Originally Posted by
BobbinRobin
My 14 y/o son is interested in playing baseball in college. Therefore we have 2-3 years of strength training in preparation for recruitment age and curious how the starting strength program can best deliver the results he is looking for. For the sake of this query, let's take nutrition out of the equation; he eats pretty well and weighs 180lbs.
His carrying tool is batted ball exit velocity (EV) currently ~90mph which has increased around 10mph since he started training 6 months ago (not sure if solely due to training because puberty is a factor). I understand top recruiters start paying close attention to this metric for players like my son when it exceeds 100mph. I also understand that technique, strength and power come into the equation but the only strength indicators I have seen written about this allude to the 100mph mark only being achievable by players who bench more than 200lbs. This should not be a problem but I’m fairly certain this should not be the main focus of his training. I suspect the bench is only an indirect factor for generating EV.
My assumption is the low bar squat (and specifically training the hip drive) most contributes to power in the swing. My simple logic being the kinetic chain of the swing is generated from the back foot through the torso which rotates/swings the bat. Strengthening the quads, hamstrings and glutes, which seem to be the dominant muscles in this area, makes more sense to me.
I was wondering if anybody had anecdotal information, thoughts or even better a study that has data that shows how strength training has directly impacted the ability to swing a bat hard (beyond being generally stronger and having more mass). Additionally, any advice as to what my son should to aim for in the gym would be appreciated, we have not yet introduced the power clean into his training. The primary driver for the question is to maintain motivation and logic to the training process so he has the information at hand to reach his goals (not mine!).
Current stats: 5’10”, 180lb, S:230x5, B:142x5, D:325x5, chins:4, linear progression for ~6 months (1-2 times a week on average due to game schedules)