning of that second game, it’s 8:30 p.m. but you’re working on 11:30 p.m. in your brain.”

Sirois told the players to adjust to Pacific Time by going to sleep at a “normal” time (around 1 a.m. after a game that ends around 11 p.m.) and not setting the alarm clock.

There’s a bigger challenge when the Pirates return from California because the time zone change costs them three hours. The effects of jet lag can be more severe the first few days in Pittsburgh than they were in San Diego, Sirois said.

“Traveling west to east, you’re going against the grain of your biology,” he said. “The strategy is to get to bed an hour early if you can and wake up early, get some sunlight in the morning, then try to squeeze in a 20-minute nap in the mid afternoon.”

It’s too early to say whether Sirois’ program will produce tangible, long-term results. But the early returns are favorable.

“We tried to reconstruct their road routines, which can make a difference,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “You can fall into ruts and routines that are completely different than they are at home. We’re trying to keep them fresh, keep them simulated and really just play good baseball.”

Core Stabilization – Progressive Method

By bh | August 16, 2011 3:50 am | Featured, News, Training | Leave a comment

Optimal core stabilization is dependent on proper inter-coordination of abdominal and respiratory musculature. Inspiration begins as the diaphragm contracts and draws down caudally thus creating a natural vacuum in the pleural cavity. The thoracic rib cage moves in a cephalad direction only as an accessory motion to normal intercostal expansion. With diaghram contraction the contents of the abdominal viscera are compressed into the lower abdominal cavity and pelvic floor. The increase in intra-abdominal pressure through diaphragmatic activation along with proper opposition via contractions of the surrounding abdominal musculature results in “stiffness” or “bracing” of the outer wall (McGill). Core function requires an individual to be able to create three dimensional expansion (Liebenson) of the abdominal wall while positioning the ribs in a caudal direction during exhalation. Core stabilization is dependent on optimal function of respiration and diaphragmatic control. Abdominal coordination and strength may be tested by observing the athletes ability to breathe optimally and correctly utilize his diaghram as described above. This ability to generate circular stiffness can be evaluated and assigned a simple manual muscle test value. Functional stabilization is achieved only when all of the spinal musculature work as a one unit and the quality of motor program is undisturbed by dysfunction or pathology.

Diaphragmatic Control

1) The patient lies supine with the ribs in an exhaled position. The knees are bent with the feet on the table. Instruction is given for the patient to use diaphragmatic activation to create intra-abdominal pressure in a caudal and three dimensional direction around the core during exhalation. Attention is given to providing external ques by the practitioner to guide the ribs in a caudal direction while palpating the abdominal wall to maintain “stiffness” of the oblique musculature function.

2) Training of sagittal spine stabilization continues with maintaining position of the thoracic ribs in an exhaled position and continued expansion of the abdominal wall. The hips and knees are bent to 110 and 90 degrees of flexion respectively. Attention is given to training respiration and rib positioning while maintaining intra-abdominal pressure during a static supine hip flexion position (3 month.gunnertechnetwork.comelopmental position)

Strengthening

3) Developing functional strength continues with the ability to maintain sagittal spine stabilization during functional movement patterns. The exercise increases in difficultly by alternating the hips in a reciprocal flexion and extension direction for specified sets and repetitions.

Endurance training

4) Retraining of the respiratory and abdominal function is dependent on achieving endurance of the stabilizing spine musculature. The patient is directed to maintain rib positioning and intra-abdominal pressure while progressing through more difficult reciprocating movement for up to two minutes per set for a total of four sets. Difficulty can be increased by changing surfaces and by varying levels of stability,

You can follow the same progression with the Franklin Balls. These balls are positioned directly over the PSIS activating the oblique musculature. Working up to 4 mins of time under tension is optimum.

Base Strength Training- Covering the Four Bases to Get the Most Out of Your Baseball/Softball Specific Training

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:18 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

The biggest disconnect that I see in conditioning the baseball athlete is the immediate overemphasis on sports-specific conditioning (agility, balance, speed, etc.) done without the proper basic strength exercises. I see an overall lack of strength in baseball. I see this all the time at this level—not being strong enough to improve their game. Too many players, both high school and college, are moving away from basic strength development. One player coming into our program had not done squats in years! When we got him back into that habit, he commented that he had not felt that good since college. He is a typical player who got away from the basics and neither improved nor reaped the benefits of an “agility program.” He does not have the strength to be agile. You must have the right amount of strength to explode, change direction, accelerate and decelerate. Just as every baseball player should have basic skills, so too every athlete needs basic strength.

Defining the Base Program- The Four Base Strength Exercises

What are a base program and base strength? I have read certain numbers and definitions for what the base strength requirement is, for example, being able to squat twice your body weight, bench one and a half times body weight, etc. These are good markers. However, they may not be feasible due to the athlete’s medical history. There are basic, whole body exercises that give you the strength the player needs in order to do other athletic.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment things properly and to reap their benefits.

Exercise #1—The Back Squat

In my opinion, this has the greatest benefits of any exercise. You do not have to handle twice your body weight to gain these benefits. The rule of thumb I use for baseball athletes is to be able to squat their body weight with correct form for eight to 10 repetitions. For a workout, I like doing sets of three to five with a high volume activity—doing 10 sets of three reps rather than the traditional three sets of 10 reps. We also rest one minute during the base phase and for the power phase we do two to three minutes to ensure quality. It should be noted that loading is adjusted down based on the rest time to ensure proper techniques throughout the entire training session. This method also ensures good strength gains. This is enough to properly strengthen the major muscle groups (buttocks, quads, hamstrings) and offers great core stability work in the back and abdominal area. These are the muscles that are critical in sports-specific “agility type” training. There are only a few exercises that accomplish all this at once and I prefer the squat.

Exercise #2—The Barbell Dead lift

The dead lift might be considered a controversial exercise. Seven years ago, I would try to get athletes to do this exercise and they would freak out because they thought that it would hurt their back. However, this has changed. I know physical therapists who are now advocating the dead lift as a functional exercise used in everyday life (we pick up our children or boxes off the floor, etc). These are all dead lifts.

There are some basic techniques that are important, and the first is hand position. The dead lift is performed using an alternating hand grip. I have my players place their throwing hand externally rotated (palm facing up) and the non-throwing hand with the palm facing down. This puts the throwing shoulder in a more stable position. Most of my players are tall, so I recommend a shoulder-width stance rather than the wide stances that you see powerlifters doing (a technique know as “sumo style”). That is more for the shorter athletes, or under six feet tall. The head is straight or slightly looking up and the back is in a neutral position with the bar close to the shins on the way up. The coaching cue I use is for the athlete to think of mimicking picking something off the floor or sitting on a chair. With good technique and proper loading progression, there is no reason why an athlete should injury themselves. This exercise is relatively new to the Rangers, so we have the athletes do three to five reps of working up to body weight. We do a similar set and reps workout as with the squat—10 sets of three reps with one minute expanding to two to three minutes and increasing the load.

