Three Anti-Rotation Exercises Every Baseball Player Should Be Doing

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I think it is important to start this post by stating what exactly anti-rotation means. Anti-rotation is the act of forcefully resisting a rotational movement that would otherwise want to rotate. It' is a crucial element to effectively transfer force from the ground up through the rest of the body. This directly applies to the pitching delivery. We know that torso rotation is a key element of velocity, but it must be done at the proper time. Rotating too early in the delivery will lead to an opened torso at foot strike, resulting in a loss of separation between the hips and shoulders. This is an obvious problem that many coaches try to fix. I want to propose the idea that the player you are trying to work on separation with might not be strong enough to get into those positions. This is why doing a physical assessment is critical to know the strengths and weaknesses of the athlete.

Lets get back to talking about anti-rotation. As my body travels down the mound, the natural tendency will be for my front shoulder to start to leak. By having the core strength to resist it until foot plant will put me in the optimal position to maximize my power. So, how do you work on this you might be asking yourself. There are numerous exercises that work on this, but I am going to highlight three exercises that you can add into your lifts right away.

Wide Stance Anti-Rotation with Rope

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The wide stance anti-rotation exercise is one of my favorite ones. Get your feet spread out beyond your standard shoulder width. The next piece is to keep your arms straight out instead of bent. The reason for this is to enhance core activation. The further away the hands are, the more difficult the movement is. The next thing to pay attention to is there is no rotation involved with the hips and very minimal movement with the torso. Inhale as you move your arms away from you. Exhale as you go back to the start position. It is imperative that you think about expanding your abs and keeping the core tight as you perform the movement.

You can also perform high to low or low to high variations, as well as split stance variations.

Recommended Sets and Reps: 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps/side

Pallof Press

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The pallor press is a staple in any program I design. Get your feet at shoulder width apart with a slight bend. You will then bring the cable to your chest (it is going to want to rotate you to the side the cable is on). Once you have the cable at your chest you will proceed to push straight out in front of you with arms fully extended. Go at a controlled pace and give it a good one second hold with arms extended.

This is another exercise that can progress to split stance variations, as well as isometric holds.

Recommended Sets and Reps: 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps/side

Plank Plate Slide

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The last exercise of this series is the plank plate slide. This can be a very challenging exercise for people that are not good at resisting rotation. To start, you will be in a standard plank position. From this position you will reach across your body (going under the other arm) for a 5 pound plate or weighted implement of some kind that can slide. From here you will slide the weight to the other side and repeat the process on the other side. The key is try to minimize hip movement, whether that be raising the hips or opening them up. To make the exercise easier, separate your feet further and bring them closer to make it more difficult.

Another variation of this would to be in a plank position on your hands.

Recommended Sets and Reps: 3-4 sets of 4-6 reps/side

Conclusion

These are just three of many possibilities to work on anti-rotation. Doing things like single arm rows or single arm chest press will all force you to work on resisting rotation. Look for ways to integrate this in your main lifts! This is not to say you shouldn’t work on rotational exercises. Rotation is a huge piece of hitting and pitching and must be applied as well. I like to superset exercises like this towards the back end of a lift with another accessory exercise.

My off-season strength guide eBook is a great resource to improve your strength and mobility. Exercises like these are in it! Click the image below to learn more!

Feel free to email me at info@gaynorstrength-pitching.com or reach out to me on social media with any questions. Thanks for reading!



- Jared

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