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The Robby Row Show Baseball PodcastProfessional Baseball Thrower - Amateur Podcaster Welcome To The Show My goal is to provide YOU with as much insight, information, knowledge, and experience that I've accumulated throughout my journey to better equip YOU for your journey! Author: Robby Rowland
Professional Baseball Thrower - Amateur PodcasterWelcome To The ShowMy goal is to provide YOU with as much insight, information, knowledge, and experience that I've accumulated throughout my journey to better equip YOU for your journey! Language: en Genres: Baseball, Fitness, Health & Fitness, Sports Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Things I Did to THROW HARD (Part 2 of 3) | HEAT CHECK 8
Monday, 15 June, 2026
This is Part 2 of a 3-part Heat Check Series where I walk through different points in my career journey in which I threw hard. There's been 4 specific occasions throughout my journey where I threw hard, but each experience entailed completely different approaches to the same goal — so it's fun to reflect, unpack it all, and hopefully it's of value to those listening in.In this episode, I pick up where Part 1 left off and dive into the Winter of 2017 moving into 2018. I'll set the stage with the full context — Big League Spring Training with the Cardinals, getting released, Indy ball, Hurricane Maria hitting Puerto Rico, and then the specific mechanical approach that unlocked some of the best stuff I've ever had. This one gets into the loading phase, Hector Barrios, and the biggest lesson I learned about trust in this game. Experience-based, not absolute. Hope this helps someone!👇Part 1 of “Things I Did to Throw Hard”Apple PodcastSpotify PodcastEpisode Timeline 👇02:39 – Back in the Sauna Blanket We're rolling. Heat Check is back, Part 2 is here, and Robby dives right into the #RobbyRowsJourney — find his throwback Instagram posts under that hashtag.04:35 – Recapping Part 1 & Why He Started Filming The 2015 revival (84-85 → 94-95 mph), why he started recording everything, and how proving himself to scouts became the foundation of his content journey.05:09 – Comeback at 35? The "12-Month Plan" Idea A teaser for a future piece of content — what Robby would do if he organized a comeback and had 12 months to execute it.06:10 – Setting the Stage: Winter 2017 Moving into 2018 Today's episode is laser focused on this specific window. Four different stages of his career, four different approaches to throwing hard.06:52 – Big League Spring Training 2017 (Cardinals) First official Big League spring training participation. Coming off the 2016 bone spur surgery, a re-sign from his agent mid-winter ball, and a Big League invite negotiated on the spot from a rental car place.09:48 – Feeling Elite Going In Pre-spring training bullpens were some of the best he'd ever thrown. Confidence was through the roof heading into camp.11:00 – Getting Released Second cuts, minor league camp, a mediocre outing, and a walk into the office he didn't see coming. Plans evaporated fast.13:38 – Signing with the Lincoln Saltdogs (Indy Ball 2017) The decision to go back to Indy ball and — crucially — the decision to pitch as a starter. How that one choice changed everything that followed.14:00 – Starter vs. Reliever: The Velocity Gap Robby throws it out there — he genuinely throws 5+ mph harder as a reliever. The starter life was fun, but the velo wasn't the same.15:12 – Getting Traded to the Southern Illinois Miners Shoutout to manager Mike Pinto. Some of the most fun baseball he's ever played. The season ends and the unknown sets in.15:51 – Hurricane Maria & the Puerto Rico Call The winter ball team's stadium was destroyed. Season restructured. Games moved to one venue, 11am start times. Robby gets the call mid-November that they're running it back.17:48 – Enter: Hector Barrios The individual who changed everything. An Instagram connection that turned into daily FaceTimes and a completely new approach to throwing. Hector is now Aroldis Chapman's pitching coach with the Red Sox.18:07 – The Setup: FBK1, Northern California, & the Daily Grind Living at his parents' place in NorCal, throwing at KC's cage (FBK1) from 1pm to 9pm, 5am gym sessions, manual labor job, carnivore diet with a portable grill. Psycho mode.21:15 – The Hector Barrios Method Head over the back hip. Hands separated over the rear hip. Patient load, aggressive late intent. A drastically different way of throwing — and why it felt so foreign at first.22:38 – When It Started to Click One night in the cage, the ball started jumping. The load was right. The timing was dialing in. Two weeks before leaving for winter ball.23:10 – The Frustration: Radar Said 88-91 Even when it felt good, the gun didn't lie — not in the cage. The velo just wasn't showing up in practice, and that was a hard thing to trust.24:41 – The First Game: 91 in Bullpens → 97 in the Game Committed to the mechanics. Leg lift, head over backside, hands separated, patient load, aggressive late. Hitters were late. Struck out two on fastballs down the middle. Post-game: sitting 97. The moment everything clicked on trust.26:03 – Winning Winter Ball & the Caribbean Series Great season. Won the whole thing. Setup guy (8th inning). 94-97 on the cutter. Games on ESPN in front of 20,000 fans in Mexico. The best bullpen role of his career.28:17 – The Caribbean Series Breakdown Blister. Started trying to force it. Rushed the delivery. Command fell off. Scouts and Mexican League GMs were texting — and the harder he tried, the worse it got.30:08 – The Mindset Shift Breakdown Patient → trusting → free … to forcing → rushing → inconsistent. How the environment and the pressure of being a free agent crept into his mechanics and unraveled what had been working.31:08 – Training in Winter Ball: Planet Fitness & Kettlebell Circuits 35-45 minute sessions. Three rounds of kettlebell circuits and explosive plyometrics. Robby's honest take: the velo wasn't a byproduct of his training at this point.31:24 – The Circadian Rhythm Insight 11am games matched his natural early riser schedule. Pitching at 1pm in the Caribbean Series was peak power output time for his body. Not an accident.32:47 – The Locked-In Routine & Loving Himself Most Reading every day, podcasting, podcasting, training — his spirit was on fire. This was one of the best stretches of his life as a human being overall.33:43 – Spoiler: Getting Signed by Texas Invite-only tryouts with the Rangers and Diamondbacks before spring training. Eventually signed by Texas mid-2018 Indy ball season. Full story coming in a future episode.35:20 – The Closing Reflection: One More Ride There's still one more ride left where it all comes together. The career struggle of being 100 or 0 — all in on one thing at a time, never fully diversifying. Can do it in coaching. Can't fully do it for himself. Yet.37:09 – Links in the Show Notes & Coaching CTA MLB Postures & Delivery YouTube video linked below. Remote Coaching options in the show notes. Reach out with questions.38:16 – The Soundbite of His Life "I love solving problems that are not existent — only in my own mind." Biggest career hiccup: once he figured something out, he craved deviation. Couldn't just stay the same.