One point of emphasis is the concept of a neutral spine. The idea is not to have a lordosis situation of the lower back where the spine curves in toward the mid-line of the body. We emphasize this by keeping the athlete’s eyes and head looking at a specific spot dictating to the position of the lower spine. I also feel that this prevents curvature of the cervical and theoretic upper areas of the spine. This too creates an advantageous neutral spine. The second part of this is to have the athlete tighten up the abs. It is the coach’s job to ensure the back’s position does not break down.

Exercise #3—The Push up

This is a basic exercise that requires no loading. Once an athlete is able to do 30-40 reps, we do plyo push ups (clap hands) and reduce the number of reps to five or six with multiple sets. Many athletes will combine this with the bench press and do benches first, followed by a set of plyo push ups. We do three to five reps (light) on the bench followed immediately by five or six plyo push-ups.

Readers may wonder why the bench press is not part of the four base exercises. I believe that the bench is a good exercise as long as it does not interfere with the throwing motion. I did not do benches when I was a player because it bothered my shoulder. However, I have players who are not affected by it. That is why the push up is the primary exercise and the bench press is “supplemental.” It is a matter of the athlete’s specific needs/situations.

Exercise—#4 The Pull up

Many players cannot do a single pull up. We want to achieve the ability of doing the exercise 8-10 times with good form. This is a good indicator of overall body strength. Once the athlete achieves 10 pull ups, we load the athlete and have him do sets of five reps. This allows the athlete to gain more strength and rest between sets (they are not doing as many reps). You can use a kettle bell with chains or weighted vests to load. We do approximately 30-40 pounds.

Putting the Four Base Exercises Together

My basic philosophy is to do legs and back on the same training day. I learned this from Vern Gambetta. He believes that the back and legs are the bigger muscles and linked together. This makes working them both a matter of efficiency. We have one back/leg day when the squat is heavy and the dead lift light. The next workout, it is just the opposite—heavy dead lift and light squat. We would start with power clean, do the heavy/light squat/dead lift sequence and finish with pull ups. This is a great total body, multi-joint program done in a very time-efficient matter. On the “chest” day, we do a push press, the bench press, plyo push ups (super setting) and finally, shoulder presses. This is a program for position players whose shoulder concerns are less of a factor. Pitchers are more sensitive about doing overhead lifting, such as the shoulder press. I believe that done correctly, the shoulder press does not create shoulder impingement—improper throwing does. I should also point out that high volume in lifting should be discouraged.

I am not afraid to do any exercise as long as I trust the player to give me honest feedback and that the player is physically able to handle it. This goes back full circle to having base strength. You start the off-season with base phase strength for six to eight weeks and then add some of the other things such as agility, or plyo-type training. The base strength program is still done, but the volume decreases and the weight increases; the coach can use the agility work as part of warm-up. This is ideal because the athlete is fresh and can concentrate on their movement mechanics. Plyometrics can be done in conjunction with the lifting. We do super sets of squats with box jumps doing five to six reps, for example. We also do endurance work at the end of the workout.

Maintaining the Base

Strength work is less of a priority during the season, yet it is important to maintain it. I pick one of the Four Base exercises, the squat, which is the most important lift. Let’s say an athlete does 300 pounds for five reps starting in April. If the athlete can do 275-300 five times in September, the strength has been maintained. I give the players this long-term outlook. We adjust form based on how the season progresses.

The players with the best results in these four exercises are the ones who have the best vertical jumps indicating lower body power, the best 10-yard sprint for speed and the best 5-10-5 agility runs. The players who do the exercises and handle the weight are the ones who do best in these athletic skills tests. One of the things that I did in a research study with Jay Hoffman, PhD was to correlate slugging and on-base percentages with overall leg power. This study will be published in a scientific, peer-reviewed research journal later this year. At this time, the four players on the Rangers who are hitting over .290 are the ones who have vertical jumps over 28 inches and these are the guys who effectively do the Four Base Strength exercises. We tested players from the rookie league to the majors and the results are very interesting. This is an important first step to scientifically validate the relationship of strength training, lower body power and on-field performance. It is very exciting information and will give reason to make the Four Base Strength Program an important part of every player’s baseball and softball development.

Jose Vazquez PT, CSCS, member of the PBSCCS

Vazquez spent four seasons with the New York Mets and is now is in his second season with the Rangers. He served as the Mets’ Director of Rehab (2005) and was the club’s Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coordinator (2002-2004). Before joining the Mets, he was the Sports Physical Therapist at the Therapy Center in Knoxville, TN, and at Methodist Medical Center in Oak Ridge, TN. He co-founded TNT Sports Specific Training in Knoxville in 1988.

After earning second team All-American honors at the University of Tennessee in 1992, Vazquez was selected by St. Louis in the 42^nd round of the 1992 draft. He played professionally for three seasons as an outfielder for the Cardinals organization and for the Northern League’s Duluth club.

Article provided by Performance Conditioning Baseball/Softball www.performancecondition.com/baseballsoftball the Official Publication of the Professional Baseball Strength and Conditioning Coaches Society

A Long-Term, Comprehensive Approach to Developing Young Baseball Players

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:18 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Getting to First Base-Developing the Athlete’s Batters Box through the B.A.S.E.S. System

The five athletic skills are Balance, Agility (movement), Strength, Explosiveness and Speed, which I call B.A.S.E.S. It is critical to find a good starting point when developing the young baseball player. The young player will eventually need to address athletic development beyond the skill of baseball/softball or just lifting weights. The first and foremost starting point is Balance and core stability. Beginning strength training involves slowing things down. The same is true in hitting. The coach will tell the player to slow things down to gain control before moving to game-action bat speed. This begins the learning process of body control in preparation for moving through space and making changes in direction (Agility). Just as the pitcher and catcher are referred to as the “battery” on the field, Balance and Agility are the battery for further improvements in the most sought after athletic skills: Strength, Explosiveness, and Speed. Before moving around the bases there is no reason a young athlete should load their body unless they can stabilize their joints and move them properly. Then, first base will be developing Strength and Power, second base will be improving Explosiveness, and third base will be maximizing Speed. Through proper progression a youth athlete can reach their goals quicker avoiding unnecessary injuries.

Balance and core stability training begins the moment we are born but making further improvements as an athlete can start as young as eight to ten years of age. Seek the right professional in the athlete’s area who knows how to develop a young player, though this may not be easy. Do they have experience in the sport being trained (in this case baseball/softball)? Does the professional have the education such as a degree or formal certification through creditable organizations geared toward athletic development and not just personal training? Find out what sports they have worked with in regards to conditioning and if they have worked with children. Ask for a résumé. What are their goals for the young athlete? Also consider asking where they are going to start with your child. Will they test and which tests will they use to evaluate the young athlete? The final question is what the plan is based on the test results. If they do not talk about starting with balance and stability, it is time to walk away.

