Do I have any chance of realizing my dream?

#1

I’m 24 years old. I have loved baseball my entire life but have never played in a competitive game. Besides playing catch as a kid, and taking a couple of hacks in the batting cage as a teenager, I have no baseball experience. There are several reasons I didn’t play baseball growing up although I wanted to. I grew up in NYC, my schools didn’t have teams, my family was too poor to have me place in non-school leagues, etc. The bottom line is I didn’t play.

My dream is to be able to pitch in competitive baseball.

I consider myself reasonably athletic. I’m left handed, 5 11, 152 - 155 pounds. I can sprint fast, have a good vertical leap and reaction time.

I work out, bike ride about 400 miles a month, and have a strong core.

What do you think of my goal? I know when I say “competitive baseball”, that is vague. I mean I would like to be able to pitch in an adult hardball league. However, the sky is the limit. If I find myself throwing an 85 MPH fastball with a biting 78 MPH slider, I’m definitely trying out for professional baseball.

I’m seeking advice as to whether any of this is even close to being realistic. And if it is, how should I get started?

If I decide to go through with this, I’ll start a blog on here with daily updates that will include pictures and videos.

Thanks very much in advance for your help!

#2

If you love it then the better question is why not? If you don’t give it a shot you might regret it. Go for it.

#3

Gotta start throwing, 3-4 days a week minimum. Just throw, play catch find out if you have the desire to make it as fun as some of us find it.

#4

Thanks guys. So just go out and start throwing the ball? Any arm strength training I should look into before I go out there?

I’m also considering hiring a coach, or at least find a guy who’s pitched before who’ll so me the basics.

#5

Not a bad idea to look for a coach to teach the basics.

More importantly, as previously posted, you have to start throwing three or four days a week.

If you have the determination, drive, and love of the game, give it a shot.

#6

You definitely should pursue playing again if you have the opportunity! There will be a small learning period when you have to reacquire your skills, but it’s very possible. Just don’t expect it to be easy! Like the previous comment, you will need start throwing consistently 3-5 times a week, and develop a strength training program appropriate for pitching. Good luck!

#7

Don’t know if reacquire is the right word, as I’ve never played baseball before.

I’m in the right place at least, I live in Tampa FL. I’m going to start looking for pitching lessons in the area.

#8

Start throwing before finding a coach, don’t waste your money on coach time when right now you need 2-3 months of just throwing.

#9

Have been doing a lot of arm exercises and starting light throwing. Plan to upload some videos soon.

#10

Looking forward to seeing you, good luck.

#11

One issue I’ve been having is I don’t believe I’m warming up properly when I throw. After every throwing session, I experience soreness in my arm for about 40 hours. Is this natural? What is the proper way to loosen your arm up before throwing?

#12

Do you stretch at all or do any band work prior to throwing, or do you just go out there and start throwing?

#13

I always stretch before throwing. Keep in mind that I do not have anyone instructing me so i may not be stretching properly. I always start off wity light tossing and do not let my arm loose until it feels properly warmed up.

#14

This is Andrew McNally. He’s 38.

When he was 25, he was closing in the Indians’ organization. He had some outstanding numbers:

But he was released because he wasn’t “projectable.” He threw 89-90 and is a shade under 6’0".

While in indy ball, he tore his rotator cuff. He had surgery to reattach the torn tendon, but was forced to rush back to competitive baseball and had a severe SLAP lesion in his shoulder along with posterior shoulder capsule tears.

For 10 years after that, he couldn’t throw a baseball without pain.

Andrew came to me 7 months ago saying he threw a baseball in the backyard a bit (as he did every few months for the past 10 years, hoping the pain would go away) and that he felt OK. He threw off a mound for me - the first time in a decade - and was throwing 70-71 MPH.

What you see in that video is Andrew throwing nearly as hard as he did when he was pitching competitively at 25 years old.

It wasn’t easy; Andrew was throwing long toss four times a week at a football field at 11 PM after he put his kids to bed. He had no partner, so he just threw 60+ baseballs on his own to one end of the field then retrieved them all when done, all in the dark.

After that, he’d throw weighted baseballs to improve his arm strength.

At 5:30 AM, he’d wake up and head into the gym to get his weight training and mobility drills in, then head back home to make breakfast for the kids and take them to school. He’d go to work, email me with the progress he’s made, and then go home.

Now he has scouts from the Angels and the Australian national team looking at him again. In six months he’ll be even better while working even harder.

The point is this: It’s never too late to get going. (Or in Andrew’s case, to pick it up again.)

#15

Thanks for that, Kyle. I’ll be honest, one of my main issues is that no one will take me seriously. When I talk to people about this they regard it as a big joke.

I am 100% serious about this and anyone who coaches me will have a pupil who will do everything they ask of them and bust their ass and give 100% while doing so.

#16

I know, I saw the TwoPlusTwo thread. :wink: (This is my name over there, too.)

If you lived in Seattle, you could work out here. Sadly, that’s not the case. But it doesn’t matter THAT much; internal motivation is the only real thing that will keep you going.

Andrew does all of his work mostly on his own with a little guidance from me. There’s no reason you couldn’t do the same.

#17

[quote=“kyleb”]I know, I saw the TwoPlusTwo thread. :wink: (This is my name over there, too.)

If you lived in Seattle, you could work out here. Sadly, that’s not the case. But it doesn’t matter THAT much; internal motivation is the only real thing that will keep you going.

Andrew does all of his work mostly on his own with a little guidance from me. There’s no reason you couldn’t do the same.[/quote]

Haha, that board…

Yea, my main problem is that I can’t find anyone to even catch for me, no matter how much I pester them!

#18

So why not throw into a net or a pad?

#19

I plan to do that. Right now I have a guy who’s willing to catch for me twice a week for an hour or two, so that’s how often I’ve been throwing.

I know I have to throw more than that, so if I can’t find anyone else my next step is a net or a pad.

#20

I have met with Kyle and am in the process of throwing, alone, whenever I can.

It sucks sometimes, but the improvement is nice.