Miami Marlins strength and conditioning coach Kevin Barr has been working in professional baseball for 25 years. During this time, the prerequisites to reach the sport’s highest levels—and stay there—have evolved. More than ever before, MLB clubs are selecting hitters based on home run potential and pitchers on fastball velocity. Training for those physical traits, however, can exhaust the body in ways that’s incompatible with the sport’s grueling schedule.
That’s certainly the case for the 162-game big league slate and increasingly true for the long travel ball itineraries played by teenagers.
Barr is longtime friends with pro ballplayers Ben and Andy Ford, the sons of Perfect Game founder Jerry Ford, and that connection enabled him to collaborate with the youth baseball showcase organization in its new partnership with the technology platform Re-Play Athletics.