If the young athlete is in the eight-to-ten year range, training must also be fun. Simply lifting weights isn’t fun for eight-year-olds. Look for ways the athletic professional will incorporate fun activities such as playing with footballs, basketballs and soccer balls—not just a baseball or softball. They may not learn an organized sport, just something that will make them a better athlete. They should do sports that incorporate shooting, dribbling, and running to improve agility. Karate is great too! This coordination practice will improve power and speed without ever lifting a weight.

Proper Position-A Natural Progression

Once this base has been established, the natural progression is to add difficulty. So adding weightlifting is common but should only be to the point of being able to maintain the proper positions. Proper positioning makes the athlete more efficient, stronger and they will improve on-field skills as they develop. You don’t have to always increase weight to get stronger though. Other ways to get stronger without adding weights: 1) make the exercise more difficult by taking a leg off the ground, 2) perform the exercise for a longer duration, 3) speed the movement up a little bit.

Starting Exercises-The Athlete’s Batters Box

Through the careful planning and development, the young athlete can lay a good foundation to pursue their passion- lean and clean. The Athlete’s Batters Box is the area that must be concentrated on and developed from the very beginning (see Figure 1). The three areas that form the box are the scaps, spine and hips—the baseball/softball athlete’s core. Most people think abs are the core, but it is much more comprehensive. The first exercise is the iron lunge (Figure 2). This works the hips in the batters box for a stable, balanced position with no movement and hands to the side. The athlete holds this position for 30 seconds. Figure 3 shows the iron lunge with the arms extended, which is the first progression. This will be challenging for an eight-to-ten-year-old. For the spine aspect of the batters box, the first position is to get into the push up position and hold for 30 seconds (Figure 4). For the scap, we do a Retraction (pinching scaps together) and hold for 30 seconds in the extended position (Figure 5).

Now it is time to add movement. The iron lunge becomes a normal lunge; this can be walking or stationary. The next progression to add more strength and improve a youngster’s explosiveness would be split squat jumps (Figure 6).

The following progression is for the spine—a walking push up or bear crawl off the ground or using a Bosu ball (Figure 7). You can add difficulty to the scap retraction by moving through a range of motion similar to a bent over fly. Once this becomes easy then add light dumbbells (Figure 8).

These starting exercises form the foundation on the B.A.S.E.S. system. We usually start out by practicing movement over 15-20 reps and then we add weight and decrease to 10 reps. Sets vary from 1-3 sets for each drill or exercise depending on the time of year and experience level of each athlete. Big Leaguers are always incorporating simple movements and doing body weight exercises to help their performance. Starting at an early age with proper progression is the key to the success of the young athlete to establish a lifestyle that is lean and clean.

Javair Gillett, Major League Strength Coach, Detroit Tigers

Fueling Tactics Three Winning Steps to Performance Eating- Step Three-Select A Lean Protein Source

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:18 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Dave Ellis, RD, CSCS, PBSCCS Advisory Board Member, Colorado Springs CO

Dave Ellis is an accomplished Sports Dietitian and President of Sports Alliance, which provides consulting services to athletics and the food industry. Dave has earned a reputation as a pioneer and leader in the field of applied sports nutrition and is celebrating his 25th year of practice athletics in 2006. As the Director of Performance Nutrition support services at the collegiate level (20 years combined – Nebraska and Wisconsin Universities), Ellis orchestrated the most highly evolved performance nutrition and body composition support service models in the country. Dave also Chairs the Nutrition, Metabolism & Body Composition Special Interest Group of the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA) and is an advisor to the Professional Baseball Strength & Conditioning Coaches Society (PBSCCS) Advisory Board, USADA and the Taylor Hooton Foundation.-ed

The second step revealed how carbohydrates are an important part of fueling tactics. Also presented was the fact that all carbohydrates are not created equal. In nutrition you have to think about the meals at home and on the road, and be involved with keeping a team or your athlete fueled throughout the year. It becomes a tactical experience of management. Fueling tactics is a three-step system. Every time we write a menu, whether we’re eating at home or on the road, these three steps are accomplished with regard to the food items offered at the meal. Before moving to step three be sure to review the information presented in step two. Fueling tactics is all about supporting the athletes through the rigors of the day-to-day, week-to-week, and month-to-month training. If the athletes have less down time due to illness, better energy levels and faster rates of recovery they will have the potential to outwork the competition. Smart work, and more of it.

This is the step that most Americans are dialed into with the new food labels that focus on fat grams. Fat has been focused on because it yields about twice as many calories as carbohydrates or protein, not to mention the well documented relationship with heart disease and some forms of cancer. That is why Americans have been trying to cut fat by selecting leaner protein sources. We have classified protein sources as “Best Choice Proteins” if they have 10 grams of fat or less per serving while “Third Choice Proteins” have over 21 grams of fat per serving.

Choosing Protein Sources

On active days athletes have more room in their diets to eat a higher fat protein source from Second or “Third Choice Proteins”. On inactive days athletes who are trying to lower their calorie intakes predominately stick with “Best Choice Proteins”. We typically avoid slow digesting Third Choice Proteins at pre activity meals and instead stick with smaller servings of faster digesting “Best Choice Proteins” that are not highly spiced or smoked.

In addition, we typically eat our last meal two to four hours before intense workouts. Athletes in training have higher protein requirements and need to distribute a variety of protein sources throughout the day. To make it easier for an athlete to understand how much protein to eat, we have.gunnertechnetwork.comeloped a table that illustrates how much solid animal protein, dairy and vegetable protein they need on a daily basis. Many of our male athletes tend to over consume animal protein sources and lack the diversity we are looking for from dairy and vegetable proteins like beans or soy protein isolates.

Vegetable Alternatives

The best quality vegetable proteins come from beans, primarily soy beans. The health benefits of soy protein are quite unique and varied when compared to animal and dairy proteins. The amino acid profile is also well suited for athletes as it contains a

high concentration of branched chain amino acids, glutamine and arginine. This critical cluster of amino acids keeps showing up in research that looks at the protein requirements of hard working populations. The high digestibility of soy protein isolates makes them the most popular way to get bean protein vs. dealing with the combustible nature of whole beans.

Protein Timing

The reason we ask athletes to distribute their protein intake among these three sources throughout the day is to help keep our athlete’s capacity for work high, while helping the efficiency of recovery. We all know what it feels like to skip meals, then over eat later. We feel like we need to take a nap, like after eating at Thanksgiving.

Starving all day and then over eating at night will not only lower your energy level, but also set your body up to store fat more efficiently. Athletes are better off eating smaller amounts of food more frequently to avoid energy lows, while continually supplying the raw materials into the blood necessary for the never ending recovery process that athletes endure.

Putting it all together

All the menus we write for our athletes offer a variety of foods from each of these three steps. To make it easier for our athletes to select foods from all three steps we actually have three separate buffets. We group and merchandise Step #1 food first in the buffet, Step #2 foods second and Step #3 foods in the last. Foods are also labeled so the athletes can see exactly what they are getting with regards to being a good source of vitamins A,C or E or a best, second or third choice carbs or protein. This approach also makes it easy for parents to pull together pregame meal buffets by assigning some parents one item from each step and then building a buffet in order. Amazingly enough, just the order athletes see the food in a buffet can impact the quality of the meal they build even if they have learned these Three Winning Steps on the Performance Meal Guide Poster.

