Weekly arm care schedules, season limits and rest tables by age, from Pitch Smart, ASMI, the AAP and NFHS.
Check what you have, pick your age and season, and get a 7-day plan built around your pitch days and Pitch Smart rest rules. Exercises come from the Thrower’s Ten and the Jaeger Sports J-Bands exercise sheet (cues in our own words); sources are linked on every exercise.
📱 Open the arm care app → Same plan, full screen, saves your progress, works offline and installs on your phone.
Sources: [Thrower’s Ten] (University of Utah handout, adapted from ASMI) · [UF Health] Thrower’s Ten frequency · [Jaeger Sports] J-Bands exercise sheet (page) · [MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart] · [ASMI] · [AAP] · [NATA] · [Reinold 2018]. Educational only, not medical advice.
Example: one outing at the top rest tier for the age group (66–85 pitches for ages 11-12), which needs 4 days of rest under Pitch Smart. Threw less? Use the rest table below; fewer rest days means you reach the eligible day sooner.
Week sources: rest days [MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart]; no pitching 24–48 hours after an outing, no catcher/shortstop/third base on pitch days, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips [AAP]; less-than-max throwing, rest, nutrition and hydration [ASMI]; fatigue signs and pain rule [ASMI]. Bands and catch are kept general because the sources give no sets, reps or distances.
Required time off:
Block 1, time off throwing (sample week). No overhead throwing. Play other sports and do strength and aerobic work.
Block 2, building back (sample week). No competitive pitching yet. Start with warm-up and less-than-max throws, then add distance and number of throws gradually.
The day layout is an example only. The sources say what to include (time off, other sports, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips, aerobic work, gradual less-than-max throwing). They don't set sets, reps or distances, so we don't either.
Example: one outing at the top rest tier for the age group (81–105 pitches for ages 17-18), which needs 4 days of rest under Pitch Smart. Threw less? Use the rest table below; fewer rest days means you reach the eligible day sooner.
Week sources: rest days [MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart]; no pitching 24–48 hours after an outing, no catcher/shortstop/third base on pitch days, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips [AAP]; less-than-max throwing, rest, nutrition and hydration [ASMI]; fatigue signs and pain rule [ASMI]. Bands and catch are kept general because the sources give no sets, reps or distances.
Required time off:
Block 1, time off throwing (sample week). No overhead throwing. Play other sports and do strength and aerobic work.
Block 2, building back (sample week). No competitive pitching yet. Start with warm-up and less-than-max throws, then add distance and number of throws gradually.
The day layout is an example only. The sources say what to include (time off, other sports, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips, aerobic work, gradual less-than-max throwing). They don't set sets, reps or distances, so we don't either.
Example: one outing at the top rest tier for the age group (81–105 pitches for ages 19-22), which needs 4 days of rest under Pitch Smart. Threw less? Use the rest table below; fewer rest days means you reach the eligible day sooner.
Week sources: rest days [MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart]; no pitching 24–48 hours after an outing, no catcher/shortstop/third base on pitch days, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips [AAP]; less-than-max throwing, rest, nutrition and hydration [ASMI]; fatigue signs and pain rule [ASMI]. Bands and catch are kept general because the sources give no sets, reps or distances.
Required time off:
Block 1, time off throwing (sample week). No overhead throwing. Play other sports and do strength and aerobic work.
Block 2, building back (sample week). No competitive pitching yet. Start with warm-up and less-than-max throws, then add distance and number of throws gradually.
The day layout is an example only. The sources say what to include (time off, other sports, strength for the arm, shoulder, back, trunk and hips, aerobic work, gradual less-than-max throwing). They don't set sets, reps or distances, so we don't either.
From each Pitch Smart age page. Pitch Smart doesn't set a total pitch count for a season; it uses the daily max, rest days, a yearly innings cap and time off.
| Age | Max/game | Innings cap | Est. pitches/yr* | Time off |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8U | 50 | 60 / 12 mo | 1,260–1,380* | 4+ mo off throwing (2–3 in a row) |
| 9–12 | 75 (9-10) 85 (11-12) | 80 / 12 mo | 1,680–1,840* | 4+ mo off throwing (2–3 in a row) |
| 13–14 | 95 | 100 / 12 mo | 1,500–2,000* | 4+ mo off throwing (2–3 in a row) |
| 15–18 | 95 (15-16) 105 (17-18) | 100 / 12 mo | 1,500–2,000* | 4+ mo off competitive pitching, incl. 2–3 straight mo off all overhead throwing |
| 19–22 | 120 | None set | varies* | 3+ mo off competitive pitching, incl. 4 straight wks off all overhead throwing |
Each age links to its Pitch Smart page. Innings cap = combined innings in any 12-month period. 19–22: "Although the safe yearly limit varies from pitcher to pitcher," keep track of pitching over the whole year. [Pitch Smart]
* Estimated pitches per year is our math, not an official limit. None of these sources sets a yearly pitch total. Each range is Pitch Smart's innings cap multiplied by pitches per inning. Ages 12 and under use 21–23 pitches per inning, rounded from a study of 9–12-year-old league pitchers that averaged 21.1 and 22.5 pitches per inning in two leagues [Mair et al.] (for example, 80 innings × 21–23 = 1,680–1,840). The study didn't include 8-and-under players, so that row borrows the 9–12 rate. Ages 13–18 use 15–20 pitches per inning, a Ground Up estimate that no cited source provides. 19–22 has no innings cap, so it shows "varies." Treat every range as a rough guide and follow the innings cap.
These lines appear on every Pitch Smart age page (9–12, 13–14, 15–18 and 19–22). [MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart]
Pitches thrown in a game, and the rest days needed before pitching again. Your league or state rule may be different and is the one that's enforced. Check it with the ArmRules rest-day calculator.
| Age | Daily max | 0 days rest | 1 day | 2 days | 3 days | 4 days | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7-8 | 50 | 1–20 | 21–35 | 36–50 | N/A | N/A | [Pitch Smart] |
| 9-10 | 75 | 1–20 | 21–35 | 36–50 | 51–65 | 66–75 | [Pitch Smart] |
| 11-12 | 85 | 1–20 | 21–35 | 36–50 | 51–65 | 66–85 | [Pitch Smart] |
| 13-14 | 95 | 1–20 | 21–35 | 36–50 | 51–65 | 66–95 | [Pitch Smart] |
| 15-16 | 95 | 1–30 | 31–45 | 46–60 | 61–75 | 76–95 | [Pitch Smart] |
| 17-18 | 105 | 1–30 | 31–45 | 46–60 | 61–80 | 81–105 | [Pitch Smart] |
| 19-22 | 120 | 1–30 | 31–45 | 46–60 | 61–80 | 81–105 | [Pitch Smart] |
Source: MLB / USA Baseball Pitch Smart: Pitching Guidelines, retrieved 2026-10-17.
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No product replaces rest, pitch limits and time off.
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All retrieved 2026-10-17. The Pitch Smart arm care, throwing-program and recovery videos are on the Healthy Habits and Manage Your Workload pages.