Baseball Players' Speed Requirements

The speed requirements for baseball players are: starting ability, acceleration, stopping, cutting, stride rate, stride length, sprinting form and speed endurance.

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Most explosive movements occur after some other movement (swinging, sliding, etc.). Maximum velocity is rarely reached except in the case of hitting a triple, inside-the-park homerun or running down a long fly ball. Therefore, starting ability and acceleration should be emphasized during training.

The ideal baseball infielder or outfielder would possess all the necessary tools to play the game well. This would be known as a 5 tool player.

A 5 tool player has great speed, can field, throw, hit for average and hit for power. A modern day 5 tool player would be Alex Rodriguez. Not many players possess all 5 tools. If you can do two of these tools well (like hitting for average and fielding), you have a chance to make it to "The Show" (Major Leagues).

Following is a short list of some requirements of major league baseball infielders and outfielders:

1. Running speed in the 60 yard dash: 6.5 - 6.8 (good); 6.3 - 6.4 (excellent)

2. Home to first speed: 4.1 (Left handed batter), 4.2 (RHB) is good
4.0 or less (LHB), 4.1 or less (RHB) is excellent

3. Throwing velocity: Infielders, 82-84 mph (good); 85 mph or better (excellent)
Outfielders, 85-89 mph (good); 90 mph or better (excellent)

It should be noted that these fielders need good dynamic balance, agility and throwing accuracy.

Infielders and outfielders should use the offseason to improve strength, dynamic flexibility, dynamic balance, endurance, power and speed.

The focus should be on building full body strength and endurance that will aid the baseball player in improving power and speed. Maximum muscle growth (i.e. 1-rep max) is not needed for baseball players. A critical part of the strength program is strengthening and conditioning the throwing shoulder (see this post).

A sample offseason workout program for infielders and outfielders would be:

1. Full Body Circuit Weight Training (2 days a week). Interval aerobic training would also be done on these days.
2. Speed Training (2 days a week)
3. Plyometric Training (2 days a week)

In season conditioning would include split routine workouts to maintain strength gains made in the offseason. Split routines work the upper body one day and the lower body the next day. Speed workouts would be limited to 1 day per week at the most.

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Sports Fitness Hut

Baseball Players' Strength And Conditioning

In this article, I will cover the basics of general strength and conditioning for baseball players. The most successful baseball players have adequate amounts of strength, power and speed.

Foundational Strength

Strength gains should be obtained in the off season and maintained during the season. During the off season, you have adequate time to strength train and recover.

Maximal strength is not the goal here. Rather, the baseball player's objective is to achieve adequate core strength and limb strength to aid in training for sport-specific power.

So, forget about lifting as much weight as you can (i.e., one-rep max) and concentrate on building full body strength and conditioning.

Exercises such as dumbbell bench press, squats, step-ups, rows, shoulder press, lunges, etc. are used. Also, every baseball player needs a strong shoulder/rotator cuff of the throwing arm. There are a series of exercises designed to strengthen and stabilize this area.

Muscle Growth (Hypertrophy)

The baseball player needs a certain amount of muscle growth but not so much as to inhibit playing the game with fluidity. Power is more important to achieve.

Power and Speed Development

Rate-of-force production or power (how fast your muscles can produce force) is one the best physical predictors of success in baseball and sports in general.

Power is achieved by performing resistance and plyometric exercises at maximum effort. This type of training has great potential for injuries. So, it is imperative that the athlete have adequate core and body strength before starting power training.

The speed demands of baseball are: starting ability, acceleration, stopping, cutting, stride rate, stride length, sprinting form and speed endurance.

Most explosive movements occur after some other movement (swinging, sliding, etc.). Maximum velocity is rarely reached except in the case of hitting a triple, inside-the-park homerun or running down a long fly ball.

Therefore, starting ability, acceleration and lateral speed should be emphasized during speed training.

Cardio Training

Long distance running for position players should be limited. Too much long distance running decreases speed. A player must train fast in order to get faster. A better alternative would be to do high intensity interval cardio training.

This type of cardio training would consist of rotating sprints and walking/jogging. A good example would be to sprint for 30 seconds and walk for 1 minute. Do this rotation for 20 minutes. This type of cardio training has been proven to produce superior heart health and fat burning results.

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Baseball Players' Core Strength Needs

Every baseball player needs general core strength and sport-specific core strength. About half of the power in baseball swings, throws and speed are generated by your core. So, it is essential that you stabilize and strengthen your core to endure the rigors of high level competition.

Because baseball requires many transverse (twists, turns, rotations) and frontal (lateral movements) plane motions, sport-specific core strength and power is also critical.

Progressing too fast up the core strength ladder will lead to injuries. A strong core will help you stabilize your spine, transfer power while hitting and throwing and protect your trunk while diving, sliding and jumping.

You also need a strong core to maintain a strong upright running posture.

Guidelines For Core Training

Core stabilization training progressions should follow these paths:

1. Slow to Fast
2. Known to Unknown
3. Stable to Controlled to Dynamic
4. Low Force to High Force
5. Correct Execution to Increased Intensity

The athlete can start at the highest level of core stabilization training that she or he can control.

The dimensions of core stabilization training are:

Stabilization - The core exercises at this level involve very little joint motion and are designed to provide optimum neuromuscular control. An example would be the planks, bridges, cobras and supermans.