Maybe it is now easier for you to see the shortfall that constantly eating from vending machines or fast food drive throughs can create for athletes. A number four, at the drive thru diet, just isn’t going to cut it on a daily basis. Take the time to use the Three Winning Step Shopping List so you can build healthier meals at home or pack them to go.

Creating Good Sleep/Recovery Habits on the Road

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:17 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Dave Ellis, RD, CSCS, PBSCCS Advisory Board Member, Colorado Springs CO

After spring training is over and you hopefully came out healthy and with your baseball skills sharpened, the long march towards the divisional championships begin. Now at the big leagues some long trips await the teams who live in cold climates as they try to avoid bad weather that potentially awaits them back home. It’s a tough way to start off the season after the relative comfort of day trips during spring training. Without a doubt travel is over-rated when it comes to sports.

One of the biggest problems is the lack of quality rest that occurs on the road. For many athletes not sleeping in their own beds can slow recovery as the quantity and quality of their rest is compromised. When we get to the deepest phases of rest (called non-REM sleep) some valuable recovery occurs as we naturally pulse growth hormone. Every time these athletes compromise the quality of their rest by 90 minutes they miss a cycle of growth hormone induced recovery that in time takes it’s toll as this sleep-recovery debt accumulates.

It’s a good idea to try and bank sleep when traveling. We do this by going to bed early knowing that the stresses of travel itself along with the grind of the hours on the field will demand extra rest. That means setting the stage for sleep by knocking down stimuli in the hour leading up to lights out.

• Pass on any caffeine sources after 4 PM or earlier if you are very sensitive. This includes soft drinks and chocolate.

• For most athletes this means turning off the video games or checking out of the card game that can have you adrenaline pumping and leave you staring at the ceiling.

• Dim the lights and start dialing down high tempo music for soft melodic tunes, designed to induce relaxation. You can find dozens of these types of DVD’s in any good book or music store.

• It’s not a bad time to read or journal just before bed. If you journal reflect on things that you did that support immune health, energy and recovery:

-Rate the quality of your rest (1-5 w/ 5 being the best) from the night before and how you felt when you woke up and how long it took to clear your head and get your motor skills on point when you got to the park.

-Did you eat every four hours and did the meals contain fresh produce for immune health, fiber rich starch for energy and diverse sources of protein (animal, dairy and vegetable) to facilitate tissue remodeling?

-Did you drink 3-4 liters of water/sports drink over the course of the day’s activity?

-Reflect on your performance and competitive drive on the field for the day and your mood when dealing with teammates and coaches.

In time you will start to connect the dots with poor rest, diet, hydration and poorly focused-slow starts, dead legs and sluggish finishes. You might get away with one reckless day, but two in a row will takes it toll and when alcohol or drugs are involved you can bet one day will put you in the tank. So be honest in keeping track of how often you use alcohol and how it impacted you mind, body and spirit. Choose the company you keep carefully if you see a trend where recovery is compromised. Running with the pack might seem like the thing to do, but when the pack is ridding pine, sick, injured or cut, the pack will not amount to a hill of beans.

Sleeping on planes, buses and in vans is rarely as refreshing as when we are in a quiet room in a good bed so plan on being on your best behavior from a life style and diet stand point. The stresses of travel demand that you give something back that improves recovery, not add to the stress with an undisciplined social life where those around you dictate everything from your rest to your diet.

Certainly this is easier said then done on the road. It gets even tougher when you are in the minor leagues and trying to rest on long bus rides and survive on some very limited visiting club house spreads and daily per-diems that only fit the budget at the drive through. Some teams will work hard to make the best of a bad situation when traveling by designating someone (typically trainer or strength coach) to travel with a portable food supply that athlete can fall back on when the cheap white bagels and cream cheese are the only breakfast items or a vending machine is the only PM snack.

In the end if you just wander through your athletic career living off caffeine in the AM and binge eating when your stomach starts growling after batting practice and again after the game, your baseball career is going to be short lived. Soon you will look in the mirror and see the body of the guy next door who mowed his yard in his Bermuda shorts and on a boiler hanging over his belt, sweating like he had dynamite strapped to his body. Sad to say there is not shortage of these old man bodies in the sport of baseball. I will let you guess at what position we see more of these bad bodies. So don’t let in-season travel get the best of you this season. Being average won’t get you much when it comes to travel.

Fueling Tactics 3 Winning Steps to Performance Eating- Step One-Stress Reduction Through Natural Sources of Vitamin A, C, and E

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:17 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Dave Ellis, RD, CSCS, PBSCCS Advisory Board Member, Colorado Springs CO

In nutrition you have to think about the meals at home and on the road, and be involved with keeping a team fueled throughout the year. It becomes a tactical experience of management. You have to really be able to look into the future and see how the team is moving and where they’re moving and have a bit of an instinct to make the best recommendation to get them well-fed and hydrated to and through the ensuing competition and the training that comes before. So, fueling tactics as a topic really makes a lot of sense for the applied sports nutritionist, somebody who really works in an applied setting with athletes, becoming a tactician to some degree. Subsequently, that’s how the idea of fueling tactics began.

Philosophies Behind Fueling Tactics

Fueling tactics is a three-step system every time we write a menu. Whether we’re eating at home or on the road, these three steps are accomplished with regard to the food items offered at the meal. Educationally, the athletes are taught how to selectively think about these three steps, evaluating their plates and trays as to how well qualitatively they have done in selecting a meal that satisfies these three steps. To make it easier, we have divided the foods at our training tables so that they are merchandised in three separate buffets which distinguish each of these three steps. That is a tactic which makes it easy for us to see who’s got room for improvement in their eating habits rather than having to get the athletes write down what they’re eating. By watching them use the three buffets you can see the weaknesses in their diets. It becomes obvious and you are literally doing online quality management, doing dietary assessment based on just the kinetics of their moving through the three buffets. That is necessary in a situation where you are dealing with a large number of athletes who are eating with the repetitious nature that they do in collegiate athletics. Stopping and getting dietary recalls for the amounts these individuals eat is very cumbersome, so this makes our initial assessment process on a qualitative basis of what they are eating simple.

It is easy for us to target what the weaknesses of the athlete are as far as their diets and eating habits and then start working on those individual issues as well as those involving the overall food supply, which keeps the diverse number of international athletes that we have happy, which is not easy. Fueling tactics is really about food, and making it simple for people to understand the complexities of eating in a system that is one, two, three as far as its simplicity. It has really worked well and we have had a lot of people emulate it over time.

