By Jonathan Massey-
A few weeks ago, I gave our Summer Program group a speech on the importance of recovery.
Here is the ideal in-season training model based on the famous Canadian track coach, Charlie Francis’ Supercompensation Model that I gave them…
Without getting into too much of the science behind this model, the reason it’s ideal is because a player spends his entire cycle gearing towards performing or playing in an above normal state.
By understanding the importance of this model, you can now begin to understand why players need an off-season. If a player is playing year-round, like the vast majority of players are, they are going to be continuously stuck in this in-season model and gearing up to perform their best on game day.
True development is already messy enough, but when a player tries to develop Monday through Friday and then go perform on Saturday, he more times than not will be left feeling extremely frustrated.
Frustrated because he knows he needs to perform well on Saturday so he can’t truly push himself the way he needs to during the week. Frustrated even more when he doesn’t perform up to the level he knows he can because he’s been working on changes during the week and his body is in flux between his old delivery and his new delivery.
Having a true 3-5-month off-season gives players an opportunity to work through the messiness of development and/or be able to work through the frustration of creating and ingraining mechanical changes.
I know it’s only the beginning of July and most are still knee deep in summer ball, but if you are a guy who is behind your peer group in velocity, command, development of a secondary pitch, or have significant arm pain, I urge you to eject yourself from this model by not playing fall ball. Take control of your own development because at the end of the day, you alone will be held accountable for your career.
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We believe The Texas Baseball Ranch® is a great place to focus on your individual priorities. We’d love to have you join us this summer and experience our hyper-personalized approach. There are 2 Elite Pitchers Boot Camp dates remaining on our summer schedule. More information is available at www.TexasBaseballRanch.com/events or call (936) 588-6762.
