The 7 Best Med Ball Exercises For Baseball Players
Baseball is a very unique sport to train for. Flexibility, mobility, strength, endurance, and power are all needed.
Developing power in specific planes of motion is critical. We know that training power in the transverse and sagittal planes will be advantageous for baseball players.
In my opinion, med ball work is the most specific implement baseball players, especially pitchers, can use to develop power for their position. I recommend Dynamax-style med balls between 6 and 15 pounds. A sturdy wall is also required.
In this guide, I will be going over the 7 best med ball exercises for baseball players, off-season vs. in-season, and more!
Med Ball Exercises For Baseball Players
Seated Medicine Ball Twist
The Seated Med Ball Twist is a great movement that incorporates stability and rotation with the core. In baseball, we are often in positions that require the ability to stabilize and then rotate powerfully, so this is a very sport-specific movement.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Start by grabbing a medicine ball and taking a seat on the floor.
- Slightly bend the knees and raise your feet roughly six inches off the floor.
- Start by rotating your torso to the left and lightly tapping the med ball against the ground.
- Now turn your shoulders and rotate your torso to the right and, again, lightly tap the ball against the ground.
- Keep legs mostly still and maintain the feet off the floor throughout the movement.
- Continue rotating back and forth until all reps are completed.
Coaching Points (Common Mistakes)
The biggest mistake I see with my athletes when doing Seated Med Ball Twists is moving the ball back and forth primarily with their arms instead of rotating through the core. The focus should be on the rotation. The ball touching the ground is simply an added bonus to the movement.
Speaking of the ball touching the ground – there is no need to bang the ball off the ground as hard as possible each rep. Stay in control of the movement and the med ball and lightly tap it on the ground.
Overhead Medicine Ball Slam
Creating full body power is important for any sport and especially baseball. The overhead slam is a great upper body, overhead, dynamic core movement.
Focus on a fast countermovement. Extend the ball all the way overhead. Engage the core and slam the ball as hard as you can. Take pride in breaking some med balls here!
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Grab a medicine ball and stand tall with feet roughly shoulder-width apart.
- Reach the medicine ball high overhead.
- Using the core, pull the body down – hinging forward at the hips.
- Follow through with the arms and release the ball.
- Let the ball slam into the ground, catch it off the bounce and repeat for the designated number of reps.
Coaching Points
First and foremost, test how ‘bouncy’ your medicine ball is before starting. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen athletes almost have their face smashed by a medicine ball bouncing much harder and rebounding much faster off the ground than they were anticipating.
The biggest mistake I see with Med Ball Slams is athletes not utilizing the core and simply throwing the ball down with their arms. The bulk of the force should be generated by aggressively using the core to hinge forward. If done correctly, it should almost (and actually might) lift your feet up off the floor.
Around The World Med Ball Slam
The Around-The-World Med Ball Slam and other Medicine Ball Slam variations do a great job training rapid force development utilizing the whole body.
The reason I like this variation the most for baseball players is because of the movement at the shoulder. This variation is great for baseball players looking to develop a powerful core while also working shoulder stability.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Grab a medicine ball and stand tall with feet roughly shoulder-width apart.
- Rotate to the side and bring the ball up and behind the head.
- As the ball begins to be lifted over the head, aggressively rotate the body forward and slam the ball to the ground in front of the feet.
- Let the ball slam into the ground, catch it off the bounce and repeat going to the opposite direction.
- Continue to alternate back and forth until all reps are completed.
Coaching Points
First and foremost, test how ‘bouncy’ your medicine ball is before starting. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen athletes almost have their face smashed by a medicine ball bouncing much harder and rebounding much faster off the ground than they were anticipating.
The biggest mistake I see with Med Ball Slams is athletes not utilizing the core and simply throwing the ball down with their arms. The bulk of the force should be generated by aggressively using the core to hinge forward. If done correctly, it should almost (and actually might) lift your feet up off the floor.
Rotational Medicine Ball Side Toss (Into Wall)
This is one of my favorite movements for baseball players. Rotational Med Ball Side Toss is as specific as you can get to the rotational power needed on the field and therefore very important.
Take a side stance, facing perpendicular to the wall. Hold the medicine ball with open palms. Gain momentum with a counter movement and load the back hip. From here, rotate and toss the ball as hard as you can into the wall. The emphasis here is on the core and hips delivering that med ball to the wall. Do not “throw” the ball.
