The Player Performance Project

08/19/2022

Deceleration and why it matters ‼️💥⬇️

Stuff like run and guns, high intent mound throws, swinging hard and acceleration work is important and fun. It is important to train as far as the musculature, CNS and everything else needed to throw hard and teach our body to move fast. BUT athletes also have to be able to decelerate in order to have other parts of their body accelerate. Here’s a good example from

Watch him perform this pulldown. In the slow motion you can see him not be able to create a efficient lead leg block during his throw. This comes from some mechanical issues we talked about, patterning issues and most importantly deficient eccentric strength. (Especially in dynamic movements)

Now look at him perform this 1 step shuffle med ball shot put throw. We cued him to feel behind his front leg while also to rotate into and around the lead leg. During the medball throw you see him create a more effective lead leg block that in turn allows his upper body to accelerate rather than just jutting forward and only having momentum and force from the upper extremities to propel the ball forward.

Take it back to 2 months ago where Eddie couldn’t perform a “Shuffle Shuffle stop” drill. Which challenges him to shuffle as hard as he can and then stop on a dime in a wide stance position. While performing the exercise he complained of “tightness” and pain in his adductor which was really just weak adductors and poor deceleration ability.

This is a good example of why eccentric strength in combination with good deceleration is very important for athletes. Sometimes taking away momentum in order to allow the body to able to decelerate is important to clean up mechanics.

GO, GO, GO isn’t always the answer. Ensure you’re as strong or stronger eccentrically as you are the opposite way. 💪🏼

08/05/2022

in the lab working on a new breaking ball. Fastball, slider & change up mixed in here. Good arm side run on fastball and the new breaking ball has some good bite when executed. For his second time throwing it on a mound It looks pretty good. Getting feel for new pitches and learning his individual feel and focal points will help him land it for more strikes, but as of now he has it as an out/ chase pitch. Super excited to see him keep advancing. Someone scoop him. 6’3 170 pound 2023 LHP with a lot of room to grow.

07/16/2022

One week apart : 78.0 > 80.9

Another guy getting a pen in yesterday. This is only his second time on the mound in 5+ years. Last week he threw maybe 4 strikes all under 77 and topped out 78 with a ball.

Yesterday he sat 79-80 and topped 80.9. (We don’t round up). He also threw a lot more strikes and had some confidence while throwing. Mechanics are far from where they’ll be when the spring starts. Yesterday was about intent and learning how to organize the body to throw hard. I know people will see this and only see the balls he threw.
Intent days are meant to build velocity while exposing the body and CNS to new stress, and that’s exactly what we did.

I told Eddie last week he would be 82-84 off the mound this spring, if not higher. Last night he told me he initially didn’t believe me but, now he see’s it’s possible.

Believe in the guys you train and put them in positions to be successful.

Don’t be surprised when the boys at PPP are taking spots during the spring, sign letters of intent and moving to the next level of baseball. 🤝🏼

07/16/2022

Some clips from bullpen yesterday. Feely came in 6.5 weeks ago topping 71. A little timid to have intent while throwing. Last week he hit an PR of 73.

Yesterday Feely SAT his previous week PR. He went 8 pitches 73 MPH plus. He hit 74 twice and ran it up to 76.4.

What Feely has access to while training at PPP :
A well thought out strength and conditioning plan ✅
Nutrition plan to help weight gain ✅
High intent throwing days ✅
Low intent / Recovery throwing days ✅
Mechanical work ✅
Plyo work✅
A good environment to push him ✅

There’s even more that goes into what’s mentioned above.

❌If you aren’t checking the above boxes in your training, you’re doing yourself disservice.

If you’re tired of getting the same drills, told the same thing as everyone else. Don’t know what to do in the weight room, or you’re seeing 0 progress. Get with someone who knows what they’re doing and make strides in your game.

Stop being comfortable with being where you’re at ‼️‼️‼️

06/01/2022

Snippets of our compete day from Saturday.

We have our Low and high intensity/ volume days.

On compete days the guys get a lot of swings in, they swing hard, work on bat speed, approach and find what works for them in the box.

I’m in front of the mound here about 46 feet away from the guys. 60-63 mph fastballs equivalent to a low 80’s fastball. I’m mixing it up and trying to get these guys out. These days create a fun environment because there’s a little trash talk on both sides and most of all, it makes the guys better.

You’ll see early on I was in control of the younger guys. But as the at bats went on each guy got comfortable and made me come to them. (Normal BP and front toss doesn’t create this affect.) Towards the end you’ll see the guys catch some barrels and have some confidence in the box.

It’s hard to have this type of environment with one on one lessons or swinging at your house by yourself.

💪🏼 If you’re interested in a detailed hitting, throwing and lifting program tailored to YOUR needs. Follow the link in the bio to get started.

05/30/2022

Overload/ under load bats. With we implemented these heavy and light bats into his program. As he gets more used to using them we’ll increase his total swings with the under-load bat considering he profiles as a velocity deficient athlete. This will allow him to learn to rotate faster and increase bat speed which is something we want to work on this summer.

