While upper body strength and skill training are a must in baseball training, making sure players train their legs is just as necessary.
Strong legs and core can make the distinction between throwing a ball that will just hardly make it across the plate and one that has extra force behind it.
Quick, explosive rotational movement is levered in pro and college baseball more than in any other sport.
Unfortunately, baseball is the sport with the most elbow and shoulder injuries because of these movements.
What if I tell you that those injuries can be minimized just by training legs?
Baseball players should avoid movements that put additional pressure on their shoulders because of the workloads they apply to them and rather concentrate on moves that decrease the chance of shoulder injury.
So, why are the legs so critical in a sport that appears to recruit mainly the upper body?
In my previous post, I discussed how fast MLB pitchers throw, and in this article, I’ll reference the significance of core and leg muscles in a baseball-training program.
Why it’s Essential to Train Legs and Core for Baseball
Through the years, many baseball players with outstanding upper body strength failed to execute pitches/throws with a corresponding portion of power behind them.
The evaluation of these players has revealed that, while their upper body is extremely well-conditioned, their core and leg strength is deficient.
Throwing by recruiting only the arms is one of the quickest ways to end the season early.
The shoulder complex is one of the most flexible joints in the body, allowing throwers to achieve the incredible range of motion required for throwing.
While this is advantageous when throwing, the joint’s increased mobility leads to decreased stability across the shoulder.
This means that while the shoulder joint has considerable mobility, it is not intrinsically stable enough to withstand the high velocity and force exerted on it.
As a result of the tension of “arm tossing,” the internal structures of the shoulder joint are frequently strained and overstretched.
We frequently encounter a shoulder that has been stretched so much from repetitive arm throwing that the player dislocates his shoulder due to a lack of stability, thereby ruining his baseball season.
If a player can balance his lower body and core strength with his upper body, he can reduce his risk of shoulder/arm problems.
In most circumstances, a stronger and more explosive baseball player is a better baseball player. Reps of 12-14 on single-leg workouts, on the other hand, won’t get you there.
Should you lift weights?
There are various baseball recovery weight training plans that emphasize single-leg weight training exercises for fear of injuring them if they perform something else.
It would be best if you lifted HEAVY weights to maximize total power.
Increased force generation ability often increases muscle contractile force and muscle motor unit recruitment performance with time.
Weight training forces the central nervous system to use more muscle fibers than it did when you first began preparing for maximum strength.
Consider the situation where you have the most powerful and demanding sports car engine but only have access to a fourth of it.
Weight training will increase total strength and make it easier to reach the powerful engine.
Legs and the “Follow-Through”
The force generated before and during the wind-up is generated in the legs when a baseball is thrown.
This force created during this phase must also be distributed elsewhere.
“Arm throws” tend to convey that extra energy through the rest of the arm, typically into the elbow, emphasizing the inner component.
This can result in aggressive stretching of the elbow ligaments and tendons. If this force is applied repeatedly over time, it can result in problems ranging from moderate tendinitis to ligament tearing.
This can be prevented by redirecting the force of the throw to the legs and core!
When a thrower has a strong core, it not only promotes shoulder joint stability but also absorbs and dissipates force from the throw.
Any throw follow-through should cross the body. “Arm throws” usually end before the follow-through.
By following through, the force from the throw is allowed to cross the body through the core and into the legs, where it is eventually transferred to the ground.
Throwers must be powerful throughout the path of the throw, and imagining a follow-through shows how this includes crossing the core and legs.
Your legs and core are the building blocks of your body (your body). You run the risk of the house collapsing if the foundation is weak!
To support the rest of the body and enhance your throws, strengthen the core and legs.
Best Leg Exercises for Baseball Players
Box Jumps
Why do it: The shortstop stance is one of the most active and difficult defensive positions in baseball, demanding explosive movements and, therefore, quickness and agility to play it well.
The move also helps with leg balance and stability.
How to do it: Standing in front of the box, bending your knees, and taking an athletic stance.
With your feet around hip-width apart, bend down with your knees and hips quickly and jump up onto the box.
Swing your arms as you jump up, hold the landing on top of the box, then slowly step off the box back onto the floor. Repeat for the number of reps.
Leg Cradle Workout
Why do it: This improves gluteal and hip strength, which are essential in catching, batting, and throwing.
How to do it: Squat while raising your right foot off the ground and standing on your left knee.
Place your right hand below your right knee and your left hand below your right ankle as you move your right knee to your chest.
Squeeze your left glute while bringing your right leg as close to your chest as you can. Then, take a right-footed step forward. Repeat for ten reps.
Barbell Front Squat
Why do it: The more squats, the better. Don’t stack a lot of weight but do a lot of repetition stuff when it comes to squats.
The front squat helps build strength in the quads, calves, glutes, and hamstrings, giving you extra power throughout your legs and lower body.
Your power is driven through his legs, which will allow extra strength on your swing after building your lower body.
How to do it: Stand with your hand and legs shoulder-width apart and grab the barbell in front of yourself with an overhand grip.
Raise your elbows with your arms parallel to the floor, resting the bar on the front of the shoulders.
Step away from the rack and let the bar rest on your fingertips. Squat down slowly, with your knees pointing slightly outwards.
When you reach the bottom of the lift, drive upwards back into starting position. Repeat for the number of reps.
Medicine Ball Rotational Throw
Why do it: This allows you to store and release energy from your hips, which is important when hitting a bat or pitching.
How to do it: Place yourself three feet away from a solid wall. Keep your grasp on the ball at waist level.
Turn your trunk 180 degrees away from the wall. Begin the throw by aggressively rotating your hips to the wall, followed by your trunk, arms, and the medicine ball.
Take the ball with one hand under the medicine ball and the other behind it, arms slightly bent.
Rep 10 times on each side, then switch sides. Increasing the weight of the ball will also aid in the development of muscular protein. Once you’ve completed all of these steps, everything will fall into place.
Lateral Bound
Why do it: To improve explosive lateral leg strength, which is important when running the bases and fielding.
How to do it: Standing balanced on the left leg with the right foot on the ground.
Squat slightly with your left knee, then leap laterally using your leg and glutes.
Extend your elbow, knee, and hip, then land completely on the opposing leg while maintaining your balance.
Rep on the opposing side. Hold each hand for three counts. Make ten sets of ten on each side.
What You Shouldn’t Do for Best Results
1. Don’t run long distances ● Sprint instead.
Pitching a baseball puts a tremendous strain on your central nervous system. As a result, you must train similarly.
Sprints are the ideal form of training stimulus for this, as opposed to long-distance endurance running, which teaches your body to become slow over time.
2. Don’t do static stretches ● Do active dynamic stretches instead.
Your muscles should have a stretch reflex, like a rubber band that releases stored energy when aroused.
By decreasing your stretch reflex response, static stretching limits your potential to be powerful.
3. Don’t do the leg press machine ● Do deadlifts instead.
Leg press machines aren’t nearly as effective as deadlifts, which are fantastic. When done correctly, the deadlift works your entire body.
This should be sufficient motivation to carry them out. The deadlift, in particular, works your hamstrings, glutes, erectors, rhomboids, and posterior shoulder muscles, which are all important for pitchers.
Pitchers must have a highly powerful lower body in order to hurl a baseball at high speeds consistently.
This assists them in developing the necessary torque in their hips for pitching motion.
Once their lower body has developed this power, a strong core will assist in transferring it up and into their arm for the throw. In addition, pitchers are protected from injury by strong and sturdy posterior muscles.
