Perry Husband
Auther – Downright Filthy Pitching Series
Hitting is a Guess DVD and Book Series
If you want a skill to get better, measure it, one of the most common threads in the fabric that has become the Ron Wolforth approach to velocity building for pitchers (and position players as well). This has been a mantra that I have lived by in the hitting world as well. I was thrilled to find another instructor that had been using that same idea to get the fantastic results that Ron has achieved with his vast amounts of pitchers that have broken that magical barrier that is so sacred in baseball; 90 MPH.
My opinion is that Ron’s concern goes far greater than just getting a pitcher to reach 90 MPH, he has shown me that he cares just as much if not more about the pitcher that has busted his hump to get to 80 MPH. More importantly than the milestones of reaching a pitcher’s maximum levels in velocity, it is my belief that Ron’s approach is based foremost in the health and conditioning of a player and secondarily in developing every MPH that player has in him or her. These two themes seem to run hand in hand in everything about the programs that he produces. “He gets it”.
He understands that delicate balance between pushing yourself to reach a goal and making sure the athlete is ready to do the work necessary to put the body through the rigors it takes to throw hard. He speaks the truth about the core of what makes guys throw hard. He tells them what they need to do to reach their goal, he measures them along the way to show them progress, and he kicks them in the butt sometimes and picks them up when they need that. Most importantly, he provides them proof that what he is saying works.
I look forward to seeing what great additions to Effective Velocity that his inventiveness will bring about.
My two young sons will put the Combat Pitcher program to work even though neither of them really play baseball yet at all. They love the exercises and I believe that whatever sport they play, their athleticism is the most important lesson learned. I highly recommend any player, pitcher or not to learn as much as possible about what Ron has to offer. He is truly one of the great instructors in baseball at any level.
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Brent Strom
Former Major League Pitching Coach
Houston Astros and Kansas City Royals
In the making of the Athletic Pitcher Program Ron Wolforth introduced a well thought out plan that had apparently been missing without anyone realizing it. While elite pitchers were still to be found many whose passion for pitching pleaded for help were being ignored. Not ignored i the sense that coaches didn’t try and help develop their pitching skills but ignored by coaches who didn’t allow the pitcher to tell us what was best for them. We as a group were blind to what was right in front of us. Unfortunately egos and an unwillingness to change our belief systems despirte overwhelming evidence caused us to take the athlete out of the pitcher.
With the new Combat Pitcher Program, Ron Wolforth has continued a quest to influence the hearts and minds of coaches to reintroduce “athlecticism” to the most important player on the field. That athleticism was once there in the old time pitchers before pitching coaches came to help teach the individual pitcher the one correct way to move. By listening to all, determining what made sense and acting upon the results that have shown thus far to be true with regards to velocity enhancement and arm health The Combat Pitcher is another step in continuing a groundswell movement to alter or at least have those that we entrust with our pitchers to question their existing teaching paradigms.
“In God We Trust, in everything else give me the data” is why The Combat Pitcher Program is so much more relevant today than before. Ron has helped bring a return to the athleticism of yesteryear with the advantage of an innovative conditiong program geared exclusively to he demands placed upon the pitcher.
So I ask the reader to move into this program with an open mind. See if common sense doesn’t cause you to take a step back and reassess what you teach if you are a seasoned coach even if you have had success. If you are a mother or father of a young pitcher wanting to give him the best chance for success then by utilizing this program you are basically betting on your son to find his way with “guided discovery”. Placing his pitching future in his abililies that he inherently possesses with proper guidance and not dictatorial teaching will not only allow for natural learning but create a sense of I did it my way. Through trial and error you might eventually find the right movement that will allow you to throw hard and stay healthy. With The Combat Pitcher as a guide the time required to go through the trial and error process can be shortened. Prepare yourself correctly to withstand the stresses inherent in throwing hard. Prepare yourself to go deeper into games, to be able to get that extra when needed. The Combat Pitcher Program is not easy. But then again nothing worth having is easy…is it?
Challenge yourself to be the best you can be. The Combat Pitcher will help you do that and be that.
