Jason and Travis Kelce recently delivered a hot take on baseball that didn’t sit well with one of the veterans. Mocking the baseball conditioning, the duo questioned the need to run poles. Jonathan Lucroy, who played twelve seasons in MLB, didn’t just call them out. While pointing to a larger number of games than the NFL and the nuances of conditioning drills, the former catcher reminded everyone just how demanding the sport really is.
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“You guys play once a week; we play ‘almost’ every day,” Lucroy wrote on X. “We play 162 games. Plus spring training, and then the playoffs if we get there. If you make the WS, you are talking about 190+ games. NFL games are brutally violent, and I’m not understating that, but our game is more about endurance and longevity over a 7-month season of daily attrition. It is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Recently, Jason and Travis Kelce threw shade at baseball conditioning drills. In fact, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end who could join the team’s minicamp cited it as the reason he didn’t play the sport in his sophomore year. Baseball conditioning is a customized training routine that focuses on improving a player’s strength, speed, agility, and endurance. It often involves jogging from one foul pole to another along the warning track.
You guys play once a week, we play "almost" everyday. The pitchers run poles to endure longer outings. Nolan Ryan did them everyday. He played 20 years and was still throwing 95 at 40. Position players run bases for conditioning in Spring Training. During the season, we don't Show more
Jason & Travis Kelce talking about the ridiculousness of baseball conditioning… “It makes no sense.” “You should be running SPRINTS or doing base running. Not running foul pole to foul pole.” STOP treating baseball players like marathoners
It helps build mental toughness and aerobic endurance. Meanwhile, some modern training approaches lean more toward high-intensity sprint work instead. Responding to Travis’ poor comments about the drills, Lucroy first reminded the brothers that baseball is physically demanding. He began by highlighting the biggest difference: NFL players have games once a week, while basketball players step onto the court almost daily.
So, endurance becomes one of the most important things for them. Additionally, he explained that conditioning particularly serves a special purpose for pitchers. To drive his point home, he highlighted how MLB icon Nolan Ryan, who played 27 MLB seasons, could maintain his speed even into his 40s. He often threw over 100 mph and maintained high-90s velocity.
For position players, Lucroy said that conditioning is front-loaded in spring training. They don’t do conditioning during the season because the tournament itself becomes the ultimate fitness test.
He gave his own example, revealing he caught over 200 pitches in games, which is equivalent to doing hundreds of squats daily. The number piles up to tens of thousands at the end of the season.
And it doesn’t even count the catches during spring training and warmups before games. Now, here’s a look at what exactly Travis said about the practice that Jason agreed with.
Travis Kelce takes a dig at baseball conditioning drills
Speaking on the New Heights Podcast, Travis questioned the need to jog between the poles. He argued that if the sport really required players to run, the practice session should at least replicate real-game conditions, such as base running. According to the tight end, the repetitive cardio felt pointless.
He thinks it is disconnected from what baseball players actually do on the field. Jason supported his brother’s argument, saying the routine is unnecessary. In fact, he shared his opinion to put things into perspective.
“…I mean, it’s funny that you realize that in high school, but it’s such a fair point that there’s zero cardio necessary to be a good baseball player. So what are we doing cardio for? Like, let’s just—we like just base running, whatever, whatever, whatever it is from first, and maybe you do a couple; let’s go to second base sprints…but it makes no sense to do this jogging, monotonous cardio that has nothing to do with the game. It’s a great point. Soccer. I get it.”
Instead, Jason suggested more explosive, short bursts would make far more sense for the sport. Travis agreed that baseball doesn’t require cardio training, as do other sports such as lacrosse.
He also joked that baseball mainly involves standing on the field and has very limited action. Jason added that the maximum effort from a player could only come during something like an inside-the-park home run, followed by long breaks.
In the end, Travis Kelce even gave a sarcastic shout-out to his old coaches to double down on his bold opinion of conditioning drills. With such strong takes, this debate won’t likely slow down.