St. Charles
Chasing the Dream–Getting to the Next Level (Of Sleep) in the Minor Leagues
by Brendan Duffy, RPSGT, RST, CCSH They call it “the grind.” Long bus rides, late night fast food, hotels of bad and mediocre quality, roommates who snore louder than any hometown home run crowd noise, and living conditions that can be anything from air mattresses, to stolen motel pillows or even dog beds on a bus floor. Much has been made of the need for proper and clean sleep in order to perform at the major league level, yet little is being done for those players in the minor leagues who are hoping to make it to “the show.” This became apparent to me when a Minor League Baseball general manager reached out to me and said that much is being done for major league players now with regard to “teaching sleep,” but nothing is being done for the many minor league players and the coaches at th...
Tips for Baseball in Cold Weather
by Philip Schrank, MD The good news is that the start of the regular spring baseball season is right around the corner. The bad news is that those warm spring days haven’t made it here yet. There are definitely things to modify to ensure a safe and healthy start to the new season when the weather is a little colder than usual. Extra warmup before practice starts Before you make your first throw make sure that you are spending at least 10 minutes on a generalized warmup for your entire body. A light jog around the field a few times mixed in with some jumping jacks should get your muscles warmed up properly and get your lungs and cardiovascular system ready for optimal performance. 2. Dynamic stretches over static stretches The days of everyone sitting in the grass and reaching for thei...
