*SHOW TIMESTAMPS FEATURED AT THE END*
In this episode Gerry welcomes on Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds Pitching Coordinators Rob Hill and Eric Jagers.
To start, Gerry has the two take a look back at their own respective baseball careers and what went in to their training, preparation and development. Rob and Eric discuss some of the things they did and how much protocol has changed in just the last five to ten years. Stories such as Eric not seriously strength training until college and Rob trying to perfect his balance on a 2x4 in his room as a high schooler.
From there, the conversation shifts to the importance of strength training for rotational athletes & pitchers, and how beneficial sprinting can be to all athletes, even those who don’t particularly sprint for their sport.
Gerry then has Rob and Eric give some specific insight on pitch design and developing better, more effective pitchers and shed light on where the game of baseball is heading.
The show captures an overall great discussion for building powerful rotational athletes and more specifically discussed the present and future of developing elite pitchers.
All that and more on this episode of Muscles and Management!
Timestamps:
6:45 - Rob & Eric’s Intro
9:25 - Rob & Eric’s Pitching Training in High School
16:00 - Ridiculous Drills Growing Up
23.25 - Rob & Eric’s Strength Training as They Progressed
29:59 - Importance of Sprinting for Pitchers
35:00 - Coaches Who Weren’t Elite at The Sport
39:55 - Rob & Eric’s Experience at Driveline & It’s Progression
46:25 - Adjusting as a Trainer & Evolving
51:20 - Spin Rate & Why It’s Important
58:00 - Benefits of Being a Short Pitcher?
1:01:50 - Pitch Tunneling
1:07:40 - Mariano Rivera
1:13:05 - Velocity & It’s Importance
1:15:00 - Pulldowns: Why Do They Get Hate and How Their Benefits/Use
1:22:40 - Addressing High Gaps Between Pitching Speed & Pulldown Speed
1:25:50 - Getting to The Next Level Velocity-Wise
1:27:40 - Weighted Ball Training
1:37:10 - Balance of Strength & Pitching Programs
1:49:10 - Hate The Application Not The Variation
1:55:00 - Common Coaching Mistakes