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Evan Longoria – Baseball Workouts
One of the rising stars of baseball is Evan Longoria. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays with the third overall pick in the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft. Longoria, called the “best pure hitter” among college players in the 2006 draft class by Baseball America, was given a $3 million signing bonus. Longoria is now a Major League Baseball third baseman for the Tampa Bay Rays. Formerly, Longoria was a star infielder for the Long Beach State college baseball team, the 2005 Cape Cod League MVP, and the 2006 Big West Co-Player of the Year. He made his major league debut for the Rays in 2008 and was named to the American League team for the 2008 MLB All Star Game.
Longoria hit his first career home run on April 14, 2008, against the New York Yankees at Tropicana Field. He had his first career two-homer game on May 24, 2008, and drove in six runs as the Rays defeated the Baltimore Orioles 11-4. Both of the homers came off the Orioles’ Steve Trachsel, a Long Beach State alumnus. On July 19, 2008, Longoria hit his first career grand slam off Toronto’s Roy Halladay in the fifth inning as part of a 6-4 winning effort.
On July 10, Longoria won the 2008 All-Star game AL Final Fan vote over outfielder Jermaine Dye of the Chicago White Sox, outfielder Jose Guillen of the Kansas City Royals, first baseman Jason Giambi of the New York Yankees, and second baseman Brian Roberts of the Baltimore Orioles. Longoria went 1-4 in the game and hit a game-tying ground-rule double in the bottom of the eighth inning. On August 11, Longoria was placed on the disabled list with a fractured wrist
On September 18, 2008, Longoria had his first three home-run game against the Minnesota Twins at Tropicana Field. On September 20, 2008, Longoria caught the game-ending out, from Joe Mauer in foul territory as the Rays clinched their first playoff spot in team history.
In 2008, the Rays signed Longoria to a six-year, $17.5 million contract with options for 2014, 2015 and 2016. The first six years of the contract cover his arbitration years, with three more years added by team options. If the team exercises its one-year option for 2014, and then its two-year option for the 2015 and 2016 seasons, the deal could be worth up to $44 million.[3]
Longoria has used I’m Broken by Pantera and currently is using Down and Out by Tantric as his at-bat music.
On October 2, 2008, in his first postseason game, Longoria’s first two at-bats resulted in home runs. (source: Wikipedia)
How to train for baseball
Strength training is extremely important in baseball, because a variety of muscle groups are used to play. Each position requires slightly different motions; for instance, a pitcher uses his arm more than a catcher, who uses his legs for squatting at home plate. Baseball training is broken up into four different parts of the year, and each includes a slightly different workout focus.
Early Pre-Season Baseball Training (January-February)
The early pre-season is used for more general workouts, such as running. These workouts will gradually shift into more intense workouts – the key here is to not start off too intensely, because that will add stress and strain to rested muscles, increasing the chance for injury. You want to get your body back in shape after the off-season before you start pushing it too hard. You want to start building your foundational strength, which basically your overall strength. The core muscles are most important to a baseball player; they facilitate movements such as turning, jumping, and twisting. Body weight exercises are great when used in a circuit because they lower the risk of injury by depending only on body weight.
Late Pre-Season Baseball Training (March-April)
Late pre-season is where your workouts should get more intense. You should be working on developing your maximum strength, or basically the amount of strength in one repetition. This is where a lot of baseball players go wrong – they try too hard to bench press a lot of weight and wind up with an injury. The goal is to peak with your explosiveness and power during in-season. Medicine ball exercises are great for late pre-season, and there are a variety of exercises you can do with a medicine ball. The medicine ball will help build explosiveness, which leads to more power.
In-Season Baseball Training (May-September)
In-season is all about maintenance. You’ve already worked hard, developed your explosiveness and power, and now you just want to maintain everything that was gained during pre-season. There should be no strenuous or intense exercise performed, because, again, pushing yourself too hard can lead to injuries. This is also the time to focus on balancing out your muscles. Most baseball players only hit from one side and throw from one side, which means that the other side is not getting as much of a workout. Having unevenness among muscles can also lead to injury – definitely something to prevent.
Off-Season Baseball Training (October-December)
Off-season is the time to take a break from your workout and let your muscles rest. A 3-4 week break is good – too much longer and you risk losing a lot of the muscle that you gained. Towards the end of the off-season, you should start focusing on your foundational strength, and that will guide you back into the early pre-season.
Baseball strength training is all about preventing and avoiding injury by doing a workout that includes a variety of options – weight training, body weight exercises, and medicine ball exercises. Certain exercises should be avoided; for example, you should never press with heavy weights, as it adds too much stress on your shoulders. Rotator cuff injuries can be prevented by using 3-5 pound weights instead of larger weights.
This article was written by Michael Greeves, CEO and founder of Hyperstrike, wanted to develop an affordable fitness for individuals and athletes that could be customized to their personal abilities and goals, and be delivered to any one, any where, any time. Learn more about HyperStrike workout programs.
Stats from Wikipedia:
| Tampa Bay Rays — No. 3 | |
| Third baseman | |
| Born: October 7, 1985 Downey, California |
|
|---|---|
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| April 12, 2008 for the Tampa Bay Rays | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through 2008 season) |
|
| Batting average | .272 |
| Home runs | 27 |
| Runs batted in | 85 |
| On base percentage | .343 |
| Teams | |
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| Highlights and awards | |
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