The Marblehead baseball season is just one month away, and there is important offseason work being done behind the scenes.
Marblehead coach Mike Giardi can’t force anyone to do offseason workouts, but shared what he hopes is being done as the calendar flips closer to first pitch.
“We still currently do not know who will be trying out or on the team, as signups to play baseball do not start until the third Monday in March,” Giardi said. “Despite that being the case, I do hope the kids that plan on playing are preparing themselves and their bodies for the upcoming season.”
“What I told the team at the end of last season is to make sure your bodies are healthy, conditioned, and ready to go immediately for when next season starts,” Giardi said. “Once the team is selected, we get a couple weeks, at most, to practice and then the regular season starts, which makes offseason workouts that can happen now vital.”
Giardi also emphasized how important this time is for pitchers, and said it’s “ideal that pitchers are able to throw a solid 60 pitches the very first day of practice.”
“Anyone that plans on pitching for Marblehead, hopefully, is keeping their arms strong and in good shape,” Giardi said. “My hope is pitchers are starting to throw bullpen sessions with catchers and/or their pitching coaches so they are building up their arm strength right now.”
He’s also aware that every player has his different preparation methods.
“We have some kids that are just one-sport athletes, so it’s easier for them to do more offseason workouts than kids that are currently in the middle of their hockey, basketball, or track seasons,” Giardi said.
On top of individual work, there are captain’s practices taking place as well. That said, then there’s the weather.
“One factor that we cannot control is the weather,” Giardi said. “If it is a beautiful 50 degree day, then kids would have the chance to practice outside. When it comes to booking times to practice inside, there is still basketball, hockey and indoor track taking place and we have to fight for indoor time with softball and lacrosse — so it is not easy.”
Even though the Marblehead coaching staff can’t facilitate offseason workouts at this time, the preparation that is happening right now is the first step to having a successful 2023 season.