Baseball off-season workouts have already started, and are going to continue until the week of tryouts in late February and early March.  This year the roster will more than likely be comprised of mostly seniors, so the work they put in now will be even more important down the road when the season actually begins.

“When I go to baseball workouts I work on many things, but I mainly focus  on my pitching mechanics. I would definitely like to improve on my pitching velocity so I can pitch more competitively than my previous years,” senior Peyton Luebbers said.

Everyone has something different to work on or improve while they are there.  The indoor facility, located in Millstadt, has enough space for a couple batting cages and a pitching mound.  People can rotate through one cage and jump in another one, getting swings in and throwing bullpens.

“When I go to baseball workouts I mainly try to work on my hitting. I try to get my mechanics down so that in a game I will be prepared for whatever pitch is thrown at me.  I also work on my pitching; I throw a bullpen every Thursday. This really helps to make sure I know exactly where my pitch is going to go when I throw it in a game,” senior Conner Russelburg said. 

These workouts also give players the opportunity to learn from one another.  Since there is no instruction being given by coaches, the tips and suggestions players give to one another become even more important.

The pitchers who have been on varsity already for two years before me really help a lot.  They can be amazing to watch and ask questions to. They even give advice while I am pitching so I can be as effective as possible when I am pitching,” Russelburg said.

These baseball-specific workouts are not the only thing players do to get ready for the upcoming season, however.  Whether it’s personal work they put in outside of school or in PE in the weight room, everyone has their own way of getting better.

“I’ve been going to private lessons or other workouts with my club team almost every day,” sophomore J.D. Kramer said.

Some things, though, are more specific to the player’s position.

“I work out five days a week and do research on different pitch grips and pitching mechanics,” Luebbers said.

Each player also has goals, both long-term and short-term.  The workouts and other work players put in helps achieve them.

“My main goal for this season is to get as much playing time as possible.  I got what I wanted as far as playing time goes last year, but this year is going to be very competitive for playing time,” Russelburg said.