Old School or Modern Era?

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away … ball players wore their socks high. Some people still do it, but people generally wear low socks in this era. But, the question is: which version is better?

Personally, I wear my socks super low with baggy pants. Why? It’s comfy, and I just like the look of it. But, some of my teammates wear their socks high, mostly pitcher

s (and we all know about pitchers). Some can actually look good with high socks, but others have no business doing it. Piece of advice: if you have chicken-legs, don’t wear high socks!

It’s really just a preference on how to wear socks. Some like them high because they just like it, and some wear stirrups for no particular reason;others wear lows socks just because they can. Figure out what suits your style, but keep in mind that if you have skinny legs that aren’t muscular, high socks won’t do you good!

Happy swingin’!

-Franco

Overkill on Sweatbands

I’m not cynical or anything, but players really need to take it easy on the sweatbands. I’ve seen guys with sweatbands covering their entire arm, like a sleeve of sweatbands. There’s no need for that!

Sure, sweatbands are helpful and can look good, but there is a certain point where enough is enough. Sweatbands, believe it or not, are designed to absorb the sweat your body produces. There’s no way that one person can need 12 sweatbands. Not a chance.

Some advice for ball players everywhere: a little bit of something is good, but too much of one thing is bad.

Happy swingin’!

– Franco

Chilly is good!

I’m not a fair-weather fan…at all. I love being cold, and coldness actually helps baseball players!

Unlike most people, I have two best friends instead of one: ibuprofen and ICE. Both are really helpful in getting rid of sore arms, but icing is also important for injury prevention.

Personally, I ice my throwing arm every night. I recommend the same for any other high school player, but BE CAREFUL! There it’s such a thing as “over-icing,”and it hurts like none other. Make sure there is a layer of something, like a thin towel, between the skin and the ice, and only ice for fifteen minute intervals.

Better arm = stronger throwing.

Happy throwin’!

-Franco

Watch your Wrists

Why do people wear sweatbands? Why do they tape their wrists? Why do they do this, or that? Sometimes it has a reason, but most of the time it’s just to look good. And that’s what baseball players are all about, looking fresh and fine.

Evo Shield – Purple

Every baseball player dresses differently, nobody ever wants to be the same. I don’t wear my hat the same way that a pitcher does, or an outfielder, or anybody for that matter. I like to look different, and that’s why I wear certain things on my wrist.

Personally, I think that there’s two options when it comes to wrist-gear: tape or Evo Shield. I like the Evo Shields because they not only look amazing (and you can customize it to your favorite/team color) but they also provide protection. As a first basemen, and for any infielder, sometimes ground-balls can jump up on you and hit you in the wrist. That hurts SO badly. The Evo Shield protects your wrist and looks good while doing it.

But………. there’s always the classic version of just taping your wrists. I like to tape my wrists only when I forget my Evo Shield, but there’s nothing wrong with tape! It fixes everything, and make it look athletic too.
Look fresh, play well.

Happy swingin’

– Franco

(Don’t) Wash your hat!

Am I superstitious? More than you would believe! Superstition is the motive for a lot of what I do in baseball, like licking my fingers before every pitch and blowing a bubble before every at bat. It’s not logical, but it works! Most importantly though, superstition in the reason why I never, EVER wash my hat.

My hat is pretty gross after the summer season, but I refuse to wash it. Cleaning your baseball hat of sweat is like erasing somebody’s memory. There are good parts of a person’s memory and dark, bad parts, but the memory is what shapes someone. Washing your hat erases that diving play you made to save the game, the one error you wish you could have back, and everything that shaped you as a player.

So go ahead, wash your hat if it grosses you out, but know this: the amount of sweat on your brim shows the amount of character you have.

Go hard.

-Franco

Rubber-arm syndrome

So, the fall baseball season is officially over for me, which means winter workouts are about to start up. Like most baseball players who want to actually become the best athlete they possibly can, I’ve been doing some work on my own. Mostly I’ve been just lifting and getting stronger so, you know, I can hit the ball further and throw farther. But then I realized, the best way to throw farther is to strengthen my arm. And how do I strengthen my arm? Throwing. So, I decided to do some long-toss with one of my buddies; we each haven’t thrown for awhile since the season ended. You can guess what happens next. We start throwing and really stretching out our arms, it feels good to throw, but eventually we stop. In the next few minutes I realize that my arm is starting to feel funny. If you play baseball, you know what happens next! My arm starts to feel like rubber and I then know that I have a sore arm. 

 

Sore arms are a lot like other minor injuries in baseball, the best way to solve it is to prevent it. Stretching is REALLY important, never skip over it or just “do it real quick.” Take the time to stretch and it’ll be worth it, I promise! But let’s go back to the sore arm thing. It happens to everyone and once it does, everyone wants it to go away, and fast! There’s not one thing that can instantly cure a sore arm, but icing and ibuprofen are the best tools that I’ve found that actually work.

 

Remember though, sometimes a sore arm is a good thing! You want your arm to be a little sore after each day of throwing so that it’ll become stronger, but blowing out your arm repeatedly is never a good thing! Be smart, stay safe, and have fun!

 

Happy throwin’!

 

P.S. I’m moving back to discussion-like and “vs.” blogs soon so don’t go anywhere! And don’t be afraid to leave a comment or start a discussion!!!

 

-Franco

Blisters!!!

