Sharlyne Rivera | Exercise Physiologist

Baseball Dynamic Warm-Up | Slammers Stark 12u (Games and Practices)

This dynamic warm-up is not formally sanctioned by the Slammers organization. It’s simply a confluence of functional movement and exercises my wife and I feel will be beneficial given our background, our experience, and our discernment of the baseball context. Hope it helps.

There are multiple use cases for this type of warm-up. The first is to warm the players up for the activity that they are about to engage in. The second is by integrating this into normal youth club baseball rhythms (e.g., team practices and games), the kids are essentially getting speed instruction and training at every baseball practice/game without necessarily being cognizant of it. The third is that this will introduce new movement patterns which will make the kids better athletes and also prevent injury due to natural immobility baseball players get as they mature.

13m-17m Duration

1. Jog to center field and back from your foul line (creates enzymatic activity within joints and muscles, primes system)

2. 4 x 30 yard strides with focus on knee drive, elbow drive, and posture to warm-up

3. Mobility dynamic exercises: “Moving while you stretch”. Why do we do this? We want to stretch through a joint's full range of motion to prepare the muscles for the more intense movements we are about to engage in. Another benefit is that these exercises will help our players learn the proper positioning to enable more athletic movements, specifically those they will encounter on the diamond.

   Bottom-Half

   • Supine Scorpion (5x each leg): Activates hamstrings, hips, and lower back

   • Internal-External Rotations (10x reps): Stretches the internal and external hips combined with lumbar region

   • Inch Worms with Push-Ups (10 yards): Stretches the hamstring and cultivates blood flow through chest and shoulders

   • Spider-Man’s into World’s Greatest Stretch (10 yards): Stretches the hip complex

   • Side Lunge (10 yards): Stretches adductors and outer glutes

   • Child’s Pose —> Cat Cow —> Kneeling Shin/Ankle Stretch: 10-15s each movement with steady breathing

   Top-Half

   1. Forward Arm Circles - Palm Down ( 3x5 @small, half, and full) - stretches shoulder capsule

   2. Backward Arm Circles - Palm Up ( 3x5 @small, half, and full) - stretches shoulder capsule

   3. Arms Across Your Chest (10s each arm) - stretches deltoids, etc.

   4. Triceps Stretch (10s each arm) - stretches triceps

   5. 3-way Forearm Stretches (5s each way - high-five, low-five, palm facing-in)

4. Speed Drills - Focus on acceleration as this is the phase of sprinting most commonly utilized in baseball

   • Walking A’s (1x10y): Flat foot, focus on 90 degree angles between thigh and torso, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion

   • Skipping A’s (1x10y): Mid-to-forefoot, focus on rhythm as well as 90 degree angles between thigh and torso, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion

   • Running A’s (1x10y): Mostly forefoot, focus on arm swing, rhythm, leg drive, as well as 90 degree angles between thigh and torso, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion

   • Single Leg Exchanges: (1x10y): Flat foot, focus on rhythm as well as 90 degree angles between thigh and torso, knee flexion, and ankle dorsiflexion

5. Speed Session

• 1x10 yards: Athletic position with 180-degree rotation, focuses on body awareness and the importance of the first step

• 2x20 yards: Push-up position to help with explosion

• 2x30 yards: Lead-off stance

Quote: "The best base stealers have feel above all else. If you can accelerate AND have feel then we are talking about a true high-level runner"; The Complete Base Stealing Manual, Matt Talarico