With the baseball season just around the corner, spring training has gotten underway for everyone participating in the sport, from professionals to youth players. This is a critical time for players and coaches, as the level of spring training drills and preparation they are able to accomplish during spring training will certainly impact their ability to perform at a high level during the season.
Not only is individual skill training a priority during spring training, but strength and conditioning is also a primary focus for most teams, as players may have varying levels of fitness from their off-season workouts (or lack thereof). As players and teams try to ramp up their training, there’s no better training tool to help accelerate results than VertiMax. The VertiMax allows athletes to simultaneously enhance their physical conditioning while also developing their technique for their sport, making it a valuable addition to any team’s training regimen.
With that said, let’s examine some of the ways baseball players and teams can incorporate VertiMax into their spring training drills to help get them ready for the season.
Spring Training Drills For Every Position
Fielding Drills
Fielding is a universal skill for all baseball players, so it makes sense that teams and players should value developing their fielding skills. With the functionality that the VertiMax V8 or Raptor offers, players have the range of motion to work on their fielding technique while training the muscle groups that are important to the movement patterns needed when fielding. Let’s look at some of the different drills players should be doing during spring training with their VertiMax.
1. Field Ground Ball Drills
When getting started with spring training, players and coaches tend to start with the basics of the sport to really hone their technique. Fielding ground balls certainly falls under that category, as it may seem tedious, but building good habits with their footwork and throwing mechanics is essential to playing with efficiency. Here’s a simple but effective ground ball drill for players to work on their footwork, while also improving their lower body strength and quickness with the VertiMax resistance training system.
While the previous drill demonstrates the player’s ability to move laterally when using the VertiMax, this drill shows the VertiMax’s versatility to let the player move forward when fielding ground balls. The VertiMax’s capability to allow players to simulate game situations similar to this while training gives athletes a huge advantage. When players can drill technique, while also improving strength and conditioning at the same time, they are working smarter than the rest of their competition.
2. Field Fly Ball Drills
Chasing down fly balls is also a crucial skill that all fielders need to work on. With the VertiMax V8, players have a great way to build the hand-eye coordination required to shag fly balls, while also developing their quickness and ability to change directions. The video below shows how athletes can go about using the VertiMax for these drills.
Catcher Drills
Catchers need to have a little different skillset than other positions, as they really need to move quickly in short areas to retrieve balls in the dirt and generate enough force to throw the ball from potentially unorthodox positions. To develop their quickness and work on their ball skills, this catcher drill video demos some drills that players can go about build those skills.
VertiMax can also be utilized to help develop a catcher’s throwing motion. Take a look at the beginning of this catcher video, where the athlete works on his mechanics while using the VertiMax’s resistance on his lower body. This will really allow him to build his strength and generate a ton of power on his throws to second.
Pitcher Drills
Pitcher workouts should focus on refining the technique of their throwing motion, both from the wind-up and the stretch. Training the mechanics of a pitcher is extremely important, not only for improving effectiveness, but also to help prevent injuries.
For Example, the following pitching video shows how VertiMax V8 or Raptor resistance will greatly improve pitching power for players by training these 3 baseball mechanics:
✅ Enhancing hip mobility
✅ Developing linear & rotational power during strides
✅ Driving through with the lower body
In this pitching video, the athlete works on developing a different area of the throwing motion by attaching the VertiMax to his front foot. By performing exercises to build strength in his front foot, this will increase force production from his lower body, helping improve pitch velocity.
Another great drill pitchers can use to get them ready for the season is in this video, where the athlete isolates the upper body mechanics of the wind up. With the VertiMax attached to his wrist instead of lower body, the athlete works on the micro-movement of the wind-up, attempting to build strength in his shoulders and back. Not only will this contribute to increasing the power he can produce, but will also help with injury prevention by taking the stress of the throwing motion off the pitcher’s elbow.
And here is a good pitching video that puts the entire throwing motion together, where the athlete has both upper and lower body resistance from the VertiMax. This can help strengthen the entire movement pattern of the throwing motion, while also increasing stability and enhancing the fast twitch muscle fibers used by pitchers when they throw.
Hitting Drills
Hitters need to get back to basics during spring training and the VertiMax is a great way for players to developing their power and technique. To start off, hitters can use the attachments on their wrists to add resistance. As you can see in this video, the hitter uses the VertiMax on his top hand to increase the power that he generates, then on his bottom hand to enhance the mechanics of his swing. Building this symmetry in a hitter’s swing is critical and can be improved upon through resistance training.
Hitters can also do some exercises with VertiMax that increase the power and efficiency of the swinging motion and increase results. Here, the athlete swings in an upward motion, which helps develop power in both his upper and lower body. This can be an effective way to build strength without risk of comprising the mechanics of a hitter’s swing.
This exercise isolates the lower body mechanics of the swing by performing the turn of the hips with the VertiMax resistance at the waist. The lower body is essential to producing force in the swinging motion, so focusing on the movement of the lower body and improving the fast twitch muscle fibers can give hitters a huge advantage.
The VertiMax resistance training system is also great for developing the full swinging motion, as you can have both upper and lower body attachments while working on your swing. Here, the hitter has resistance on his hands and waist, which will enhance the power and force the hitter produces.
Base Stealing Drills
Speed and quickness on the base paths can be the difference between winning and losing, so players should be mindful of developing this during spring training. VertiMax is a tremendous tool for training speed and quickness, as its lower body attachments move seamlessly during running drills. Here, the athletes mimic the lateral movement of leading off, then explode forward like they are stealing a base. Using the VertiMax while replicating game situations is a great way to train smarter and increase results exponentially.
Get Ready for the Season with VertiMax
Baseball season is upon us, with players and team locking in on their training programs to help prepare them for the regular season. Having the right plan and tools is critical for athletes of all levels, as it's easy to fall behind the competition if you aren’t focus and dedicated to improving the specific skills you need at your position. For athletes looking for a way to see real results from not only a strength and conditioning standpoint, but also in their skillset as a baseball player, they should look no further than VertiMax. VertiMax resistance training equipment can help get athletes in peak shape for the season, while also allowing them to develop their skills in game-like situations. It’s also great for team situations, as multiple athletes can train on the VertiMax simultaneously.
For those looking for more exercise and training ideas for baseball players, check out the VertiMax baseball page for more information. For any questions on how to get started with the VertiMax equipment, reach out to our customer support with any questions. They will help you with onboarding, so you can get ready for the season and take your performance to the next level with VertiMax.
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