The problem with the traditional Long Toss was discovered in the latest case study performed by the famous ASMI which was backed by the famous Dr. Andrews. You can learn more about this study here. The final results proved that the traditional long toss, along with the popular extreme long toss, not only is destructive to your pitching mechanics but it puts a tremendous amount of stress in the elbow. The 3X Power Throws were developed to eliminate this stress in the elbow while also promoting the 3X pitching mechanics. The results have been revolutionary.

The Benefits of the 3X Power Throws

1. Increase your volume of throws, without abusing your arm.
2. Use distance to challenge your power production without effecting your mechanics.
3. Help maintain total body strength while in-season.

The Difference Between 3X Power Throws and Long Toss

Long Toss is an approach to conditioning the athlete using distance throws. The problem is most practices of Long Toss do not focus on pitching mechanics. This means the athlete is developing throwing mechanics that are different than pitching on the mound. This is the case because when Long Tossing the athlete usually starts with a light toss mainly only using the arm to throw the ball and then as the athlete increases the distance, he may close the shoulders more and develop more hip to shoulder separation. The problem is when the athlete starts to use a “Crow Hop,” or a run, or step into the throw. This will take the power production away from the drive leg during the delivery because momentum or power is being produced through the steps before the throwing delivery begins. This can force the athlete to wipe the arm around the body to power the throw or force the athlete to develop the power before the throw even begins, by using the traditional “Crow Hop.”

The 3X Power Throws start in a position that promotes optimal pitching mechanics and then builds the power demands on the entire body by increasing the distance without changing the mechanics. The distance used is based on the pitchers power production. Once he can no longer keep the ball on a line during the throw and/or he struggles to keep his pitching mechanics working together then this is his max distance. Just like weight training you must not sacrifice technique for weight. This means you must not sacrifice pitching mechanics for more distance when 3X Power Throwing.

 Why You Should Use the 3X Power Throw over Long Toss

3X Power Throwing is not only better for your arm than Long Tossing but it will help you take your off-season power gains and velocity gains on the mound while in-season. It will also help you keep your velocity and pitching mechanics more consistent through a long season. 3X Power Throwing is the upgrade to the “Old School” approach of Long Tossing. It is like using the bat technology of today as opposed to using the bat technology from 40 years ago. It is a no brain-er! The challenge is learning the 3X Mechanics behind 3X Power Throwing. To learn these mechanics it does require that you complete the off-season 3X Pitching Velocity program but you will discover that there is no better way to transform yourself into the dominate 3X Power Pitcher.

Important Notice: 3X Power Throws or the “Old School” Long toss should not be used in an off-season velocity development program. You do not want to use a high volume of throws off-season when trying to increase velocity. You must take stress off of your rotator cuff and elbow while in your off-season and focus on mechanics and power development during your off-season to effectively increase velocity and build a strong base before your season. To learn more about the ultimate off-season Velocity program check out the 3X Pitching Velocity program.

Evidence that the MLB folded this hand is in articles like this here on MLB.com. The title says it all, Coach wants methods to catch on in bigs – Jaeger’s old-school, unorthodox regimen preserves arms. What will they do next, MLB forcing their pitchers to run longer distances for conditioning! This is just mind blowing. Alan Jaeger’s reason for his old school approach, over the new school approaches of the MLB which are still old school in my book, is in his quote here from the article.

“Among nature’s mightiest, most majestic creations are the Great Redwoods, which stretch skyward to heights of 350 feet and beyond…..But what might happen if you planted a baby Redwood tree in a greenhouse with a 10-foot ceiling reinforced with steel? The tree, much like a young Geisha girl’s feet shoved into unusually small shoes, would never reach its intended growth capacity. Both are examples of natural development being stunted, unnaturally. This, says Alan Jaeger, is the plight of pitching arms in America — and, by extension, many arms in Major League Baseball.”

The fact that this is the language that Jaeger uses to coach pitchers through his program is child’s play. If I was forced into a debate over this rhetoric I would have to counter his analogy with an analogy that is similar and defines the new school approach of Bigger, Stronger, Faster. My analogy would go something like this.

“Among nature’s mightiest, most ferocious creations is the Awesome Lion, the King of the jungle, who has the strength and speed to caught a Gazelle and rip his flesh to pieces…….But what might happen if you caged this Lion in a 30 foot cage reinforced with steel and barbed wire and force him to attack and kill large elephants and hippos? Much like the way Michael Vick raised his pit bulls for cage fighting. The day the lion was freed from his cage he would more than likely devour everything in his path. This, says Brent Pourciau is how I train my pitchers to grow Bigger, Stronger, Faster so they can reach their potential velocity or maybe even exceed my expectations.”

The fact that the likes of Nolan Ryan would actually entertain this old school approach on arm health for his Ranger pitchers makes me believe that major league baseball is going backwards again. Just when I thought the likes of Tim Lincecum had pushed the MLB into a new school revolution I was wrong. I believe the only hope that the MLB has is Dr. Andrew’s. If he finds the time to convince the MLB with his scientific studies of why arm injuries occur when unorthodox methods like Jaeger’s “air it out” throwing program are used then maybe the MLB will step into the future of strength and conditioning. Until then I am going to remain an MLB outcast and preach against this nonsense!