RPP Baseball’s Speed Training and Development Program is an intensive protocol focused on helping the athlete gain both linear and lateral speed on the field. The following provides a summary of baseball-specific principles of our speed programming:
Speed Training Warm-up
Being explosive and running (and stopping) quickly can be very taxing on not only the muscles and joints, but the central nervous system as well. It is imperative to perform a proper warm up for speed training which includes, soft tissue work, activation, mobility and dynamic movement.
Linear Acceleration
Linear acceleration means getting our center of mass moving as quickly as possible moving forward. It obviously relates to many sports, but is best put to use on the baseball field in the form of base running, stealing and in the outfield.
Lateral Acceleration / Base Stealing
Lateral acceleration is where a baseball players can separate himself among the pack. The ability to accelerate or change direction quickly while maintaining an athletic posture sets a ball player up, not only from a performance standpoint, but also visually speaks volumes about his athleticism during any recruiting process.
Lateral Change-of-Direction
This is an area where many baseball players make the most mistakes. It’s also an area where top-end speed is not a factor, making those who are great movers in a short area excel. It can be particularly useful to the infielder who needs to make quick cuts to get to a ball on time, or a base runner in order to beat out a run down
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