Downloading Training Table Principles for Coaches and Parents

Once you have a chance to review the simplicity of the three step fueling tactics you will see just how often we come up short when defaulting to the food supply that surrounds us daily. It is not uncommon for us to see better eaters from families who still eat together and have some structure at home vs. those who default to the drive through. So it is important for parents to understand this approach to eating so they can shop and build meals that fit the bill at home. It would even be helpful to play a bit of a game by having family members try and classify which foods apply to each of the three steps. It will very important for parents and coaches to instill in the minds of the young athletes that just because everyone around them is defaulting to the drive through doesn’t mean it is the right thing to consistently practice, especially for a highly stressed athlete. In addition it is a good idea for a group of parents to organize a rotating schedule where you are assigned to bring certain items from the three-step philosophy in an effort to provide pregame meal and if playing in a tournament, just as importantly, a post-game meal. Optimally we look to eat pregame meals about 3-4 hours before competition. Quite often in amateur athletics the ability to provide this level of structure can be limited by demanding schedules and limited resources. Hopefully, between the exposure at home and with sports the athletes over time will really start reaping the benefits that nutrition has for them. This is only possible however with the consistent application of these three fueling tactics. Just focusing on the meal before competition is really not going to get it done. Fueling tactics is all about supporting the athletes through the rigors of the day-to-day, week-to-week, and month-to-month training. If the athletes have less down time due to illness, better energy levels and faster rates of recovery they will have the potential to outwork the competition. Smart work, and more of it.

Step One-Stress Reduction Through Natural Sources of Vitamin A, C, and E

The first step in fueling tactics is that we want people to incorporate fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds into their meals. What we want from these foods are natural sources of antioxidants which are found in abundance in fresh food. These foods are loaded with natural antioxidants like Vitamin E in nuts and seeds, Vitamin C in fruits and some vegetables, Vitamin A in the form of caratenoids that we get from vegetables and some fruits and a host of compounds called bioflavanoids with similar antioxidant properties. Those are all nutrients that are known to have antioxidant properties, and antioxidants are things that help scavenge reactive oxygen and nitrogen species called free radicals. These nasty things are by-products of stress.

What most people don’t understand about hardworking athletes is that they are a healthy population, but they are under tremendous stress, the most obvious being the physical work they endure on a daily basis as a result of their training. The metabolic by-product of their hard work is going to produce an insult of free radicals. If we don’t have a diet that is adequate relative to the work load in these antioxidants from these good sources of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, then we are going to have an athlete who is more vulnerable to the cumulative stress of their training, which begins to degrade the integrity of tissue, and that breaks down on a functional basis. First this happens peripherally in the muscle doing the work as a natural start to the inflammatory signaling process that initiates healing. If the insult is too great and too frequent that results in a systemic response that is indicated by the monocytic production of cytokines which can lead symptoms characteristic of overreaching, overtraining and a compromised immune status. It’s the natural inflammatory process that can potentially go too far. Factors that are indicative of who is more prone to suffer a systemic inflammatory insult definitely involves controllable factors such as diet and lifestyle.

What we see as the first manifestation of a weak fruit, vegetable, nut andseed eater is that they get upper respiratory illnesses quite easily. This is very common to athletes. If they are under stress and not eating these foods, one of things that is affected is their immune system. It knocks their work capacity down and it knocks them out of training and academic participation, which always puts them behind. We can’t afford that especially in the off season when there are small windows for adaptations. Some sports have only one annual widow of opportunity for adaptations for off season gains. If that athlete is sick half the time, I can promise you they will fall significantly behind over the course of their career. That could be the difference between being first, second or third on the depth chart, not making the team at all or losing your scholarship. Athletes cannot afford to have unnecessary downtime because of a vulnerable immune system. Stress is not only metabolic work, it’s also affected by environmental conditions. Heat, cold, pollution and environmental stresses all contribute. If an athlete trains in a heavily polluted area, that is also another stress source. Visual distractions and loud noises can also contribute, such as being in a tournament situation. You also have metabolic and emotional stresses. Athletes who are worried about their position on the depth chart and maintaining their scholarship, ensuing competitions, academics (especially at the end of the semester), all are stressor situations that produce these free radicals. In addition, they are human beings and have stress in their personal lives. Athletes have very high levels of stress that can come from all angles. It can be overwhelming and build up over time during the long grind of the season. The athletes who did not grow up eating fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seed and who express a greater amount of stress-inflammatory response are definitely more vulnerable when a virus makes it’s way through a campus. For those who are doing the three-step dietary program, especially step one hopefully we can minimize the down time. Being taken down for a day or two is much better than missing a week or more.

Vitamin A, C and E Supplements

In a pinch, you might be able to reduce the stress of not having fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds in the diet by taking supplements. But in the long run, you never want to bank replace fresh food form sources. There is so much going on in these foods we don’t understand physiologically and biochemically. No matter how sophisticated the dietary supplement is, it most likely lacks something that exists in our food supply. Also, anytime

food is canned or frozen for a long time, the nutrient yield diminishes. Fresh foods require shopping, cooking, chopping up, etc. but are worth the work considering all the nutrients they bring into our diet. This is a return to the times when some shopped for the family weekly and people ate at home together as a family. We have become dependent on a ready-to-eat food supply that tolerates little loss of profit due to spoilage of fresh produce. Vendors are more likely to sell foods that they can pull from the freezer prior to cooking.

All stressed people could benefit from some higher standards when it comes to step one. Athletes for sure need to have higher standards because of the stresses they endure, and that is why there are training tables. But don’t worry. You can do this at home at some restaurants, and even some fast-food establishments, like a sub shop.

Eating Practices

Breakfast is typically a good time to get the sources of fresh fruits. We try and get our athletes to lean toward those fresh fruits as sources of Vitamin C, particularly those heavily pigmented fruits, such as cantaloupe and tangerine, which also have Vitamin A. Because most people don’t find nuts and seeds palpable in the morning, it’s a bit harder to get that Vitamin E intake. For lunch, salads and sandwiches are appealing. Dark greens are desirable, as are nuts and seeds on a salad. Also, the oils from the salad dressing are excellent sources of Vitamin E, so there is such a thing as good fats. For dinner, cooked vegetables are available to the athletes for a source of Vitamin A activity. Dark (red, green, orange) pigmented vegetables, such as squash, cooked greens, asparagus and fresh snap beans. Athletes love the nuts and seeds as quick and healthy snacks en route to class. This brings me back to my point that not all fats are bad. The fat-o-phobia among Americans these days has left the athletes vulnerable to not taking in enough of the good fats listed under the vitamin E sources on the three step poster. Athletes have a tremendous potential to dispose of calories from monounsaturated vegetable fats so don’t shy away from them. Sunflower seeds are the most concentrated Vitamin E source and like fruits are portable, so they are easy to eat on the go.

