Here I Go Again On My Own
A few years ago, I had a situation where 3 different players and their families came to me for their son’s pitching work. All 3 started within a few weeks of each other so they all were learning and training about the same speed and also were throwing at about the same level.
Each player had arm soreness after they threw in the elbow area. Typically, there are a couple of items that we focus on to help alleviate the pain in their elbow. The amazing thing about it was their pain level was about a 5/6 (on a 1-10 scale, 1 is that the arm feels amazing, 10 means I need surgery right now). All 3 were the exact same, the same pain tolerance level, all were 13 year old, and they each came to a group class on different days, Monday for one, Tuesday for one and Wednesday for the other. It was as if the players were identical triplets and they each had everything the same going on with their arms, what was taught and trained for them, like the same person each day.
This went on for about 12-14 months and, unfortunately, they all stopped coming at the same time too. Like I said, it was as if I was training the same person each day.
All of their velocities went up anywhere from 7-9 miles per hour, but the best part was that the 3 of them were all 100% healthy, a 1 on a 10 scale. It was pretty impressive for each player to gain velocity, have a healthy arm and recover extremely well the days after they pitched.
But for reasons that were unknown to me initially, they each went their own way. That part is fine. but within a 6-8 week period, each player had arm issues again. ALL 3 OF THEM!
What I found out was that they had joined an 8th grade ‘feeder’ team that was supposed to be a jump start into their local high school team and the coaches told all of their players that they had to work with their coaches for hitting, fielding and, sadly, pitching. To make a long story short, they all made their high school freshman or JV squad but continued with elbow and shoulder issues from the get go.
On a side note AND a pitching tip, if a coach tells your son to reach his hand and arm way back, or to point the ball to 2nd base bag, immediately know that this type of coach is hurting you and your arm health. It is a very BAD teach and is amazing how many coaches still teach this unproven ‘teach’. There have been group-peered studies that highly advise against this.
I advise players to respectfully hear what the coach says, but to not listen and go back to what you have been working on with me for however long that has been. Most have no idea what they are saying, and I do believe it is not intentional on their part, but is a elbow injury waiting to happen sooner than later.
All 3 of those players were also told not to go see outside help because their coaches would teach them correctly. Plus, the fact that I, Jim Wagner, helped at a local high school would surely mean that I would hurt them so our high school program would win. You cannot make these things up!
The sad part of this is that many of my clients know me on a personal basis and know that I would never jeopardize a player’s health for my high school team. What’s the saying “cut off their nose to spite their face”…ludicrous. If I did that sort of thing then I would have been found a fraud many many years ago.
I ALWAYS root for my players even if they are pitching against us. Every players knows that I support them 100% and want them to pitch well. I could care less if our high school team wins or not, I want my pitchers to develop to the best of their ability both for us and against us, always 100% of the time.
The best part of me working with players from different schools was they wouldn’t have to spend really any time with their respective coach in high school. I was doing the work for them and their high school program was getting a fantastic pitcher who would immensely help their program flourish.
Being a high school coach myself, it is very difficult to really work with pitchers for any more than 3-5 minutes at a time, particularly at a high school practice setting. You have an entire staff of pitchers who want help. In my experience, being a high school coach is more about the small things you can impart on them and also, mentally and emotionally help them that really is the one area a high school coach can be his best self to his players, pitchers or not.
There are high school coaches who just forbid pitchers to come see me at all. I am actually trying to HELP them the respective school coaching staff however I get criticized for caring too much about velocity, that my guys are always hurt (the biggest lie ever and in fact my guys almost NEVER get hurt but coaches will say that I do),and the best criticism I get is that I got lucky with Trevor Bauer and Tyler Glasnow that they were good anyways. They may have gotten good without every seeing me but I can assure you that I could get a 5 star review from both of them for my assistance and guidance through high school and beyond.
But coaches will say anything to cut me at my knees. There is 1 coach who moved to a new high school in town who always says nice things when I am around him, but has told kids privately that I don’t know anything about pitching let alone baseball and I was ripping them off.
Could you imagine going to that person’s place of business where he earns a living working hard and then I roll in and tell all their clients how bad he is? They all think I am just a little side business and a bad one at that, but I would never demean them at their place of business. Half the coaches in SCV feel like they can put me down for what I do, that I don’t help, and such and so forth.
But I know with the special families that I work with on a daily basis know the real me, I have a purpose in life to help the younger generation, I just use baseball, and specifically pitching, in doing God’s work with uplifting young players and give them hope in their ambitions to become a professional baseball player with dreams of playing in MLB.
Getting back to those 3 players, the first one came back and we immediately figures out his problem and he is back to being a 2/3 out of 10, and is on his way. The other 2 came back within a week of each other and same thing as above. All 3 will be healthy and have a great Senior season, and have advised all families about the next step, college, which I know very well with all the rule changes that have come about.
I asked each family why they had stopped coming to me before and each one said that they felt their son was well on his way to great things, plus their son’s got scared when the coaches forbid them to see anyone who was working with them. But each one told me that they were completely wrong about it all and that they should have never stopped working with me, and that they were very new to the high school game and didn’t want to rock the boat.
I do understand where people are coming from. However, I try to tactfully suggest to players and their parents that the work is never finished. Bodies change physically and anatomically, the body lengthens, it gets stronger, and that new ways of training are needed on a consistent basis in order to combat those physical changes that go on.
The work is never done but newsletters like these that I hope can resonate with you and allow you to understand better what goes on in the real world, how high school coaches. and some travel coaches…act when their precious ego might get upended.
Know that I am always here to answer your baseball questions, and little fact that I do know about hitting but I focused early on being a master at one and not a jack of all. But I can help you maneuver around the world of high school baseball both as a coach but an answer man for how to handle how coaches do their jobs, and I will always shoot straight.
Until next time…
Jim
Jim Wagner's ThrowZone Academy 