How far can a baseball be thrown? We take a look at how far is possible!

If you get to an MLB baseball game early you will often see players warming up to get their arms ready for the game.

Most position players will stretch out their arms by gradually working their way back to around 90 feet or so before gradually moving in.

Pitchers on the other hand will get into what is known as long toss and you may see them throwing the ball 300 feet or even further before they pitch in a game.

So, how far can you throw a baseball?

The longest recorded baseball throw in history was by Glen Gorbous, who threw a ball 445 ft in an exhibition in which he threw a ball from the far right corner of the outfield to the far left corner.

The distance most baseball players can throw a baseball varies from position to position and is not regularly tested because players rarely have to throw a baseball as far as they can during a game situation.

How far can the average person throw a baseball?

The average person can probably throw a baseball around 100 feet.

People that play baseball regularly use their rotator cuff muscles almost every day so they will be able to throw the ball much further than a person that does not play.

Part of the reason for spring training and pre-season is for players to get their arms and bodies in shape to prepare for throwing a baseball during game action.

Players will take time off during the offseason to give their arms a chance to recover before heading to spring training. 

There are different schools of thought about whether a player should take time off from throwing or whether they should continue to train to improve their arm strength in the off-season.

3 Ways to Improve how far you can throw a baseball

1. Strength Training

Improving your functional fitness and overall strength is necessary if you are looking to throw a baseball further. Throwing a baseball a far distance takes strength, explosiveness, and flexibility. Getting on a legit weight training program is a great way to build the foundation of what it takes to build off of and throw a baseball far.

2. Long Toss

Long toss is another essential if you want to throw a baseball further. You can do a long toss while you warm up for practice or games. If you don’t have enough time to work on long toss during your practices try and find time to get in your long distance throws several times a week at least.

3. Throw with Intent

Your not going to improve your distance on your throws unless you put in the work to practice throwing a baseball at maximum intent. During your long toss sessions focus on throwing the ball on a line and try to improve your distances each week during practice. If you stick with a weight training and long toss program and throw with intent, you will notice improvements in the distance you are capable of throwing and also your velocity.

What is Long Toss in baseball?

Long toss in baseball is a common form of practice that involves two players warming up their arms by gradually increasing their distance from one another.

Some players prefer to throw to long toss by trying to keep the ball on a line for as long as possible without having much of an arch on the ball.

Others will “air it out” which means they will throw the ball as long and high as possible to get the furthest possible distance.

The goal of the long toss is to build up arm strength in the throwing arm by throwing a ball much further than you normally would in a game situation.

The hope is that your rotator cuff will strengthen from the extra distance as well as your overall arm speed and spin rate on the ball.

Here is a good video of some of the longest baseball throws in-game action:

How often should you long toss a baseball?

Most professional players will long toss a baseball around 3 times per week if they are gearing up for a season.

During the season, position players may cut back on long tossing to 1-2 times per week since they will be throwing so much during game action.

Pitchers that are scheduled to start a game will often long toss before they are scheduled to pitch.

After pitching in a game they will often take it easy on their arm for a day or two to give their arm a chance to recover before long tossing on the 2nd or third day after a game.

Relievers have a more difficult time trying to schedule a consistent long toss routine during the season because they never know when they will be pitching in a real game.

Does long toss improve velocity?

A consistent long toss program will gradually improve velocity over time.

Long toss helps create arm strength and build up functional strength throughout your body that is needed to throw the baseball as far as possible.

Being a good athlete and exploding off of the mound toward home plate is one of the biggest contributors of high pitching velocity and long toss will help improve these skills.

Can anyone throw 90MPH?

Not anyone can throw 90MPH because throwing 90MPH takes a significant amount of arm strength and flexibility that some people simply do not have.

However, if you are somewhat athletic and have decent arm strength, a long-term arm strengthening and fitness program could allow you to throw 90MPH.

Throwing 90 MPH is a combination of athleticism, arm strength, and technique and there are many training centers that can help players get to 90MPH now. 

How do I increase my pitching velocity?

The best way to increase pitching velocity is to have a consistent year-round throwing program that combines long toss, strength training, flexibility, and explosive movements.

In college one of the things our strength coach had pitchers doing consistently was plyometrics, which helped improve explosive movements.

What exercises are good for pitchers?

Plyometrics, weight lifting, long toss, and stretching are great exercises for pitchers and help improve velocity and athleticism.

Training for pitchers has come a long way over the last 30 years and pitchers are more athletic and explosive athletes than ever before.

There was a theory in the past that pitchers should avoid heavy weights and things like weighted balls to avoid injury, but now both are widely accepted as more studies have been done on the topic.

While the risk of injury may be slightly higher for pitchers that do heavy lifting and weighted ball training, the upside of having extra velocity and arm strength will often outweigh the risk.

Can you throw a baseball 300 feet?

Yes, most Major League Baseball Players and even college players can throw a baseball close to 300 feet or even further than 300 feet.

Baseball players at the collegiate and professional levels are very athletic and throwing a baseball 300 feet is something most of them are capable of.

If you want to throw a baseball 300 feet the best way to do so is to have a consistent long toss program over a period of several months and try and measure your distances every time you long toss.

I remember in high school long tossing 3x per week and starting with my maximum throw being around 250 feet.

As each week went on I would slowly improve on my maximum distance and I reached my goal of throwing it over the 310-foot fence after several months of practice.

Building up arm strength is very similar to building strength through weightlifting in that you will see improvement over time with a consistent routine.

How far should a ten-year-old throw?

It is difficult to say because 10-year-olds develop differently from others.

Some ten-year-olds may be able to throw the ball 120 feet but they might not develop physically as the years go on and not be able to throw that much further.

On the other hand, you may have a 10-year old that can’t throw very far at ten but then by the time they reach 13 or 14 they have developed some functional strength and can throw much further than kids that used to throw further than them at 10.

How far can a baseball be thrown conclusion?

The distance a baseball can be thrown varies from person to person and is rarely measured, but you can get a good idea by looking at history and the advancements in training techniques.

While Glen Gorbous has the record for the longest throw in recorded history, I would not be surprised if modern-day players could surpass his record if they were actually tested. 

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