Strength - At this level of core training, isometric exercises are replaced with dynamic, multi-planar and multi-dimensional exercises with the full range of motion. Examples would be ball crunches, back extensions, reverse crunches, medicine ball trunk rotations and oblique crunches.



Power - At this level, sport-specific core exercises are used in all 3 planes of motion. Examples would be the medicine ball throw, medicine ball rotational throw and medicine ball chops.

Exercises in the power category at performed at full speed. Therefore, if you progress too fast or perform the exercises incorrectly, you are at high risk of injury.



Adequate core strength will maximize your extremity (limbs) strength and prevent injuries during intense competition.

Part 2, Strength and Power for Baseball

Part 1, Strength and Power for Baseball

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Baseball Players' Rotational and Lateral Power

Baseball requires a series of rotational and lateral movements. Therefore, the baseball player needs a strong core to generate rotational and lateral speed and power.

The physical demands of baseball are: starting ability, acceleration, stopping, cutting, stride rate, stride length, sprinting form and speed endurance.

Most explosive movements occur after some other movement (swinging, sliding, etc.). Maximum velocity is rarely reached except in the case of hitting a triple, inside-the-park homerun or running down a long fly ball. Therefore, starting ability and acceleration should be emphasized during training.

Major League Baseball scouts use these drills/exercises/sprints (among others) to test a player's speed, agility, acceleration and power:

30 and 60 Yard Sprints - The bases are 90 feet apart (30 yards). Scouts routinely time a player's speed from home to first base during an at bat or from home to second base on a double.

Running from home to first base in under 4.0 seconds is exceptional (especially for a right-handed batter). Times of 4.1 - 4.4 are more common.

A major league average time for the 60 yard dash is 7.0 seconds, 6.5 - 6.8 seconds is good and 6.2 - 6.4 are great times.

Vertical Jump - The height of your vertical jump shows the amount of power in your lower body. A high vertical jump is also an indicator of great speed. A vertical jump of 35 is good and any jump 40 or above is exceptional.

Medicine Ball Rotational Throw - This exercise is a good indicator of core strength---especially the critical rotational power needed for baseball (swinging, throwing, etc.).

20 Yard Shuttle - This drill tests agility, explosion, postural control and quickness at high speed. The best players cover the 20 yard shuttle in about 4 seconds or less.

In the following parts of this article series, I will show you how to improve your performance in these drills and exercises. If you do this, it will improve your game on the field.

General Core Strength, Part 3

General Strength and Conditioning, Part 4

Infielders and outfielders, Part 5

Read Part 1 Of The Baseball Article Series

Download your FREE All-Star Baseball Power Workout Manual and improve your strength, power and explosiveness on the field!

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
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Strength and Power for Baseball Players

Every baseball player wants to be bigger, faster and stronger. Sometimes, this desire causes some athletes to want to speed up the process. This article series does not promote the use of steroids or human growth hormone to build up your body in a short amount of time.

Rather, the training methods described in this series are based on science, current research and empirical evidence. I will show you how to build an athletic body that will endure through the competitive years of your sport.

And, if you use these training methods, your body will remain “lean and mean” after your playing days are over. I should know. I trained hard (not using steroids, etc) when I competed in high school and college athletics. And, I continue to use many of the same (and better) training methods today when I exercise.

Every baseball player can improve strength and power (speed strength) with hard work and the proper training methods. Even though genetics plays a key role in an athlete’s physical makeup, improvements can still be made by anyone with proper training. Furthermore, physically gifted athletes can also make significant performance improvements.

Strength and power training allows the athlete to lessen her or his risk of injuries. Research has shown that most injuries occur in the transverse plane of motion during eccentric muscle contractions (force reduction).

A sport such as baseball is a transverse plane dominated sport (rotations, twists, etc.). Traditional training techniques, such as those with weight machines, have focused on the sagittal plane of motion (backward-forward and up-down motions) and concentric muscle contractions (force production).

IF MOST INJURIES OCCUR DURING ECCENTRIC MUSCLE CONTRACTIONS, THEN ATHLETES’ TRAINING REGIMENS SHOULD INCLUDE MORE EXERCISES THAT PLACE MORE EMPHASIS ON ECCENTRIC CONTRACTIONS. MUSCLE CONTRACTIONS AND PLANES OF MOTION WILL BE DISCUSSED IN MORE DETAIL IN LATER PARTS OF THIS SERIES.

Integrated, progressive training techniques should focus on flexibility, strength, balance, endurance and power for the body’s muscles in all three planes of motion (sagittal, frontal and transverse).

While accomplishing this task, specific attention should be given to training the baseball player's dominate plane of motion used in the sport. Training methods described in this series apply to both male and female baseball/softball players unless otherwise noted.

In part 2 of this series, I will discuss planes of motion as they relate to baseball players.

Download your FREE All-Star Baseball Power Workout Manual and improve your strength, power and explosiveness on the field!

Other things being equal, a muscular, powerful athlete will outperform a fat, slower or skinny, weaker athlete. Sports Fitness Hut's Fat Blaster Athletic Power Training System will give you your "lean and mean" athletic machine!

Mark Dilworth, BA, PES
Your Fitness University
My Fitness Hut
Her Fitness Hut
Sports Fitness Hut
Rapid Fat Loss and Six Pack Abs