We're excited to welcome Anaheim Angels starting pitcher Tyler Skaggs to the podcast. A special thanks to this show's sponsor, Jaeger Sports. Head to www.JaegerSports.com and enter the coupon code CSP to get 20% off on your order through May 31.   

Show Outline

• How Tyler’s experience as a multi-sport high school athlete facilitated his development as an athlete
• Why Tyler progressed through minor league baseball and up to the big leagues quickly after being drafted out of high school in 2009
• How Tyler has refined his curveball in pro baseball
• How Tommy John surgery impacted Tyler’s career in 2014 and what his advice is for young pitchers who are going through major setbacks in their career
• How Tyler is working to develop a slider and learning to differentiate this pitch from his curveball
• How Tyler structures his throwing and training in season as a starting pitcher in a 5-day rotation
• What Tyler’s routine is on the day of his start
• How the game of baseball has evolved since Tyler was drafted a decade ago
• How the use of technology in baseball has allowed Tyler to better understand his pitches and develop a plan to more precisely refine his craft
• What characteristics in coaches have benefited Tyler’s development throughout his baseball career
• How the role of the pitching coach is evolving to include a more holistic approach to player management
• What the most common mistakes Tyler sees pitchers making when throwing curveballs

You can follow Tyler on Twitter at @TylerSkaggs37 and Instagram at @tskaggs45.

Sponsor Reminder

This episode is brought to you by Jaeger Sports, who specializes in arm health, arm conditioning, and mental training. Best known for their long toss protocols and popular J-Bands, Jaeger Sports has been helping baseball and softball athletes reach their potential on the field since 1991. Alan Jaeger has been a trusted resource to me for close to a decade, and many of our athletes use J-Bands every single day. Through May 31, you can get 20% off on your order at www.JaegerSports.com using the coupon code CSP.

Podcast Feedback

If you like what you hear, we'd be thrilled if you'd consider subscribing to the podcast and leaving us an iTunes review. You can do so HERE.

And, we welcome your suggestions for future guests and questions. Just email elitebaseballpodcast@gmail.com.

Thank you for your continued support!

Sign-up Today for our FREE Baseball Newsletter and Receive Instant Access to a 47-minute Presentation from Eric Cressey on Individualizing the Management of Overhead Athletes!

We're going to deviate from the normal single-guest model for this episode, and instead rock a collaborative effort between me and Cressey Sports Performance - MA pitching coordinator, Christian Wonders. We're going to discuss the debate on when kids should start throwing curveballs and sliders.

A special thanks to this show's sponsor, Athletic Greens. Head to http://www.athleticgreens.com/cressey and you'll receive a free 10-pack of Athletic Greens travel packets with your first order.

Show Outline

• What research says about youth pitchers throwing breaking balls
• When the right time is to begin integrating a breaking ball into a young pitcher’s development
• How Christian introduces a young pitcher to spinning a curveball for the first time
• What steps Christian takes to progress a young pitchers from simply learning to spin a baseball to consistently throwing breakers in a game
• Why youth pitchers should prioritize commanding fastball and changeup before jumping to learn a big breaking ball
• How the delicacy involved in throwing curveballs takes young pitchers away from working late arm speed and powering through the baseball
• What common mechanical compensations arise as young pitchers try to throw a quality curveball
• How Christian plans to develop a curveball with his 10 year old brother
• Why it is so crucial for pitchers to find a consistent and comfortable curveball grip that works for them
• Why Christian never has any of his pitchers, youth, high school, or college, throw more than two off speed pitches in a row in bullpens
• Why it’s important to replicate fastball arm speed on breaking pitches

You can follow Christian on Twitter at @csp_pitching, and on Instagram at @csp_pitching. Also, for more information about our upcoming CSP Elite Baseball Mentorship, be sure to check out www.EliteBaseballMentorships.com.

Sponsor Reminder

This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. It’s an all-in-one superfood supplement with 75 whole-food sourced ingredients designed to support your body’s nutrition needs across 5 critical areas of health: 1) energy, 2) immunity, 3) gut health, 4) hormonal support, and 5) healthy aging. Head to www.AthleticGreens.com/cressey and claim my special offer today - 20 FREE travel packs (valued at $79) - with your first purchase. I use this product daily myself and highly recommend it to our athletes as well. I'd encourage you to give it a shot, too - especially with this great offer.

Podcast Feedback

If you like what you hear, we'd be thrilled if you'd consider subscribing to the podcast and leaving us an iTunes review. You can do so HERE.

And, we welcome your suggestions for future guests and questions. Just email elitebaseballpodcast@gmail.com.

Thank you for your continued support!

Sign-up Today for our FREE Baseball Newsletter and Receive Instant Access to a 47-minute Presentation from Eric Cressey on Individualizing the Management of Overhead Athletes!

Let's get this week off on the right foot with some recommended strength and conditioning reading:

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us - An incoming Cressey Sports Performance intern asked for some additional recommended reading on top of the normal material they have to cover before they start up, and this was the first book that came to mind. This Seth Godin work is a quick read, but a classic, in my opinion.

Examine.com - This is really an entire site to check out, but it's one I heavily endorse and it warrants a mention on its 4th anniversary. The internet's largest and most trusted unbiased resource with respect to supplementation has all its guides on sale for 40% off this week.

When Should Youth Pitchers Learn Curveballs? - Several people have asked me this question lately, and it seemed like a good time to bring this old post from Matt Blake back to the forefront.

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