9AM to First Pitch
Daily In The Life of a Pro Pitcher
I’m taking you through everything I do every single day before a typical night game to get ready to pitch.
My Typical Daily Schedule
Physical Preparation Methods
Integrating the Spiritual Life
Typical schedule for a 6:30pm home game (can vary):
9-9:30am: Wake up
9:30-10am: Morning prayer/walk
10am: Breakfast
10:30am: Stretching/mobility routine
11am: Complete various tasks/chores for the day
11:30-11:45am: Go to adoration, read bible, or get extra rest
12:45pm: Drive to stadium
1pm: Arrive at stadium for lunch
1:45pm: Begin preparing for the game. Stretch, movement prep, get treatment, etc.
3pm: Throwing, conditioning, defense, etc.
4:30pm: Pregame meal, start getting ready for the game
5:30pm: Get dressed for the game, final mental prep
6:30pm: First Pitch
9:30pm: Game ends, postgame shower/training/meal
10:30pm: Arrive back at apartment
11pm: Unwind, read book, prayer time, etc.
11:30pm: Lights out
Physical Preparation:
Most nights I might not come out of the bullpen to pitch until around 8pm. But as you can see my routine to prepare my body begins much earlier.
So what am I actually doing all day to get ready?
I start the morning walk and stretch/mobility routine. This is not taxing at all but really just meant to get the body moving so that I feel loose and relaxed heading to the field. Sitting around all morning doing absolutely nothing can make your body feel stiff and sluggish.
Once I get to the field, I start my movement prep to get ready to train. This routine is similar to the one I do in the morning, but also includes some more advanced exercises to fully warm up the body, address any lingering soreness, and get ready to throw.
After this comes the throwing, conditioning, and any other team-related stuff. In professional baseball, with 6 games a week, we don’t have regular old ‘practice’ days anymore like in high school or college. The ‘practicing’ is done before the game. This is the final tune up before a game. On days you don’t pitch, this is the bulk of your training for the day.
Once that’s done, my focus shifts towards the actual game. Now it’s time to rest a bit, have another meal, and start mentally preparing myself to play.
Since I pitch out of the bullpen, I don’t play right when the game starts. Instead, I watch the game and follow what’s going on, all while running through the same stretching, warm-up, and mental routines. I continue what I’ve been doing all day so that I’m ready at a moment’s notice.
Once the game is over, it’s all about coming down from that adrenaline high. After I get my post-game exercises in, my main goal is to refuel on calories and get my mind and body to relax so I can go to sleep.
Spiritual Life:
My spiritual life and Catholic faith is very important to me and an integral part of every day. Click here to read more about it.
In the past, I would use baseball obligations as an excuse to suppress my spiritual life.
This season I have been much more intentional about giving praise to God for each day and bringing him along with me through my daily work on the field.
The best way I’ve found to do this is to always start the day off with meditative prayer. Then I do my best to incorporate one spiritual work into my morning. This might be some scripture reading, adoration, or daily Mass. It really depends on the schedule for the day and what time the clubhouse opens.
There are plenty of secondary benefits of filling your morning with these spiritual endeavors. It gives your brain some exercise rather than just your body. You are also less inclined to doom-scroll on social media.
But the most important reason for all this is to keep God at the forefront of my mind, and to invite him into every day that always has so much going on. His presence makes me more grateful for the abundant blessings in my life. He continues to inspire me to work hard to make the most of the opportunity He has gifted me with.
Why Routines Matter
Baseball is a game of hidden endurance. While the actual game involves short, high-explosive plays, the length of the season makes it feel like you’re in a long, slow grind.
140 games in the minor leagues, 6 days a week. You’re in it for the long haul.
You need a consistent routine that keeps your mind, body, and soul in order month after month. Disorder from one can cause problems across all three.
If you enjoyed this deep dive into my daily routine, let me know what other deep dives you’d like to see.
- MT
I was losing sleep not knowing this schedule
#changedmylife