10/14/2025
Baseball and softball parents!
Bringing some attention to this recent initiative- Major League Baseball just announced an Amateur Recovery Period. With the injury epidemic in baseball (and softball) continuing to increase, MLB is working on a plan to help reduce these injuries.
While we don’t know the cause of every injury, we do know for certain a few things that contribute to injury.
Cumulative stress over a period of time can degenerate or break down tissue. If the damaged tissue is never allowed to heal properly, this can then lead to injury.
Fatigue is the enemy of athletes. A fatigued neuromuscular system can no longer protect musculature or ligamentous tissue, which then exposes it to an increased risk of injury.
The MLB recovery period is aimed at decreasing the demand on high school juniors and seniors as well as collegiate players by prohibiting scouting during this time. The general idea is this will encourage down time and conditioning over competitive game play to allow tissues to heal and bodies to rest and get stronger.
Here is my advice to players younger than this: Pay attention to this warning as well! This initiative by MLB is aimed at older, more physically developed players, but your body is STILL developing. Constant stress on open growth plates can have disastrous effects. Fatigue on top of weakness leads to injury. Whether it happens this year or 5 years down the road, year-round stress without cross training and without time off for the tissues to heal, will result in injury. Recover. Get stronger. Work on core strength. Work on leg strength. Work on hip and rotator cuff strength. Get faster and more explosive. It will make a difference in the long term.