I would not focus on catching the ball off the wall. Each repetition should be fast and explosive. Take pride in breaking some med balls here!
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Grab a medicine ball and stand perpendicular to a sturdy wall.
- Distance away from the wall will vary based upon the type of medicine ball you have*.
- Stand in a good athletic position, feet shoulder width apart, hips and knees bent.
- Begin by rotating away from the wall, reaching the medicine ball toward the back hip.
- Now, aggressively rotate toward the wall, turning on the ball of the back foot, opening the hips toward the wall and releasing the ball into the wall.
- Catch the ball off the ball, reset and repeat. Once all reps are completed switch sides.
Coaching Points
The biggest mistake I see athletes make is using their arms (and not their hips) way too much to throw the ball. Power for the throw should primarily come from rotating the hips and torso and the arms should be secondary.
*The distance away from the wall will vary depending on what type of medicine ball you have. If you have a hard rubber medicine ball then be prepared for the ball to bounce a good way back off of the wall. If you have a soft Dynamax-type Medicine Ball then you can stand much closer as the bounce off the wall will be much less.
Rotational Med Ball Side Toss (For Distance)
Another very specific rotational power movement, the med ball rotational toss for distance is very important in training the core to be explosive.
Once again, use open palms, focus on that counter movement, and launch the ball as far as you can.
Each repetition should be fast and explosive. Focus on being aggressive, launch angle, and distance. Take pride in setting a distance record. Keep track of each attempt!
Med Ball Shot Put
This is one of my favorite movements for baseball players because of how specific it is to the sport itself. The med ball shot put helps train rotary power very specific to what we see on the field.
Take a med ball and hold it with both hands. Load the med ball high near the chin. Take a step and throw the ball (or put the ball) as hard as you can into the wall.
If you are throwing with your right arm, step with the left foot. Do all your reps on one side and then switch.
Focus on the trunk and hips delivering the med ball into the wall. You should not feel any strain on the shoulder here. You are loading the scapula but you are not “pulling down” down on the shoulder. The main counter-movement would be in the trunk and hips loading prior to the throw.
Med Ball Cannonballs
Hip extension and full body power are important for baseball. To throw, hit, and run as fast as we can, we need to be able to extend the hip forcefully. The Medicine Ball Cannonball is a great movement to train these movements.
Make sure you have at least 40 yards of turf. Take pride in setting a distance record. Keep track of your attempts!
How To
- First, make sure you have enough ceiling height to be able to do Cannonballs. I recommend doing them outside to avoid this issue altogether.
- Grab the ball with both hands cradling under the ball. Stand tall, feet shoulder-width apart.
- Pull the shoulder blades back, engage the lats and core, slightly bend the knees and hinge forward at the hips.
- Allow the medicine ball to fall in between the shins.
- You should now be in a good athletic position that looks very similar to the starting position of a Hang Clean.
- From here, explosively drive the feet through the ground and aggressively extend the hips and throw the ball as high as possible*.
- Allow the ball to hit the ground, grab it, then reset and repeat.
Coaching Points
Do NOT try to catch the ball directly out of the air. This is a great way to jam a wrist or a finger. Allow the ball to hit the ground first before grabbing it for the next rep.
*Cannonball Throws can either be done straight up in the air or behind you to a partner. If working with a partner, stand facing away from them and throw the ball at about a 45 degree angle. The goal is to throw the ball as far as possible in the air.
Off-Season vs. In-Season
Off-Season
I am a firm believer in developing core rotary power in the off-season. Working on rotary power 3 days a week is ideal.
For example:
- Dynamic warm-up
- Throwing warm-up
- Throwing program
- Med ball work
- Plyos and sprints
- Weight training
I think this is the ideal setup for a day of training a baseball player.
In-Season
Conversely, I do not think it is necessary to train rotary power in-season more than 1 (maybe 2) days per week. Especially for players who will play 4-5 games per week. Baseball (hitting and throwing) in and of itself is a rotary power sport.
In my opinion, the weight room emphasis in-season should shift more to anti-rotational work to avoid overuse injuries.
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More Links and Info
Looking for more info on how to take your game to the next level?
Check out my articles for the best Upper Body Exercises for Baseball Players as well as the best Lower Body Exercises.
