Running in the Game of Baseball

Like most sports, sprinting in baseball is unique. The game consists of sprints that cover short distances. Whether you are tracking a fly ball, running to a slow rolling ground ball, or running the bases; the game of baseball is a game of explosive short distance sprints. The longest a player can run is from home to third base and triples are not very common in baseball.

What does this tell us? It tells us that baseball players should train to effectively run short sprints.

There are a few good exercises that help explosiveness while sprinting. As a college player when I would work on speed I would often do various exercises that would concentrate on exploding from a position. This will help acceleration while sprinting. Some of the exercises include box jumps, power cleans, and sprinting with a parachute. If you do not have the resources to buy a parachute then use your imagination. I would use a weight belt and rope a tire to it. Then I would pull the tire while running sprints. I would generally do sprints that cover 30, 40, 50 and 60 yards. Do these sprints a couple times a week along with plyometrics. It is a pretty good workout and it will train yours legs to pull more weight. This will increase speed and explosiveness when you are not wearing the belt.

At showcases, the 60 yard sprint is often timed. In my opinion, a good time consists of 6.8 or better for position players. For catchers, 7.0 and under is good.