MMV #006: Developing a Relievers Weekly Throwing Plan

Read time: 3 minutes

Last week we talked about how to schedule a starting pitchers weekly throwing plan.

Starters are fairly straightforward, while a relievers schedule can vary from week to week.

This doesn't mean they shouldn't have a routine. Knowing what to do each day is critical to long term success.

The unpredictability of a relievers schedule is why coaches should plan MORE, not less.

There are 4-types of days a reliever will have:

1. Hot

2. Down

3. Practice

4. Emergency

Let's dive into each one.

1. Hot

When you are "hot" you aren’t guaranteed to pitch, but there is a strong chance.

Here is an example of how you would prepare for the day:

Pre-game:

• J-Bands
• Constrained plyos (reverse throws/pivot picks)
• Catch play to 120-150’
• Grips at the end

During game:

• Keep body moving throughout game
• As pitch count climbs, start bands
• Perform dynamic plyos on mound before getting hot (if time)

There are 2 basic scenarios leading up to you entering the game:

• Be ready in 1-2 batters
• You are in next inning

If it’s get hot immediately, there’s no time for plyos which is why you want to be moving around in between innings.

If you are in next inning you have time to do mound plyos.

When you have to get ready immediately, there are 2 things to accomplish:

• Rapid fire fastballs to get your arm hot
• Get primary OS pitch ready

At that point you can enter the game with your fastball and your best weapon.

If you have time, you can get the other pitches ready.

2. Down

This will be the day after you pitch or even two days after if you threw enough pitches.

Primary focus on these days is RECOVERY. Light throwing to 60’ or off if you need it.

Utilize recovery modalities such as Marc Pro (use code PCU10 and save 10%), massage therapy, stretching, etc.

Down days are also a good opportunity to review your last couple of outings to see what adjustments you need to make. 

3. Practice

This will usually be a moderate throwing day with maybe a touch and feel depending on when you pitched last.

It also can be a good day to stretch it out to 200+ feet with little to no pulldowns. Focus on moderate intensity with a little higher volume.

As far as drills, plyos are good, but also look for non-throwing movement based drills. Core velocity belt, medicine ball, hinge work, etc.

For guys that aren’t pitching a lot, practices could be a good opportunity to have them throw 1-2 innings of live to batters.

Keep them fresh and ready for game action.

There is always a point in the year where you need a pitcher that hasn’t thrown many innings, to get important outs for you. Help prepare them the best you can.

It's difficult to expect a pitcher to perform well if they haven’t faced a batter in 3-4 weeks.

4. Emergency

These are days where you could pitch if needed, but you would be the last reliever used in an extra inning game.

Throwing should be fairly light between 90-120 feet.

You could do light plyos, but you want to keep volume low in case they are needed.

Couple notes:

Frequent touch and feels are your friend.

Low volume, but have them touch the mound regularly.

Touch and feel could be before a game or after if they are hot and don’t pitch.

RECAP

4 types of days for relievers:

1. Hot

2. Down

3. Practice

4. Emergency

Relievers need more than light catch play every day as their routine.

Having a plan for each of these days in-season is critical to a relievers success.

That's all for today.

If you have questions about how this could work for you, please email us.

See you next week.

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