Every offseason, baseball players and parents ask the same question:
Should pitchers completely shut down, or should they continue throwing?
At Impact Fitness & Sports Performance, we don’t believe there is one answer that fits every athlete. The right decision depends on what that pitcher has already done, what their body needs now, and what they need to be prepared for next.
This is Part 1 of a three-part series on building a complete offseason plan for baseball players. Although we’ll focus primarily on baseball, many of these principles also apply to softball athletes.
In Part 1, we’ll look at how pitchers should approach throwing and recovery after the season.
In Part 2, we’ll discuss the fascial system, the elastic qualities of the body, and why developing velocity requires more than simply getting stronger.
In Part 3, we’ll bring everything together—strength training, speed and power development, recovery, elastic training, and a properly timed throwing progression.
These areas should not be treated separately.
How much an athlete throws affects how they recover. What they do in the weight room changes their ability to produce and absorb force. Their speed, power, and elastic qualities affect how efficiently that force transfers into their sport. Finally, how they return to higher-intensity throwing determines whether their offseason improvements are ready to carry over when the season begins.
It all needs to work together.
The Same Debate Every Offseason
As summer baseball ends, fall programs wrap up, and the showcase schedule slows down, pitchers are often given one of two recommendations.
The first is to stop throwing completely for two or three months so the arm can recover.
The second is to keep throwing because “rest is rust,” and taking time off will cause the athlete to lose arm strength, mechanics, coordination, and feel.
The problem is that neither answer considers the individual athlete.
The Right Answer Depends on the Pitcher
Consider two different athletes.
The first pitcher competed from March through August, played for multiple teams, attended showcases, and threw more innings than ever before. He is physically and mentally worn down.
The second pitcher threw limited innings, is physically underdeveloped, and needs to make significant progress before the next season.
Those athletes probably shouldn’t follow the same offseason plan.
Several factors need to be considered:
- Age and physical maturity
- Training age
- Total innings and throwing volume
- Average throwing intensity and velocity
- Number of teams and overlapping seasons
- Injury or pain history
- Current strength and physical development
- Upcoming goals and competitive schedule
A 14-year-old who just experienced the largest workload of his life may need something very different from a high school senior preparing for his final recruiting opportunities.
Automatically telling every pitcher to shut down for three months doesn’t make sense.
Telling every pitcher to continue throwing year-round doesn’t make sense either.
The offseason needs to be individualized.
Recovery Does Not Mean Doing Nothing
Pitchers absolutely need recovery.
After months of practices, games, bullpens, tournaments, showcases, and travel, athletes need an opportunity to recover physically and mentally.
However, recovery doesn’t always mean going from maximum-intensity pitching one day to not touching a baseball for the next three months.
A planned off-ramp may be a better option for some athletes.
During an off-ramp, competitive pitching and high-intensity mound work stop while throwing volume and intensity gradually decrease. Lower-intensity throwing may temporarily remain in the program before the athlete takes a complete break.
Depending on the athlete’s workload, health, and goals, time completely away from throwing may still be appropriate. The important point is that the break is intentional and fits within a larger plan.
The same is true when throwing begins again. Athletes shouldn’t wait until tryouts are a few weeks away and then attempt to get their arms ready as quickly as possible. Throwing needs to be gradually reintroduced through a structured progression.
Your Body Doesn’t Care When Tryouts Start
One of the biggest offseason mistakes is failing to plan backward from the season.
An athlete finishes baseball in August, barely throws for several months, and focuses entirely on lifting. Then February or March arrives.
Bullpens begin. Coaches want to see more velocity. Tryouts are approaching, and games aren’t far behind.
The athlete is then forced to compress months of throwing preparation into a few weeks.
That isn’t enough time.
Muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, bone, and other connective tissues all need time to adapt to increasing stress. Throwing coordination, timing, and control also need to be rebuilt.
Your body doesn’t care when tryouts start. It will adapt at the rate it is capable of adapting.
A throwing program should gradually move from lower-volume, lower-intensity work toward higher workloads, longer distances, mound work, bullpens, and eventually competitive pitching.
That process cannot be crammed into the final few weeks before the season without adding unnecessary risk.
Ask a Better Question
Instead of asking:
“Should I shut down or keep throwing?”
Ask:
“What does this pitcher need right now, and what does he need to be prepared for next?”
For some athletes, the answer will include meaningful time completely away from throwing.
For others, it may include a gradual off-ramp, a shorter period of complete rest, low-intensity throwing, and then a structured build toward the season.
There is no universal offseason prescription for every pitcher.
There needs to be an individualized plan based on the athlete’s workload, development, health, and goals.
Throwing is only one part of that plan.
At Impact, our goal is to help athletes build stronger, faster, and more resilient bodies while making sure their training fits the actual demands of their sport. That means the weight room, throwing program, speed and power work, and recovery plan all need to complement one another.
In Part 2, we’ll look at an area that is often overlooked in traditional training: the fascial system. We’ll explain how its elastic qualities contribute to force production and velocity—and why developing a better pitcher requires much more than simply adding weight to the bar.
Building your athlete’s engine starts with understanding where they are today and what they need next. At Impact Fitness & Sports Performance, we’ll help you connect those goals to a consistent training plan. If you’re unsure where to begin, schedule a free No Sweat Intro to meet our team and talk through your athlete’s goals.
Works Cited
American Sports Medicine Institute. “Position Statement for Adolescent Baseball Pitchers.” American Sports Medicine Institute, updated April 2013. https://asmi.org/position-statement-for-adolescent-baseball-pitchers/.
Fleisig, Glenn S., et al. “Risk of Serious Injury for Young Baseball Pitchers: A 10-Year Prospective Study.” The American Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 39, no. 2, 2011, pp. 253–257. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546510384224.
Olsen, Samuel J., II, et al. “Risk Factors for Shoulder and Elbow Injuries in Adolescent Baseball Pitchers.” The American Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 34, no. 6, 2006, pp. 905–912. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546505284188.
Sgroi, Terrance A., and John M. Zajac. “Return to Throwing After Shoulder or Elbow Injury.” Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine, vol. 11, no. 1, 2018, pp. 12–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-018-9454-7.
Yang, Jingzhen, et al. “Risk-Prone Pitching Activities and Injuries in Youth Baseball: Findings From a National Sample.” The American Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 42, no. 6, 2014, pp. 1456–1463. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546514524699.
