Happy New Year everyone! I had a nice break and I hope you and your families did as well.
At this point in the off-season, baseball players and coaches should be mapping out a game-plan for the next couple months so that they are at full strength when the season starts. This starts with getting yourself a calendar, marking the first day of the baseball season, and then working backwards.
Keep in mind that the “first day of the baseball season” can differ even for players on the same team. Here is what I mean. Player A is a very good player who is one of the best players on the team. Because of this, he is virtually guaranteed a spot on the roster. His past performance has earned him this status. Player B is not one of the better players on the roster. Because of this, he will need to fight starting at day 1 of tryouts and/or workouts to show that he belongs on the team. He has not yet earned the status Player A has earned.
Because their statuses are different, both players need to address their off-seasons differently to prepare correctly for both of their situations. Player A can mark the calendar for the team’s first real (league?) game of the season. Player B cannot afford to wait until that day to be at full strength. He may not make it to that date if he never makes the team in the first place. He may have to plan on being at full strength a full two or three weeks ahead of Player A. That means the pace of his workouts needs to be speeded up a little compared to Player A.
You see this all the time in spring training locations for major league teams. Rookies and non-roster invitees come into camp at 100% because they know they better or they will be sent down or sent home if not. The solid MLB veterans use spring training to prepare for the regular season.
The basic point is that every player has to plan things out so they peak at the right time. Future posts will give some more insight on how exactly this can be done.