Okay, does anyone like blisters? No? I didn’t think so, and I know that I REALLY don’t like blisters. They’re gross, aggravating, and amazingly painful; but no matter how much people dislike or even hate them, blisters will always exist. But, from my personal experience I’ve found there are a few different ways to solve the irritating problem of blisters.

Whenever I start swinging or throwing too often, I notice that blisters
rs form on my hands. The best treatment for a blister is to prevent it. What i mean is that baseball players shouldn’t take too much time off in the off-season. If you keep throwing and swinging regularly then you’re hands will always be conditioned and blister-free. Also, use batting gloves!!! They cover your hands and protect them too.

Now I’m not a doctor so I do NOT want to mislead any of my readers or lead them to harm themselves, so I’ll provide a link on other ways to solve the issue of blisters after you get them. But, one method that works for me when I have a blood blister is to use a needle to bleed it out, so you can try that as long as you are VERY careful!

Here’s a link with other ways to solve your blister problems: Get Rid of Blisters!

Stay tuned for more everyday baseball problems and discussions!

Happy swingin’!

-Franco

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So after posting these new topics, I kind of noticed that everything seems so stiff and pressed and not fun. I’ve decided to open things up a bit by relaxing rather than focusing on finishing the blog for a grade. I’m going to have fun with this blog and hopefully you will too! Stay tuned for the latest updates on the everyday baseball grind!!!

-Franco

Pine Tar: Liquid vs. Solid

Tiger Stick Pine Tar

Last post I featured various bat tape techniques to enhance the grip of a bat. However, tape is not the only method that increases the stickiness of a bat. Players everywhere will agree that the best way to make a bat sticky is by using pine tar. The biggest issue about pine tar though: liquid versus stick.

The two major types of pine tar are liquid and a solid stick of pine tar. From my personal experience, stick pine tar is better than liquid pine tar. The solid form is much more cost effective and provides a perfect amount of stickiness. Liquid pine tar probably is more “grippy” but the total cost for the liquid and materials needed to put the pine tar on the bat (special rags to apply and remove the tar) outweighs the longevity of the product. I have experimented with different pine tars and found that Tiger stick works the best. Use http://www.viperbats.com to buy Tiger stick brand pine tar for the lowest price and best quality.

Although every person has their own way to apply pine tar, the most common method (and the one I use) goes as follows:

1. Open pine tar

2. Rub pine tar below the barrel but above where you put your hands. There should be about three or four inches of product lengthwise on the bat and it should wrap around the entire bat.

3. Rub hands (with batting gloves on if  they are used) on the pine tar and get ready to swing

below the barrel, above the handle

It’s fairly straightforward. The use of pine tar will help improve grip which allows a batter to swing faster and harder.

Happy swingin’!

-Franco

Bat Tape Techniques

Have you ever swung a bat and it slips out of your hands, flies across the field, and lands somewhere in your dugout? Don’t worry, it happens to all of us. The problem is that the bat doesn’t have enough grip. A quick remedy to this problem is … taping the bat’s handle.

Taping a bat can be as complex or as simple as a person makes it, but if the appearance of the bat is a priority, then the time it takes to tape the bat will increase dramatically. There are simple ways of taping a bat and also exciting, complex tape techniques.

Perhaps the most fundamental method is just completely wrapping the handle with one piece of tape.

basic technique

However, a more common and stylistic technique uses tape to make “x’s” across the bat’s handle.

Criss Cross Method

To tape a bat like this, follow these instructions:

1. Tear a long piece of tape, length is the distance from the knob to just before the barrel
2. Cut the tape in half so that it is not as thick but still the same length
3. Place one strip at an angle from the knob and wrap up the handle
4. Repeat for the second strip
5. Tape the ends of the strips so they won’t fall off

Once these two techniques are mastered, one can start playing around with tape techniques and create a unique, personal, and advanced way of taping. Personally, I tape my bats following the crisscross method, but I also add some flare to the technique.

My Variation

Don’t be afraid to add your own style and play around with taping your bat. Now when you swing, you can rest assured that the bat will remain glued to your hands and not fly off.

Happy swingin’!

-Franco

Batting Gloves vs. Bare Hands

It is the age-old conflict for batters: batting gloves vs. bare hands. In my baseball career I have repeatedly transitioned from gloves to no gloves. The decision to use batting gloves is purely based on opinion; there is no science backing either side (to my knowledge), so it is just a preference.

Evoshield Batting Gloves

I have found that using new batting gloves combined with fresh tape on my bat and using pine tar provides the stickiest solution for swinging. But, when gloves become worn they lose their grip, so new gloves are required. I currently am using batting gloves but I buy a new pair for each season: spring, summer, fall, and winter. It is not the most frugal choice but it is just a preference that I use batting gloves.

With the number of swings I take each day, which is between 50-100, I use the gloves to protect my hands from sores or blisters that may occur. I also like gloves because they protect my hands when I am sliding on the base-paths. Diving headfirst on the infield dirt of a baseball field rips the skin from my hands; the gloves save my hands from unnecessary and uncomfortable wear and tear.

As I said earlier, I don’t use gloves if they become excessively worn and a new season has not yet started. The advantage of using bare hands is that there is no material separating the batter from the bat. However, frequent swinging without batting gloves leads to blisters and sore hands which painful and unnecessary. But, the choice is up to each and every baseball player in the world.

Jorge Posada Bare-hand Swing

Happy swingin’!

-Franco