Shoulder-Arm Exercises for Youth Boys Involved in Baseball

The savvy coach will implement an arm and shoulder strengthening program for his young boys on the baseball team. Healthy arms and shoulders can be maintained through simple exercises that can be performed right at the field on a regular basis.

  1. Rotator Cuff Exercises

    • Young players

      The rotator cuff is the area of the shoulder underneath the deltoids. These muscles allow the shoulder to move in a circular motion, which is the throwing motion in baseball. Exercises for rotation, either external or internal, help to keep these muscles stable.
      For external rotation, the athlete stands upright with the arms bent at a right angle and the upper arms pressed against the sides, palms facing each other. The hands are pulled away from each other until the lower arms are out to the sides. The upper arm is still against the side of the body.
      Internal rotation brings the arms in towards each other.
      Both these exercises can also be done lying down on the side, to use gravity to work the muscles. In the side lying position, the athlete has the arm against the side on the upper side and raises and lowers the arm.
      These exercises can also be done with very light hand weights, less than five pounds, or a resistance band.

    Resistance Bands

    • Bands are great for shoulder workout

      The deltoids are the muscles that lift the arms away from the body in different directions. Deltoid exercises can be done with resistance bands. Standing with a resistance band in each hand and the center of the band under one foot, extend the arms away from the body out in front.
      The same movement can be done while lifting the arms to the sides, which is an abduction, or pulling away from, move. To exercise the rear deltoid area, this same side lift is done while the athlete is bent over slightly.

    Throwers Ten

    • Hand weights used for strength training

      The American Sports Medicine Institute (ASMI) has put together a strength program called "Throwers Ten" which consists of ten different arm and shoulder exercises designed to keep a pitcher's arm and shoulder strong and healthy. In addition to the external and internal rotation exercises, and deltoid strength, this program works on elbow flexion and extension and wrist work as well. The Throwers Ten workout is an excellent choice for youth baseball players
      Other good strength exercises for shoulder and arm strength are push ups and and seated press ups. In the press up, the athlete sits on a bench with the hands right on the edge and presses his body weight up.
      A solid strength training program for the arm and shoulders is an excellent way to ensure that all boys will stay healthy throughout the baseball season.