Pro Blogs | DuraCatch+LATE SEASON SURVIVAL FOR CATCHERS

PRO BLOG | DuraCatch+ | APRIL 28, 2025

By: Eddy Rodriguez

LATE SEASON SURVIVAL FOR CATCHERS: How to Stay Sharp When Your Body’s Breaking Down

 

If you’re catching late into the season, I don’t have to tell you — your body’s beat up. Your knees are barking, your thumb has been jammed for weeks, and every foul tip stings a little more. Here’s the truth: you’re not supposed to feel good right now. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still be great. The best catchers find a way to perform, lead, and grind through it. In this post, we’ll talk about how to stay effective when your body isn’t close to 100%, and why the toughest, smartest catchers perform when it matters most.

In professional baseball, MLB clubs are pouring resources into workload management — managing player usage in games, training, and recovery. Catchers squat for hundreds of innings, absorb foul tips, block pitches, and make a high volume of throws — the grind is real. The aches, soreness, and fatigue you feel are expected — not a sign of weakness.

Late in the year, it’s not about feeling 100%. It’s about maximizing performance with the body you have that day. If you have 60%, give the team all 100% that is in your “gas tank”. Trying to push beyond what your body can give is when injuries happen.

Keys to Staying Effective Late in the Season:

• Shorten Workload in Warmups: Focus on quality, not quantity.
• Recovery Routines: Contrast therapy, soft tissue work, breath work.
• Energy Conservation: Move efficiently; avoid wasting energy on unnecessary movements.
• Simplified Throwing: Make clean, efficient throws back to the pitcher rather than trying to show off arm strength.
• Blocking Adjustments: Prioritize setups and angles to stay efficient when your body is taxed.
• Separate Your Role as a Hitter and Catcher: You are an offensive player and a defensive player, be sure to separate them to improve performance behind the plate regardless of offensive perfromance.

Your work on your mental performance (in the Dojo) throughout the season will also allow you to separate yourself from the competition. Game-calling, leadership, and focus can still dominate even when your body is tired.

Use breath work. Create “resets” between innings and between games to clear your mind. And for goodness’ sake — get proper sleep.

Championship catchers embrace these strategies and set the tone for a team’s late-season push. Survive, Lead, and Advance!