Friday, April 29, 2011

The Root of Big League Arm Trouble

I just read an important blog post by Eric Cressey of Cressey Performance about the importance of limiting the amount of pitching by youth baseball players: Your Arm Hurts? Thank Your Little League, AAU and Fall Ball Coaches.

This is another strong warning to coaches and parents that the high school, college and professional pitchers that end up having arm surgery are often the ones that threw too much at a younger age. Many times the damage is done earlier in their careers, even though the pitcher may not feel any pain until years later.

As Cressy reminds us, pitching a baseball overhand is a violent, fast, unnatural act. Unless you're this guy, your arms hang down and your shoulders are rounded. Throwing underhand is more natural for the human body.

Throwing overhand is a complex motion. There's a lot that can go wrong over time. That's why we need to ensure that our youth pitchers are taught proper mechanics. And we have to be careful that they don't throw too many pitches, and see that they get enough rest, both between outings and during various shut-down periods throughout the year.

Cressey stresses the importance of strength training and playing other sports. Kids need to develop their overall athleticism and strength, and should not specialize in one sport until their late teenage years, if then.

Little League pitch count regulations are beneficial to protecting young arms. But they don't prevent a player from participating on multiple teams. And not every 11- and 12-year-old can handle 85+ pitches in a game. The doctors that Little League consulted when that number was put in place recommended less. So it is up to coaches and parents set the rules. Just because a kid loves to pitch, it doesn't mean he should always push himself to the limit.

Here again is the link to the article. If you are a coach or a parent of a pitcher, I recommend taking a couple of minutes to read it.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

MPTLL Alumni Notes

Check out today's South Charlotte News in the Observer for an article on the pitching of Charlotte Country Day senior Lee Harrison (left) and his teammate, William Frazier. Lee played for the Regions Bank team at MPTLL and will attend Cushing Academy in Massachusetts next year in preparation for playing either baseball or football in college.

There is an article in the Matthews-Mint Hill Weekly about the second-year Queens Grant High School baseball team, which is led in batting by former Al Browne player David McGoldrick.

And you can check out the latest Charlotte Observer high school baseball statistics to see Harrison, McGoldrick and Colin Walls (AB) leading the area in several categories.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

The Slow, Perfect Pace of Little League

Here's a good article from Delaware Online by Jason Levine about the atmosphere of a Little League park. His league happens to be in Delaware, but it really could be anywhere. As Levine says, "When I'm at a Little League game or practice, I don't want to go home." I think there are a lot of people at MP that can identify with that feeling. That's why on a nice spring Saturday, many of us stay all day.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

The History of Metal

With all the talk going on this year about the safety issues surrounding composite metal bats, I found this article on the history of aluminum bats interesting. The quality of these bats has come a long way since they were first introduced in 1970 - from the hunk-o-metal I used while playing on our fields, to the lightweight alloys and composites of today with a nearly can't-miss sweet spot. Enjoy...

Sunday, April 17, 2011

2011 Jack Sink Invitational at Myers Park High School

If you're looking for some quality high school baseball during spring break, head over to Myers Park High School this week for the annual Jack Sink Invitational Tournament. It's public schools versus private schools, including some of the very best in the state. You will see loads of MPTLL alumni and some great games. The Country Day vs. Providence game on Thursday could be pretty special. The schedule is below:




MONDAY, APRIL 18TH
1:30 PM MYERS PARK VS CHARLOTTE COUNTRY DAY
5:00 PM SOUTH MECK VS PROVIDENCE DAY
7:30 PM ARDREY KELL VS CHARLOTTE LATIN

TUESDAY, APRIL 19TH
5:00 PM HOME RUN DERBY
7:00 PM PROVIDENCE VS CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20TH
11:00 AM PROVIDENCE VS LATIN
1:30 PM SOUTH MECK VS COUNTRY DAY
5:00 PM ARDREY KELL VS CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN
7:30 PM MYERS PARK VS PROVIDENCE DAY

THURSDAY, APRIL 21ST
11:00 AM MYERS PARK VS CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN
1:30 PM ARDREY KELL VS PROVIDENCE DAY
5:00 PM PROVIDENCE VS COUNTRY DAY
7:30 PM SOUTH MECK VS CHARLOTTE LATIN

Friday, April 15, 2011

Challenge Tournaments This Weekend

There are no regular season MPTLL games this weekend because of CMS Spring Break, but several of the Myers Park Challenge teams will have tournaments at various locations. If you would like to support these teams and catch a game or two, check out the schedules linked below. Information regarding rainouts or schedule changes for the 12's, 9's and 8's can be found here. For the 10's check here.

