From Hunter: Game Day Routine

Hey everyone,

First of all, I’d like to thank all of you for the great feedback on the Erstad nickname and all the good questions.

For the record, I have been calling Erstad “Dadio” because it’s really funny to me. Someone asked if he has a nickname for me and in fact he does, he calls me “son”. It’s turned into quite the joke and we both have fun with it. I did like D-Stud as well but, I’ve grown attached to Dadio and it’s a lot of fun to mess with him like that … so it’s probably going to stick.

Today, I am going to answer your questions by regarding what I do on game days. Let’s see, a typical game day during the season is somewhat of a process for me. I have a ritual routine. I start first thing in the morning with a HUGE breakfast to get some fuel in the system. My breakfast generally consists of fruit, eggs, pancakes, bacon, and coffee.

For a night game (7:00 p.m.) I usually head to the field at around 1:30 pm so that I have plenty of time to get loose and make sure I’m prepared before team practice (around 4:30 pm). When I get to the field, I’ll always read over the scouting report covering the pitcher that will be starting. Then, I head to the hot tub to loosen up my muscles. After the hot tub and stretching, I head to the batting cage to go through my hitting routine which consists of tee work and front toss with our hitting coach, Sean Berry. I’m consistent with every part of this routine because, in my mind, it’s how I get my swing right before the day starts.

After I’m happy with my swing, I will watch the last start of the pitcher we are facing until batting practice begins. After batting practice, I eat a banana, one grilled chicken breast and down a lot of water to get hydrated. By 6:00 pm (one hour before game time) I’ll go through one more short hitting routine that generally ends at 6:15. Then I just try to relax for fifteen minutes and mentally prepare for the game before I head to the field to stretch at 6:30 pm.

When the game is over I grab a protein bar and head to the weight room for a 30-45 min workout. Needless to say when I get home, I’m ready for bed. It’s all going to start over as soon as I wake up the next morning. =)

Talk to you soon!

Hunter