We are more likely to have success getting our worst fruit and vegetable eaters to try watermelons and tangerines first. Jumping right to the tomatoes may be a bust. But if they can start eating soups, marinara sauces and salsa, they can eventually move up the more heavily pigmented vegetables that are so rich in antioxidants. For a full list of foods high in vitamins A, C and E refer to the accompanying step one of the performance meal guide poster. You will see a list called “High Priority Sources of A & C”. These foods deliver a good source of both antioxidants from one food so they are a priority for the athlete who is just learning to eat these foods. For the chronically training athletes, we fortify antioxidants into the sports drinks as they are training. This is a fueling tactic that yields antioxidants into the blood stream relative to the stress insult. The more stress the athlete is under, the more consistently they should fulfill step one when eating.

Measuring and Preventing Glenohumeral Internal Rotation Deficit (GIRD) in Pitchers

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:16 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Several studies show that the dominant arm in baseball throwers have increased external rotation and decreased internal rotation compared with their non-dominant arm. (4,5) This loss of internal rotation on the throwing arm compared to non-throwing arm is defined as GIRD, or glenohumeral internal rotation deficit.

For measurements of glenohumeral internal rotation, the athlete is placed in the supine position with the humerus abducted to 90 degrees. A towel roll was placed under the distal aspect of the humerus maintaining the humerus parallel to floor. The elbow is flexed to 90 degrees and the humerus is internally rotated until the coracoid begins to move. The measurements are made using a goniometer with a bubble level indicator. Please consult with a qualified medical professional in order to obtain results from this objective test (Figure 1).

There is a big debate in the sports medicine field regarding GIRD and it being caused by capsular, muscular, and osseous (bony adaptation) or a combination of all three adaptations. Due to these stresses placed on the shoulder during the throwing motion, previous studies have revealed that adaptive changes occur within the humerus know as humeral retroversion. This allows for greater shoulder external rotation and less internal rotation as compared to the non-throwing shoulder. (8)

We, as athletic trainers/physical therapists, can affect motion if caused by either capsular or muscular tightness. Some believe that a posterior inferior capsular contracture.gunnertechnetwork.comelops due to repetitive distraction causing micro-trauma in tension during the follow-through phase of throwing. This occurs due to Wolf’s law, the SAID principle, as glenohumeral distraction force is equal to or greater than the pitcher’s body weight. (6) Others believe that due to the high eccentric activity of the posterior cuff during the follow-through phase of throwing, this may cause a rise in muscular tension and an associated loss of internal rotation range of motion. (7) Competitive overhead throwing athletes perform at the extremes of glenohumeral motion and place tremendous repetitive stresses on the shoulder.

Regardless of what causes this deficit, this contracture produces altered glenohumeral kinematics that may lead to injury. There is also debate on how the humeral head is altered due to GIRD. One theory, due to the posterior shoulder tightness, the humeral head translates anteriorly during end range cocking phase applying stress to the posterior rotator cuff. This may also place increased stress on the anterior capsule causing symptomatic anterior instability. In contrast, others believe the posterior capsular contracture with decreased internal rotation does not allow the humeral head to rotate externally into its normal postero-inferior position in the late cocking phase of throwing. The decreased internal rotation caused by this posterior capsular contracture causes a posterior superior obligate migration of the humeral head in maximum external rotation. The posterior superior shift causes the SLAP lesion via the peel back mechanism. This may predispose the thrower to an internal impingement type injury. Continued internal impingement leads to deepening of the tear and extension of delamination. Further microtrauma, or continued throwing, may produce a full thickness rotator cuff tear. (1)

What we, the San Francisco Giants Medical Staff are doing are measuring all athletes at the beginning of spring training as well as the end of the season. If athletes have a GIRD of 20 degrees or more (Figure 2), we mandate them receiving hands-on stretching at the beginning and the end of each day. If an athlete has a GIRD of 18-20 degrees, we have them perform the sleeper stretch regularly and then re-measure in 3 weeks time. If their GIRD is less than 18 degrees (Figure 3), they are no longer required to stretch regularly, just perform the self sleeper stretch. Over the past 2 years, our organization has decreased our shoulder surgeries by 76% by implementing a more regimented, required stretching program.

We have noticed that new draftees signing with the Giants organization, from either college or high school, have increased GIRD measurements. A regimented stretching program for baseball players with greater than 18 degrees of GIRD to be stretched prior to throwing as well as after throwing at the collegiate and high school level may prove to decrease career ending injuries to the shoulder. It is our goal to not allow an athlete to throw until his GIRD measurement is less than 18 degrees.

A recent study published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, notes that GIRD maybe associated with elbow valgus instability as well. That being said, an internal rotation stretching program at the high school and collegiate levels may also assist in preventing the epidemic of ulnar collateral ligament injuries. Their has been a big push by sports medicine specialists limiting pitch counts, not allowing curve balls to be thrown at the little league level, etc. I would like to see a shoulder internal rotation stretching program at every high school and college training room in order to allow our young athletes to stay healthy and dream big. O

More Information Please!

Please email Ben Potenziano with any questions at bpotenziano@sfgiants.com.

References

Lintner, David, Mayol, Magdiel, Uzodinma, Obinna, Jones, Rex, and Labossiere, David. Glenohumeral Internal Rotation Deficits in Profressional Pitchers Enrolled in an Internal Rotation Stretching Program. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2007; volume 35, No. 4: 617-621.
Dines, Joshua S., Frank, Joshua B., Akerman, Meredith, and Yocum, Lewis A. Glenohumeral Internal Rotation Deficits in Baseball Players with Ulnar Collateral Ligament Insufficiency. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2009; Volume 37, No. 3: 566-570.
Reinold, MM, Wilk, KE, Macrina, LC, et al. Changes in Shoulder and Elbow Passive Range of Motion After Pitching in Profressional Baseball Players. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2008; Volume 36: 523-527.
Crocket, HC, Gross, LB, Wilk, KE, et al. Osseous Adaptation and Range of Motion at the Glenohumeral Joint in Profressional Baseball Pitchers. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2002; Volume 30: 20-26
Reagan, KM, Meister, K, Horodyski, MB, Werner, DW, Carruthers, C, Wilk, K. Humeral Retroversion and its Relationship to Glenohumeral Rotation in the Shoulder of College Baseball Players. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2002; Volume 30: 354-360.
Morgan, Craig. Presentation at ASMI Injuries in Baseball course 2003.
Reinold, MM, Wilk, KE, Macrina, LC, Sheheane, C, Shouchen, D, Flesig, GS, Crenshaw, K and Andrews, JR. Changes in Shoulder and Elbow Passive Rom of Motion After Pitching in Profressional Baseball Players. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2008. Volume: 36; 523-527.
Crockett, HC, Gross, LB, Wilk, KE, Schwartz, ML, Reed, J, O’Mara, J, Reilly, MT, Dugas, JR, Meister, K, Lyman, S, and Andrews, JR. Osseous Adaptation and Range of Motion at the Glenohumeral Joint in Profressional Baseball Pitchers. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. 2002. Volume: 30; 20-26.

What to do with GIRD information?

The previous overview provides coaches, players and athletic trainers with more information on how they can assist their players. The coaches should assist their players with an intervention plan of sleeper stretches as well hands on stretching if an Athletic Trainer is available.

