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Old Forum Baseball Strength

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ROUGHRIDER13

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I'm a baseball player looking to increase upper body strength. I can't do any overhead presses other than pull ups for throwing shoulder protection.

If worth noting, I also have a very weak upper body... 2 pull up max. Any suggestions for building baseball-specific upper body strength?
 
An overarching principle to reflect on before initiating a strength program is that to be a good athlete at any sport you must first be a well-functioning human.  You need to be able to squat, hip hinge, press, pull, sprint, jump, etc.  Any program that leaves a gaping hole and calls itself "sport specific" is not "human-general".  I have coached 4 professional baseball athletes, and about 2 dozen high schoolers that earned collegiate scholarships ranging from JuCo's to D1 schools, and 2 that were drafted from HS.  That's not a lot compared to some more seasoned S&C coaches, but I think they would agree your first goal should be to build yourself steadily into a durable, powerful, and graceful young fella so that when you're called upon to use your baseball skills and strategies you can really stand out.

My athletes all started with Goblet Squats, 2H swings, and overhead press, and TRX row variant, along with basic A-marches before sprint work.  As they progressed and gained better motor control they learned the barbell lifts.  Most days involved some version of Dan john's Litvinovs (usually Ecc Overspeed Swings + 10m sprints).  We had no injuries.  And all my young guys were STRONGLY encouraged to devour ample amounts of whole milk and bacon Daily.

Google "eric cressey" and you find a wealth of baseball "specific" training info.  best of luck to you, Rough Rider.
 
Check out some of Eric Cressey's stuff. He's got a lot of great stuff in terms of strength and conditioning for baseball athletes.

Good pressing variants for overhead athletes include push-up variations, landmine presses, bottoms up KB presses/carries, and turkish get-ups. All of these will build pressing strength while also promoting shoulder/scapular stability. I've had good success with my overhead guys using these exercises for pressing along with pull-ups, horizontal pulling, deadlifts/swings, goblet/front squats, single-leg training such as single-leg deadlifts/RFESS, some arm care drills and other things on an individual basis. Obviously these aren't all included at once, but it gives you some ideas.

I'll agree with Matt that you need to be well-functioning prior to a strength & conditioning program, and to me that simply means you move well, so perhaps getting in touch with someone in your area who does the FMS would be a good idea for a screen and to get any correctives you may need. I myself am not a fan of the barbell lifts for the upper body with overhead athletes due to inherent shoulder asymmetries, but we all have our own approaches.
 
http://www.ericcressey.com/train-overhead

http://www.ericcressey.com/build-back-to-overhead-pressing

 
 
I’m a baseball player looking to increase upper body strength.
Our latest program, called Kettlebell Simple and Sinister, would be good for you.

 
I can’t do any overhead presses other than pull ups for throwing shoulder protection.
Check with your coach to see if Kettlebell S&S would be allowed. The getup isn't a press but you will end up supporting a weight overhead.

 
If worth noting, I also have a very weak upper body… 2 pull up max. Any suggestions for building baseball-specific upper body strength?
Certainly worth noting. The most straightforward way to get better at pullups would be to work on pullups. I recommend our own bodyweight user course, where you'll learn drills we have people perform before they work on pullups and receive excellent pullup instruction as well. In addition to or in place of that, work with a coach who we have certified as a bodyweight instructor. And in place of that, post a video of you performing a pullup here (put it on YouTube or similar and post a link in a reply on this thread.)

-S-
 
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