We’re excited to welcome Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Steve Cishek to the podcast. A special thanks to this show’s sponsor, Lumberlend. Head to www.Lumberlend.com and enter the coupon code CSP to get free shipping on your order of two or more bat mugs.

Show Outline

• How underdeveloped, high school Steve Cishek sent VHS tapes to college coaches enticing them to recruit him
• Why Division 2 Carson-Newman College was the right fit for Steve and his development
• How Steve’s arm slot has remained consistent throughout his career, and he has instead manipulated his trunk position to find the pitching delivery that works best for him
• How Steve’s appearance in the 2013 World Baseball Classic contributed to his struggles in April 2013 following the WBC, and what he learned about his fastball and what makes him effective as a pitcher during this time
• How Steve’s slider developed in the minors
• Why Steve’s humility has made him a popular player in every clubhouse in which he plays
• How Steve modified his throwing program daily to account for his workload as a reliable reliever in-season
• How Steve remains even keel through the ups and downs of a season
• How Steve approaches in-season training
• Why Cishek’s fastball usage is increasing when fastball usage is trending down across most of MLB
• Steve explains ways young pitcher’s can build rapport with their catcher.

You can follow Steve on Twitter at @srShrek31, and on Instagram at @srShrek31.

Sponsor Reminder

This episode is brought to you by Lumberlend Co. If you’re looking for a unique gift for a baseball fan in your life, you’ll definitely want to check this out: they’ve hollowed out the bat barrel and created a cool drinking mug. You can customize these with colors, names, logos, and photographs. They’re also an officially licensed MLBPA product, so you can get your favorite teams and players incorporated into the designs. I’ve used these as gifts with great feedback, so I’m confident you’d experience the same. The crew at Lumberlend is offering free shipping on two or more bat mugs with the coupon code CSP at checkout. Just head to Lumberlend.com to design yours today.

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