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Thread: When Strength, Power, and Skill Collide

  1. #1
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    Default When Strength, Power, and Skill Collide

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    There was a discussion not long ago about the utility of strength in baseball. Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, who stands 6'7" and weighs 285-290 just overtook Giancarlo Stanton (6'4" 245-250) with the hardest hit baseball since measurements began being taken. This home run had an exit velocity off the bat of 119+ mph. I think his size and strength may have something to do with it.

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    I think that your seeing patterns where there are none, Will. Just because the previous record was held by a big tall strong (presumably?) guy, and the new record is held by a big tall strong (?) guy, this doesn't mean that his skill wasn't the critical factor. It could just be that he's really really good at hitting the ball hard. Or maybe he's taking steroids. Yeah, he must be taking steroids.

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    I wonder how heavy his bat is.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Or maybe he's taking steroids. Yeah, he must be taking steroids.
    Well, in the absence of proper coaching, he probably is relying on the pharmacy for his strength and size in some way or another. Not that I'd know anything about that, but some guy named "Rippetoo" wrote an article about that for which there is also a handy audio version available.

    The Real Purpose of Steroids (Audio Only) - YouTube

    But yeah, people will say strength had nothing to do with it. The confirmation bias in the human mind is so plainly expressed whenever "health and fitness" is the topic of conversation that I do not like talking about it with the general public anymore. I've probably said it elsewhere, but it's my least favourite, favourite subject. People can't ruin it for me, but boy do they ruin it for me.

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    Giancarlo Stanton trains heavy and hard. He has been quoted as saying he hates road trips because "there are never heavy enough dumbbells for me. there is never anything heavier than light 100#s"

    As for "exit velocity," keep in mind that they've only been measuring this for 3 years. It's a shame they didn't have it for Bonds or for Ted Williams. Here's the estimated trajectory for the famous "red seat" HR at Fenway: ESPN Home Run Tracker :: Hit Tracker Highlight Home Runs

    And on the topic of baseball (snore), Jeff Passan's new book The Arm has some interesting history on Tommy John Surgery (torn UCL), in the context of increased shoulder size/strength without commensurate lower body strength. One of the better baseball books since Moneyball IMHO

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    Quote Originally Posted by Will Morris View Post
    There was a discussion not long ago about the utility of strength in baseball. Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, who stands 6'7" and weighs 285-290 just overtook Giancarlo Stanton (6'4" 245-250) with the hardest hit baseball since measurements began being taken. This home run had an exit velocity off the bat of 119+ mph. I think his size and strength may have something to do with it.
    We must always remember Been's Maxim for Baseball** S&C: it's fine to be 6 foot 7 inches, 290 pounds, and strong as an ox. As long as you were born that way. If you are 6'7" and 215 pounds, you'll destroy every facet of your game if you attempt to use barbell weightlifting exercises and lots of food to become a big, strong, 6'7" and 290.

    A determined devotee of such thinking would also point out that Mr. Judge has "great levers" for hitting. Prolly also has excellent ankle mobility which allows him to come through on the ball, translating saggittal stability, rotational stability and a "3" on the FMS Active Leg Raise to facilitate full leverage exertional control paradigms without creating junk tissue and while demonstrating torque management strategems throughout the execution of the pattern. SuperSlow video clearly demonstrates this ankle mobility and stability whereas before functional corrective exercise, skilled movement specialists were the only eyes capable of detecting the deficiency.

    ** This maxim also holds true for basketball. A variant of the maxim for Swim Coaches goes as follows: if your swimmer swims 8000 yards a day, 5 days a week, and gets beaten in the 100 Free by a girl with cannonballs for shoulders and FloJo thighs, who's leaving a wake behind her and who comes off the wall so hard it leaves a visible void behind her that water rushes into - it's because that swimmer swims 9000 yards a day, 6 days a week. If it turns out she actually swims 3000 yards a day, 4 days a week - she's a genetic freak.

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    JJ Watt

    Squat: 700
    Bench: 475
    Deadlift: 700
    Total: 1,875
    Position: Defensive End
    Height: 6'5"
    Weight: 290
    ... and he has an insane vertical.

    What If These NFL Players Powerlifted? ? Massenomics

    Seems like strength is working out OK for JJ.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tiburon View Post
    Giancarlo Stanton trains heavy and hard. He has been quoted as saying he hates road trips because "there are never heavy enough dumbbells for me. there is never anything heavier than light 100#s"

    As for "exit velocity," keep in mind that they've only been measuring this for 3 years. It's a shame they didn't have it for Bonds or for Ted Williams. Here's the estimated trajectory for the famous "red seat" HR at Fenway: ESPN Home Run Tracker :: Hit Tracker Highlight Home Runs

    And on the topic of baseball (snore), Jeff Passan's new book The Arm has some interesting history on Tommy John Surgery (torn UCL), in the context of increased shoulder size/strength without commensurate lower body strength. One of the better baseball books since Moneyball IMHO
    Isn't it increased shoulder size/strength without accompanying elbow/UCL strength? This is transferring stress that used to hurt the shoulder down to the elbow. The result has been less shoulder injuries and more elbow injuries.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sinai View Post
    I think we've discussed this several times. Genetic freaks can train wrong because they are genetically superior to those that are forced to train better. A dude that stands 6'8", 290 and had the eye coordination and natural swing of Judge can train however he wants because he's that much better than the mere mortals. The interesting thing about his whole thing, even though the StarCast system has only been used the last three seasons, is that the last two record breaking hits were by exceptionally large baseball players.

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