Pinch Hit Friday #89: Young Hitters, Bat Speed, and Jump Tests

In this episode Eric discusses some common misconceptions about strength training for young baseball players. Strength and conditioning programs sometimes have come under scrutiny on social media as the cause of injuries in youth baseball players, but there are other variables at play. Thanks to today's sponsor AG1: AG1 is your daily foundational nutrition; it has 75 whole-food sourced ingredients designed to support your body’s foundational nutrition needs across five critical areas of health: energy, immunity, gut health, hormonal support, and healthy aging. It is the new and future way of getting a multivitamin, and a whole lot more - and in multiple flavors. Head to https://DrinkAG1.com/cressey and claim my special offer today – FREE travel packs, a shaker, and a 600-serving bottle of Vitamin D3+K2 – with your first purchase. I use AG1 daily myself and highly recommend it to our athletes as well. I’d encourage you to give it a shot, too – especially with this great offer.

In this episode Eric discusses a recent Korean youth baseball study that sampled youth baseball players ranging from ages 12-15. This study focused on the correlation between bat speed and a few different force production methods in these populations. Thank you to today's sponsor 1st Phorm. 1st Phorm is an awesome supplement company with a comprehensive product offering I enjoy using myself and with our athletes. Visit 1st Phorm and get free shipping on your order of $99 or more.

In this episode, Eric does rapid fire impressions on common recovery initiatives as they're proposed to him. Learn which approaches he finds the most beneficial for short- and long-term recovery and athletic success.This episode is brought to you by AG1. They’ve just upgraded the formula to AG1 Next Gen, which comes in a slightly larger size with bolstered vitamins and minerals and upgraded probiotics. They’ve completed four clinical trials on the formulation, and these clinical studies have demonstrated that AG1 improves gut health and addresses common nutrient gaps, even among healthy eaters.AG1 is your daily foundational nutrition; it has 75 whole-food sourced ingredients designed to support your body’s foundational nutrition needs across five critical areas of health:✅energy,✅immunity,✅gut health,✅hormonal support, and✅healthy aging.It is the new and future way of getting a multivitamin, and a whole lot more - and in multiple flavors. Head to https://DrinkAG1.com/cressey and claim my special offer today – FREE travel packs, a shaker, and a 600-serving bottle of Vitamin D3+K2 – with your first purchase. I use AG1 daily myself and highly recommend it to our athletes as well. I’d encourage you to give it a shot, too – especially with this great offer.

In this episode, Eric highlights the findings of a recent study on hip-shoulder separation and contact depth as they relate to bat speed in baseball hitters. This is a very nuanced discussion, so he shares insights on how to best interpret the data relative to player development initiatives. Thank you to today's sponsor 1st Phorm. 1st Phorm is an awesome supplement company with a comprehensive product offering I enjoy using myself and with our athletes. Visit 1st Phorm and get free shipping on your order of $99 or more.

In this podcast, Eric digs into the considerations you should have when evaluating where and who athletes should be referred to. A referral to a specialist is vital to athletic performance because this is where they will be spending a bulk of their time training and recovering, especially during formative years of their lives. A special thanks to this show’s sponsor, AG1. Head to https://DrinkAG1.com/cressey and you’ll receive an awesome welcome pack consisting of free AG1 travel packets, a shaker bottle, and a 600-serving bottle of Vitamin D3+K2 with your first order.

In this podcast, Eric digs in on why the timing of trunk rotation is so important for keeping pitchers healthy and helping them perform at a high level. Citing recent research on how early and late trunk rotators move differently, he highlights practical applications for players and coaches.A special thanks to this show’s sponsor, AG1. Head to https://DrinkAG1.com/cressey and you’ll receive an awesome welcome pack consisting of free AG1 travel packets, a shaker bottle, and a 600-serving bottle of Vitamin D3+K2 with your first order.

In this episode, Eric highlights a recent study on the sports medicine impacts of pitch count implementation in Japanese youth baseball.Thank you to today's sponsor 1st Phorm. 1st Phorm International is the premier supplement line in the industry. Head to https://1stphorm.com/cressey to get free shipping on orders over $75. 

In this podcast, Eric highlights the results of a recent Japanese study that examined the relationship between physical maturity and velocity and spin rate. There are some important implications for elementary, middle, and high school athletes.Thank you to today's sponsor AG1!Head to https://www.DrinkAG1.com/cressey and you’ll receive an awesome welcome pack consisting of free AG1 travel packets, a shaker bottle, and a 600-serving bottle of Vitamin D3+K2 with your first order.

In this episode, Eric sits down with Cressey Sports Performance - Florida Director of Pitching Austin Henrich. They discuss findings from the CSP-FL motion capture lab with amateur and professional pitchers, and how this technology can help different pitchers in different ways. Austin speaks to key long-term development strategies for youth pitchers, and how professional players can sometimes learn as much from amateurs as the young guys can pick up from the veterans.Thank you today's sponsor AG1. Head to DrinkAG1 and you’ll receive a free 10-pack of Athletic Greens travel packets with your first order. 

In this episode, Eric talks about the Pillars of "Athlete Diagnosis." In order to best serve an athlete, sports medicine and strength and conditioning specialists need to look comprehensively at a number of factors and work as a team. To illustrate, he shares a case study of an athlete with a history of shoulder pain and glenoid dysplasia and the entire associated process unfolded.Visit our sponsor, Ancore, and enter coupon code CRESSEY at checkout to save 10% on your order.