Had a great session today with coaches from not 1, but 3 different major league baseball teams.

In addition to working with Jose Vasquez from the Texas Rangers, I also spent time with Oakland A’s Bench Coach Don Wakamatsu and the Director of Minor League Player Development for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mike Brumley.

All 3 coaches are just great guys, really innovative and we had a blast talking, training and exchanging ideas. I learned quite a bit. Of particular interest to me was talking with Coach Wakamatsu about the mechanics of catching, as that is an area of expertise for him. Catchers need tremendous hip and thigh strength, mobility and flexibility, and that is an area I know quite a bit about, so it was fun to bounce some training ideas around.

My theories about the importance of work capacity for athletes were substantiated by all the coaches. While a lot of times strength coaches/trainers will focus on ‘power’ and strength development, an often overlooked aspect is the ability to sustain the power over the course of an entire season. Baseball has a very long season, at least 6 months, and more including spring training. So it is not just about being strong, it is about keeping strong through the long, laborious season.

So, after discussing the philosophy and logical approach, we agreed that the most valuable application for kettlebells in the context of professional baseball athletes is its value as a tool to develop sustained work capacity. They agreed that if an athlete needs to build bulk and limit strength, a barball is going to be more suitable in most cases. So, we foces on working for time, learning how to relax under diress and rythmical, anatomical breathing methods with the lifts.

We had a great time, the coaches appreciated the attention to detail and I have been able to make some friends who have a whole lot of experience at the highest levels of the game.

Not to mention, the Ballpark at Arlington is one of the most beautiful baseball stadiums in the country, simply gorgeous architecture.

Not a bad day, and now I get to go home!!!