In baseball, performance isn’t just about what happens on the field. With 162 games packed into 180 days, it’s about how you recover, how you adapt and how you maximise every window of opportunity.
In the latest episode of the Hytro Performance Podcast, Dan Howells, Performance Coach and Hytro Advisor, sat down with Brian Buck, former pro baseball player turned High Performance Consultant. Having worked across Major League Baseball as a strength coach, coordinator and now private consultant to elite athletes, Brian’s built a reputation for blending science, simplicity and athlete-first thinking to support long seasons and sustained performance.
From rethinking recovery with Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) to scaling smart routines across teams, Brian shared a behind-the-scenes look at what performance really takes in one of the most demanding schedules in sport. “You have to build the engine in the offseason,” he said. “That’s your only window to develop the qualities needed to accelerate and improve performance.”
Training with purpose
For Brian, success starts with understanding the demands of the sport and the reality that in-season development is limited. “There’s a minimal effective dose,” he shared. “Touch a threshold once or twice a week to maintain those qualities and then get the hell out.”
While the offseason is for building strength and durability, the regular season is about keeping athletes fresh and ready to perform. That means tailoring training to the individual, knowing when to push, when to hold back, and when to pivot.
Player-led plans, built on trust
Whether it’s a starting pitcher working to a known rotation or a positional player managing fatigue and travel, Brian’s approach is always athlete-first. He explained, “Everything has a cost, even your basic routine, your band work, your med ball work… That all has a cost volume-wise, fatigue-wise. So how can we get the body amped up and ready to perform without all of that volume?”
For some players, that means using BFR pre-game to reduce prep volume while still feeling ready. For others, it’s a short post-game lift at 11pm to maintain strength without affecting sleep. “Some guys are only going to train post-game,” Brian said. “That’s just how they roll… So you’ve got to educate and meet them where they’re at.”
BFR that fits the flow
Brian admitted he once saw BFR as a rehab-only tool. Now, it’s a core part of how he supports players in high-demand environments. “If I had the knowledge I have now,” he said, “I would’ve used it with my positional players on the road. 100%.”
With minimal space or equipment, BFR provides a scalable way to deliver stimulus without unnecessary loading. “It’s something they can do while they’re scrolling their phone,” Brian added. “That’s a win.”
It also helps reduce prep fatigue. For one of his MLB athletes, Brian uses BFR in place of a full warm-up to cut volume while still priming performance. “The volume is essentially cut in half or less, but his body’s still primed and in a good position to go out and perform.”
Recovery that builds buy-in
From passive post-game flushes to habit stacking, recovery is now a non-negotiable part of Brian’s strategy. But he believes it only works if players feel the benefit. “If we do something like passive BFR while they’re sitting at their locker post-game,” he explained, “and they feel more recovered the next day, they’re more likely to build that habit.”
For Brian, education and experience matter more than instructions. “You can talk about recovery all you want,” he said, “but if they feel better after it, they’re going to take it on themselves.”
Keeping it simple
With performance tech and data evolving fast, Brian is quick to highlight the importance of clarity. “It’s easy to fall into the trap of being the data guy,” he said. “But the more I can simplify and the less I look at, the better understanding I have of how the athlete is trending.”
He focuses on trends, not snapshots. “If you’re constantly testing and never doing anything about it,” he shared, “athletes are going to stop doing your tests. You need to have a plan.”
Advice from the dugout
Reflecting on his experience across minor and major leagues, Brian is clear on where the most impact is made. “There’s a really prime window in the minors to build engines and develop guys,” he said. “If you ask me, that’s where I had the most fun.”
By the time players reach the majors, it’s about refining, managing and solving problems at pace. “Be an elite problem solver,” Brian said. “That’s the job.”
With BFR now a trusted part of his recovery and warm-up toolkit, Brian is helping athletes take ownership of their performance, one smart habit at a time. And as the game evolves, he sees recovery becoming not just a pillar of performance - but the foundation of it.
Watch the full conversation on the Hytro Performance Podcast: Episode 17 – Smarter Loads, Scalable Recovery and BFR in Baseball with Brian Buck or listen now on Spotify.
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