The San Francisco Giants stretch all their players that are red flagged. These players are stretched by the Athletic Trainer or Physical Therapist on staff. Those players that have been noted as being tight are taught how to perform the sleeper stretches on their own. We advise them to stretch prior to stretching and after their session. The sleep stretch in our opinion is a valuable component of our overall shoulder program. We have seen a decrease in shoulder injuries since implementing the program throughout the system. The Giants medical staff believes this is an important part of a throwing program for a high school athlete to a professional baseball player.

There are several stretches that we perform and the Internal Rotation Sleeper Stretch will be the first that is shown. The athlete performs this stretch while he/she are lying on their dominant throwing side. Let’s assume this player is right handed. They would lay on their right side with their arm at 90 degree with their body over their shoulder. They would push their wrist downward. Be sure to hold the stretch for a minimum of 20 seconds and a minimum of 5 times/day. The athlete should feel the stretch in the posterior shoulder. I have included the photos so you can see exactly how these stretches are performed.

The other stretches that have been added are the Pectorals Minor and Major stretch. We also include an elbow stretch which you will see in the final two pictures. They are Elbow Extension stretch which can be done with a bat and a dumbbell. The dumbbell stretch should be done with a towel under the elbow. The dumbbell should not weigh more than 5-10 lbs.

The San Francisco Giants Medical Staff has been applying these stretching methods throughout our system and have seen significant gains.

We recommend an Athletic Trainer or Physical Therapist perform these stretches.

If you were told you have tight internal rotation of your shoulder, perform the following stretches and follow-up with us for new measurements in 2 weeks to track your progress. If you have any questions regarding proper form, please ask a trainer to assist.

Internal Rotation Sleeper Stretch In side lying position with arm up in range of 75 -110 degrees with elbow bent to 90 degrees with body leaning over shoulder, push wrist down with opposite hand. Hold stretch for 20 seconds and perform minimum of 5 times/day. (Especially important to perform before and after each throwing session)

Pectoralis Minor stretch Place half foam roll on table, line up foam roll with spine and lay on top allowing your shoulders to wrap around roll. Lay there for 5-10 minutes every day.

Pectoralis Major Stretch Stand in doorway and place front of shoulder and inside of bent arm on surface of wall. Position bent elbow around the same height of shoulder, lean into wall allowing shoulder to be pushed back. Hold stretch for 20 seconds and perform minimum of 3 times/day

If you were told you have limited elbow extension, perform the following stretches and follow-up with us for new measurements in 2 weeks to track your progress. If you have any questions regarding proper form, please ask a trainer to assist.

Elbow Extension Stretch In sitting position with towel roll just above elbow joint, grasp end of bat and push into elbow extension with other hand holding opposite end of bat. A variation of this stretch would be to hold a 5-10 lbs weight and allow to extend elbow. Hold stretch for 20 seconds and perform minimum of 3 times/day.

Ben Potenziano, M.Ed, ATC, CES Strength and Conditioning Coach

Ben Potenziano has been with the San Francisco Giants for 6 seasons. This is his fifth as the team’s strength and conditioning coach. Currently in his second stint with the Giants organization, he had spent five seasons overall in the club’s minor league system. He has previously served as head athletic trainer in the San Francisco system at short-season, single-A, double-A and the club’s affiliate in the Arizona Rookie League. He is a member of the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society and National Strength and Conditioning Association and the National Athletic Trainers Association. Ben is a graduate of the University of Maine at Farmington with a bachelor’s degree in Community Health Education and a Masters of Physical Education with a concentration in Exercise Science from the University of Maine at Orono.

The Major Responsibilities of Minor League Conditioning Coordinators: Developing Young Players

By bh | August 12, 2011 1:15 am | News, Training | Leave a comment

Sean Marohn, M.S. CSCS, Cincinnati Reds Minor League Conditioning Coordinator

Sean has served as the Cincinnati Reds Minor League Conditioning Coordinator since 2005. He coordinates all aspects of flexibility, strength, conditioning, and diet for the Red’s minor league system. In addition, he hires and supervises 6 strength coaches who are assigned to each minor league team. Among his duties is to move into each city minor league club to evaluate players’ health as well as the strength coach performance at that affiliate. Prior to becoming minor league coordinator he was strength and conditioning coach for the Reds AAA minor league team, the Louisville Bats. His duties included home and on the road strength training, agilities, flexibility, conditioning and rehabilitation.

Sean came to the Reds from the Pittsburgh Pirates organization where he was strength and conditioning coach for the Williamsport Crosscutters. In 2001 he served in the same capacity for the Milwaukee Brewers/Ogden Raptors short season A team. Sean earned a Master of Science degree in Human Performance/Sports Medicine from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. While at the University of Tennessee he assisted with.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment and training of athletes in the men’s athletics department and implemented training regiments for athletes.

PC: Sean please explain your duties as a minor league strength and conditioning coordinator since this is a relatively new position in the world of baseball.

SM: My position entails coordinating the strength and conditioning program, which includes strength, conditioning, flexibility, speed, and agility programs as well as dietary issues whether it be weight gain or weight loss. In addition, my staff including myself will physically evaluate players coming in whether they are 16-year-old Dominican players, kids from the states or collegiate four-year players coming from elite programs. Also, because of trades we might have a new player coming in from a different organization where the philosophies might be a little different. I need to see where they are coming from and implement what we are doing here in the Reds organization.

On another side of it, I hire six strength and conditioning coaches for our affiliates so each location has a strength coach. As the new coaches come in I introduce, teach, and implement our program with them. We have 30 days during spring training to do this. We know that coming in these new coaches have knowledge in the area of strength and conditioning. My job is to make sure they apply this knowledge to our program making the proper adjustments to what we want. As they leave to go to their particular locations, I make sure that they know their players and are implementing individualized programs based on individual needs.

PC: What are some of the challenges you face with such a diverse group of players ranging from young 16-year-olds to seasoned four year college players?

SM: The first thing we do is evaluate the players by doing some basic field tests. Table One outlines the tests and the standards we look for while Table Two provides some interesting comparative data of the progress of athletes from spring training to spring training.

This provides a basis of the type of athlete I’m beginning to deal with. The height and weight provide.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment data. We have kids coming in that are still growing and coming into their own. Once the testing is done we can see any deficits that are going on in the athletic parameters such as flexibility, speed, etc. We then start formulating a program for that individual. For the more.gunnertechnetwork.comeloped players we start refining what they have done in the past and address deficits based on their age or position. Here we get more position specific. We also communicate with our field managers, pitching and hitting coaches to see what they would like us to work on as well. It’s a combination of testing data and evaluation by the coaching staff that really is the seed of formulating a strength and conditioning plan and identifying what’s most important and where to start. For example, the younger players who have never lifted and are strength deficient we would start on basic functional movements and core stability before any type of large volume work is implemented. Once they get established with the basics we can move them on accordingly and at their own pace of.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment. In the area of weight we look an athlete’s ability to gain or lose weight and adjust accordingly based on our dietary plan.

