Bass: Why he would never tell Aaron Nola – or your kid – to chase velocity

A dad told me his 8-year-old can pitch upwards of 55-60 mph. Which is incredible. The dad worries because the coach keeps using a radar gun for the team in a chase for greater velocity. Which is understandably frightening.

I ran into former pitcher Ray Burris and told him the story.

“Two words,” Burris replied. “Tommy John.”

Ray Burris knows of what he speaks

Ray Burris pitched for 15 seasons in the major leagues. His two duels with the Dodgers’ Fernando Valenzuela in the 1981 NLCS are part of Montreal Expos lore.

Burris coached for several organizations, including a 2016-20 stint as the Phillies’ rehab pitching coach. That first year, Aaron Nola was rehabbing from an elbow injury that had curtailed his season. He watched Burris work with another pitcher on “activating” the lower half of the body.

“Ray,” Nola asked the next day, “you think you can teach me how to use my lower half?”

He did. This helped Nola take the stress off his arm and keep it healthy. The adjustment took time to master.

Nola started unevenly in 2017, lost a month to a back strain, but a metamorphosis was underway. His arm was good, his velocity was up, and his command came around. His  mechanics work with Burris is part of why Nola turned into one of baseball’s most durable pitchers.

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“Look what he’s done since then,” Burris said. “He took it, made it work for him, is staying healthy and VOILA. ... I’m so proud of him.”

Burris never tried teaching Nola to increase his miles per hour. You can’t teach velocity, he said.

Not to Aaron Nola.

And not to an 8-year-old.

That a coach would focus on miles per hour to 8-year-olds elicited clear emotion in Burris’ voice.

“Sadness ...” he said, pausing, “... that a child should be put through a situation like that.”

Injury risk increases with increased velocity

As a certified life and performance coach, I do not tell you what you to do, except when there is a risk of hurting yourself or others.

This time, there is.

Coaches are told to monitor pitch counts, to avoid pitches that can hurt a developing body, to be age-appropriate, to consider physical and mental health. Experts say that playing multiple sports can suit your body better than playing one year-around. Pitching too much, practicing with a weighted ball and chasing velocity can be hazardous to your health.

We keep seeing stories about Tommy John surgeries rising in pro ball. Look further. Former Bengals tight end Hayden Hurst, who used to play baseball, recently told the Associated Press that he had Tommy John surgery after eighth grade. The fastest-rising segment of Tommy John patients was aged 15-19, according to a 2015 study by Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush.

Imagine the numbers now.

“I’m a huge baseball fan and have enjoyed treating professional and youth players for many years,” Rush surgeon and White Sox team doctor Mark Cohen said in a March press release. “I love it when we can get a player back on the field. What concerns me is the rate at which Little Leaguers are experiencing big league conditions that may interfere with their body’s normal function as they grow.”

Not surprisingly, the parent of the 8-year-old also worries about how much his son is asked to pitch. Throw too much now, chase velocity now, and what will happen over time?

He is wise to ask.

Burris has heard all the responses. Throw it harder, and you can get that scholarship or contract eventually. Do it now, and you can get that victory. A kid wants to listen to the coach and be a good team player, but at what cost?

“At the expense of a child’s mental and physical health?” he said. “Here’s where I draw the line: The expectation of that child is to get better, to be fundamentally sound, but where’s the expectation of the coach to get better? Should that coach have to be developed to understand what coaching is all about?”

Parents can also be at fault

Ray Burris will see parents with radar guns, too.

“It is sad to see that,” he said. “What do you expect from an 8- or 9- or 10-year-old when they still are growing, whose bones are ossifying? First, learn how to throw the ball over the plate. Learn the feel of what is like to throw a strike over those 17 inches from 46 feet. How hard is that child gonna throw? On top of that, who cares?”

If he is working with the kid or the parent, he will say something. He might put the parent on the mound and say, “How hard are you throwing?”

At 73, more than 50 years since he broke into the majors with the Cubs, Burris is based in Florida and still does some coaching and speaking. He also has done group lessons for parents, whether the kids are 6 or in college. He will teach the fundamentals of how to throw, hit, catch, prepare, etc. He will mix in mental and emotional aspects.

“They can combine all that with their own skills as parents,” Burris said.

Exactly. What kind of parent do you want to be? What are your values? Consider those when you are calm, and then apply those when you are under stress.

Think about how your actions can affect your kids.

“What are you doing when a young man can’t throw strikes?” Burris said. “Do you scream and yell at him, get in his face and ridicule him? Then what do you do if your child is crying? Are you embarrassed your child is crying? What do you do as a parent? Do you show empathy or do you take it personal?”

Pitching is not easy. Hitting is not easy. Burris wants the kids to focus on the strike zone, not velocity. If you are not comfortable with that, you can find someone who is.

“My mom used to tell me, ‘Son, if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.’” Burris said. “Sometimes you have to stand for yourself. Great leaders know that. You are not going to please everybody. That’s OK. Now people I work with, they understand and embrace what I bring to the table.”

Parents need to talk with the coaches

So what do you tell the concerned parent of an 8-year-old whose coach is chasing velocity?

“I tell a parent he or she has the ability to go up to a coach and say, ‘Look, that’s not acceptable for my son or daughter,’” he said. “Or leave and go to another club. Or learn the art of coaching themself and form another club.”

You never know, he said, maybe some of the parents he coached will become coaches.

“Some parents start their own club so their kid can be the star of the club,” Burris said. "That’s not what I’m talking about. Instead of more kids’ camps, we need more parents’ camps, more coaches’ camps. There are some good people who want to coach.”

He suggested checking the internet for a good coaching fit, if the current one is not suitable for your kid.

What would work for you?

Your situation might seem complicated. You might sense pressure from other parents, the team, your kids. You might feel stuck. It happens. What would help you get unstuck? What is one thing you could do?

Research the latest information on healthy pitching? Approach the coach out of curiosity to better understand the strategy? Talk to a doctor? Become a coach? Consider your values? Listen to Ray Burris?

He is right. This is a sad situation.

What if you had a chance to make it better?

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Bass: Trying to increase velocity is not in the best interests of youth pitchers