We’ll also use the end loaded heavy bat more than the handle loaded to make him feel more connected around his rear shoulder instead of him pushing the hands down into contact. In the clips you can see the end loaded bat he definitely has a more adjustable, connected and an overall better swing. Creating some stretch in the swing, rotating fast and dynamic effort in the weight room is the plan for the summer 👊🏼

05/22/2022

Some updates on some guys that have been working with PPP for the last year.

Will Plowden started with us after topping out at 83 MPH for 3 years or so and feeling stuck in his career because of not able to increase velo.
After 7 months of training we made some mechanical changes and got stronger. He went on to topping out at 87 during bullpens and receiving college offers to play at the next level. +5 MPH while still being able to really move the ball around the zone and pitch. He also went on to have a very successful senior year at DWS.

Brody Fuller a freshman at Schley County high school started with us last summer weighing in at 115 pounds, throwing 80 MPH from the outfield running a 6.6, sixty yard dash.
👉 Yesterday Brody ran a 6.5 sixty yard dash.
👉 yesterday Brody also threw 88 from the outfield and is weighing 20 pounds heavier at 135.
In one year Brody-
▶️Gained 20 pounds
▶️+8 MPH throwing
▶️Dropped .1 seconds off his 60 yard dash.
✅ Sounds like a good recipe for success.

Walker Flowers has been with us for one year and his career has been changed, and he will tell you that.
▶️+10 throwing velo
▶️+14 MPH exit velo
▶️Mechanical changes ✅
▶️ + 20 pounds.
Walker is now in a point in his career where he plays with a lot more confidence and is ready to make some noise and catch some college interest this summer.

Tucker Smith is a former teammate I played with in college. When he signed his Indy ball contract with the Lincoln Salt Dogs this past fall, him and I put our heads together with a plan. Tucker was the most dominant pitcher in the Peach Belt conference for 2-3 years but got overlooked because of his velocity. After his first year of Inday ball he was 89-91 touching 92. We made it a point to work on velocity training in order to catch more eyes and allow him to be a more dominant pitcher that had a big league fastball. We also had some mechanical changes made with his lead leg block and arm action. The better lead leg block allows him to not leak energy to his glove side. Also we worked on a little bit longer arm action which allowed him to time his arm cocking phase to use his pec more. This also helped to create some more horizontal abduction creating better stretch as well as better hip to shoulder separation.

Tucker started his first game with Lincon last week and popped some 94’s and an unofficial 95. This was his first game on the mound, so this is exciting because guys typically increase velo and have a better feel for their pitches as they settle in throughout the season.

▶️ + 2-3 MPH
▶️Better mechanics
▶️ Better mobility /stability

As you can see we have success in what we do and the methods we use. If you are looking to change your career or you want a program that takes the guessing out of your training, follow the link below to get started 💪🏼

The Player Performance Project. PPP offers fully detailed and individualized strength and conditioning, mobility, speed training, throwing, and hitting programs to athletes in house and remotely.

05/01/2022

https://youtu.be/Dwf_xh1XUXM

Walker Flowers talks about his time with PPP before he moves to Texas. He went from 167 lbs to 182 lbs within 5 months and has increased exit velocity 15 MPH. Since improving his mechanics, Walker has also seen an increase in his throwing velocity 5 MPH. Everything Walker has learned through PPP has helped him play a HUGE role in his high school team this school year. Wishing him the best and looking forward to continuing to work with him remotely.

*PPP does not own the rights to this music*

Walker Flowers talks about his time with PPP before he moves to Texas. He went from 167 lbs to 182 lbs within 5 months and has increased exit velocity 13 MPH...

03/25/2022

As we get farther into the spring season there are things we as ball players need to make sure they’re doing to stay healthy and on the field.

1. STAY IN THE WEIGHTROOM
- By this I don’t mean to rip PR’s every time you lift or do 10-12 reps per exercise. But ball players need to be in the weight room 2-3 times a week (depending on schedule and training age). Manage volume, intensities, etc depending on schedule and how you feel.
- Have a strength, a power, recovery all sprinkled in. Have some movement circuit days in there also.

2. Don’t forget your rows.
- Yes, everyone loves hitting chest and triceps. Remember to give your back and biceps love also. On the baseball field we spend a ton of time accelerating our arms and the baseball bat. Acceleration depends on a ton of muscles such as the torso, chest, triceps, Lats and more.
- Make sure you are teaching your body to be strong enough to decelerate and stabilize those muscles also. If our back, posterior shoulder, and biceps are to weak to decelerate our arm safely, you can run into some pain and risk causing some damage.
- The body will only allow you to accelerate as much as it knows it can slow down. (They don’t put V8’s in cars with bicycles brakes.)
- Everyone is a little different. To be safe, try to hit as much volume with rows are you are doing pressing exercises.

3. Mobility/ stability
- Keep the t-spine, hips, ankles, wrist and core mobile and stable.
We rotate a ton and push our joints to extreme ranges of motions. We have to have the mobility and the stability in end ranges to keep our joints safe. Just because you’re tired and on the field for a long period of time doesn’t mean you can’t hit a 15 minute movement circuit or mobility routine twice a week. This can be so crucial to guys who have lost mobility, seen a drop in velo, or are having some unwanted pain.