PC: You may have athlete coming in with poor lifting and training habits and techniques that might create bigger issues than an athlete with no training background. How do you handle this challenge?

SM: Like anything else, we get kids in from programs that have provided strong mechanical backgrounds with excellent techniques for their athletes. Others may come from schools where the sheer numbers of athletes per coach make if very difficult to learn proper techniques.

Take the squat for example. I have to watch the athletes first. If they show any deficits, we immediately stop and go back to basics. We break it down starting with proper squatting technique in a squat with no weight, work on a physioball squat and leg press until I feel we can start loading the athletes. We have to restart and retrain that movement to make sure they are not putting themselves at risk for any type of injury.

SC: Since you have to identify early and late maturity levels with athletes coming in from a wide variety of backgrounds, how does the maturation process create a challenge for you in establishing your program?

SM: I look at growth in the first six or seven months (a full baseball season). If one shows huge growth spurts I know the maturation process is still occurring. With such an athlete we will be more conservative on the side of volume and loading. I’m especially tentative with the Dominican kids since they are generally unde.gunnertechnetwork.comeloped. If their maturation process hasn’t finished or has just begun, it changes the program drastically because you can tell in their movements that their body hasn’t caught up. We have had Dominican kids come in and they will grow two to three inches in one season and up to three to four inches in one full year! They may not look young but you have to be aware of at what stage of.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment they are in. A lot of this has to do with their nutritional background and their lack of accessibly sound nutritional practices.

Due in large part to training techniques and nutrition in this country, athletes can start to mature at age 13 or 14 and many are well.gunnertechnetwork.comeloped by the time they are 18. I witnessed this through my work at the University of Tennessee. With many of our Dominican kids their chronological age doesn’t match their maturation age.

PC: Tells us how testing fits in to all this. Is testing integrated into maturation determination?

SM: Testing is critical because, based on our historical data we know what deficits we have with each athlete. The kids we sign at an early age obviously have talent for this game. My role, once they get here is to build on that whether it is speed, power, lateral movement, etc. We focus on baseball skills such as acceleration to run down a ball or leg strength for the catcher and hip rotation power in the hitters. With the base data we immediately identify where we can enhance those baseball skill strengths.

PC: Do you keep data from year to year for comparison purposes and to create benchmarks for use in the rehabilitation process if injury should occur?

SM: Correct. Over time we are able to determine where athletes have excelled and where they might have deficiencies. Year to year and over multiple years we are able to gain good insight into the players. It’s also a great tool in that if an injury does occur it gives us the baseline numbers to tell us where we need to be in the recovery process.

PC: Let’s talk about your working relationships. It is obvious that you have a lot of people to work with. You have coaches at different levels for hitters, position players and pitchers. What challenges arise from this multi-boss scenario?

SM: The biggest thing to do when you sit down with coaches is to understand what their goals are for any particular player. I’ve been working with coaches since 2003 in the Reds organization and I’ve learned that in creating good relations with the coaches is to understand their point of view. This includes their concerns about certain.gunnertechnetwork.comelopmental issues and to make sure that you, as strength and conditioning coach, are able to communicate to them what is going to help a particular athlete overcome certain.gunnertechnetwork.comiancies that the coaches have pointed out.

Communication involves all the staff and not just coaches. I must understand what they are asking and answer their questions in a language they understand and can use. It’s important not to be too scientific in your response. They want to know what you are going to do and how they can effectively communicate this to their athletes. My job is to make sure everybody understands the programs being implemented. If you start using too many scientific term with kids coming out of high school or from the Dominican Republic you’ve lost them.

PC: With an individual athlete do you work with one coach or a multitude of coaches; i.e., position coach, hitting coach, etc., for that athlete?

SM: We have a field coordinator, a pitching coordinator, a catching coordinator, and a hitting coordinator, They are the first group I go to because obviously they have their certain groups that they work with. As I rove through the year in and out of all the affiliates, I touch base with the pitching and hitting coaches and managers to make sure they don’t see anything that needs to be worked on. If there is something we want to implement, I’ll communicate this issue back to the field coordinator and help to determine what we can do. I’ve created great relationships through the years and they know where I’m coming from. My job is to make sure everyone is in the loop. This most definitely includes the strength and conditioning coaches at these affiliates.

PC: How do you handle the issue of total workload and volume in a sport where activity and playing is almost constant month after month? And how do you coordinate baseball skill loading with conditioning loading in order to avoid overuse and over training?

SM: We are very aware of rest intervals. For athletes in peak shape I’ll give them the ability to take their heart rate during a workout for a 10 second interval. I give them a certain number, for example 24 to 27 heart beats in 10 seconds, which gives me a simple way of determining where I want their heart rate for a minute. This is for conditioning. If I want to increase the fat burning affect from training I’ll lower the expected or goal heart rate a little. For an athlete who is out of condition I can tell they are struggling, I’m not so concerned about the heart rate but rather the workload itself. A pitching coach might notice that after 35 pitches a player’s legs are starting to go and mechanics are starting to change a little. For that individual I start to get their conditioning levels up a little. In addition, a player’s position is of importance. For starting pitchers their workload is going to be very different than that of a reliever or for position players infielders are much different than catchers. I have to be aware of what each player’s workload is on the field. From there I adjust the conditioning as necessary to recover properly.

PC: What is the communication relationship between yourself and the major league strength coach?

SM: Matt Krause, our major league strength and conditioning coach, and myself have been working together since 2002. I’ve been very lucky in the fact that I have great communications with him. Within the 40 man roster I have 15 in the minor leagues. I’m in communication with Matt as to what goals he has in mind and what adjustment need to be made to meet those goals. Thus, once they get to Cincinnati they are on the right track that will benefit the team in Cincinnati.

PC: How does the program design element work? Is it top down or down to top? What are the lines of program.gunnertechnetwork.comelopment?

SM: The program philosophy for the Cincinnati Reds is the same from top to bottom—it’s just a matter of making adjustments to the individuals to fit within that philosophy and that program. So, when an athlete comes up through rookie ball all the way to the Big Leagues, everything is very familiar and very consistent. When a player gets to Cincinnati the program is not changing, it’s just a matter of making small adjustments as necessary. This avoids surprises and big changes.

PC: What is your overall philosophy?

SM: Our philosophy is very progressive in nature. The goal of each athlete is to increase strength, power, lean body mass, agility, flexibility and endurance, and baseball specifics. On the mental side, it’s an increase of self-confidence and mental toughness. Within the program there’s discipline, accountability, consistency and dedication to the program. These qualities are extended throughout each year over the long term and all in a positive, progressive manner.

PC: Let’s talk about dedication to program. Beyond the fact that these players are professionals and there’s a dollars and cents issue, how do you insure dedication?

SM: It’s all communication and trust. If athletes know you are there for them and have their best interests in mind, dedication will be there. It’s a matter of you being a strength coach who is available, accountable and consistent.

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