12U Ferguson  -  MARA (Matthews)
10U Heaton  -  MP Tigers  -  Nevin Park
9U Hodges  -  MP Braves  -  MARA
9U Wade  -  MP Warriors  -  Steele Creek
8U Bray  -  MP Cougars  -  MARA
8U Brietz  -  MP Mavericks  -  MARA (same as above)

Monday, April 11, 2011

No Pepper Games.... No Wall Ball

"Wall Ball" has been banned at Billy's Building at the center of the park. Sorry boys, you'll need to find a safer spot to play. Too many black eyes, blows below the belt and frightened grandmothers. Maybe there's another wall out there somewhere....

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Albert Pujols: Hall of Famer On and Off the Field

60 Minutes will be running a story on Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals tonight at 7:00 on CBS. Widely considered to be the best player in the game and a sure-fire Hall of Famer, Pujols has also made a tremendous impact on the lives of thousands of people in need. He is passionate about helping both the poor people of his native Dominican Republic and those, like his own daughter, born with Down Syndrome.

This guy is the real deal. He is a role model both on the field and off the field.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Dynamic Stretching for Baseball and Softball

Unless we seek out new information, youth coaches tend to do things the same way it was done "back in the day." Passing down the knowledge we have gained from years of experience is often beneficial to our players.

But a large part of instructing youth baseball and softball players is based on health and science. And when it comes to health and science, you don't want to be passing down information that is decades old.

One aspect of youth sports that has changed since we were playing is stretching. Doctors and researchers say there's more to it now than just tugging at a particular muscle for 20 seconds (static stretching). These days, dynamic stretching, or stretching while moving, is considered to be more beneficial for athletes preparing to play while reducing the risk of injury.

Here are a couple of good articles on dynamic stretching:

First is a Mom's Team article about the proper way to warm up for athletic competition - light aerobic exercise followed by dynamic stretching. The article goes on to say that static stretching is not only without benefit, but can also weaken muscles.

And here is an article by Yankees strength and conditioning coach, Dana Cavalea, about the goal of dynamic stretching - to get moving and activate the nervous system and muscle groups, not only single muscles.

To see some dynamic stretching in action, below is a video of the 2009 Wake Forest baseball team preparing to play. This was actually followed by another clip of the same team going through a static stretching routine. So they have not abandoned it altogether.


Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Picture Day Is This Saturday, April 9th

Team and individual pictures will be taken this Saturday, April 9th, for those teams with games at Randolph Park. Here is the schedule with each team's assigned picture time and more info. Teams not playing that day or needing a make-up picture will be given a time slot prior to their weekday game, April 11-14th. After the 14th, there will be no more pictures taken.

The picture location will be near the batting cages at the center of the upper fields. Please have your team dressed and ready prior to your scheduled time.

The league will provide an 8"x10" team picture to all players at no additional cost. For those families wanting to purchase individual pictures, order envelopes have been given to the coaches for distribution.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Hodges Hurls No-Hitter For Trinity

A busy weekend of games produced a performance to be remembered. Jackson Hodges pitched a no-hitter on Sunday as Trinity defeated Regions Bank. Hodges struck out five and walked one, but faced the minimum number of batters, thanks to a double-play. He threw just 58 pitches in six innings, which is said to be the fewest in a complete game at MPTLL in 43 years. Hodges went 2 for 5 at the plate with 4 RBI. Trinity is 2-1 and a game out of 1st place behind Christ Church and Cameron Harris, who are tied at 3-0.

There were 40 league games this weekend, including 21 makeup games on Sunday. After several days of rain, we are back on schedule as we get into April.