TAKE FIVE: CCSN PITCHER COLBY SHREVE

Saturday, Dec. 9, 2006 | 7:09 a.m.

Colby Shreve, a starting pitcher for the Community College of Southern Nevada, knows what has been responsible for helping him add nearly 10 mph on his fastball during the offseason.

"That box is fantastic," he said. "It's great."

"The Box" is what Coyotes coach Tim Chambers and his team call a wooden contraption with rubber pulleys and handles coming out of everywhere. It was built by Robert Braden, a local chiropractor who calls his machine the Platform VRT.

Last spring toward the end of his senior season at Bonanza High, Shreve, 18, tripped the speed guns at 85 or 86 mph. During the just-completed fall ball session at CCSN in Henderson, Shreve topped out at 94.

Chambers said the 6-foot-5, 210-pound Shreve made more of an impression than anyone this fall. "He was off the charts," said Chambers, who added that new pitching coach Rich Ebarb has made a big impact by keeping the hurlers on an intense workout schedule.

CCSN won the National Junior College Athletic Association World Series in 2003.

"That was a while ago," Shreve said. "I'd definitely like to be a part of something like that, and I think we have a chance this season."

1. The Box

Shreve does about 30 exercises, for 40 minutes, three or four times a week. Short-arc exercises, moving handles no more than six inches, increase wrist and forearm strength. Long-arc exercises, to the front and side, strengthen his rotator cuff. What started as injury prevention blossomed in his heater. "I noticed a huge difference," he said.

2. The founder

Braden, 46, received a patent for his product last year. It's made of custom wood from Mexico and costs $895. The Tonopah native pioneered the use of bands at optimum angles to benefit baseball players, and he said he'll visit several Major League Baseball clubs with it next spring. St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Brad Thompson, a Las Vegas native, is another proponent of the Platform.

3. Additional work

In the gym, Shreve does high-rep dumbbell work to strengthen his back, lats and abs. Leg presses have been pivotal in strengthening his calves, quads and gluts, for a solid base. On his first throws off the mound in the fall, he felt the difference in his leg drives, which also helped his velocity. Long toss was also high on his off-season regimen.

4. Detour

After signing with UNLV a year ago, Shreve opted to go to junior college. Otherwise, he wouldn't be eligible for the Major League draft until after his junior year. At CCSN, he's eligible after each season. "I was psyched up to go there," he said of UNLV. "But after talking with family and others, we figured the best route would be to develop for a couple of years, then either go in the draft or a big Division-I program."

5. Family

His brother Chasen, 16, plays at Bonanza, and Colby said he expects his sibling to be taller, bigger and better than he is. His mother, Cynthia, works in customer service at Nevada Power. His father, Douglas, is a chimney sweep. "His buddy started the company 20 years ago, and he no longer does it because of health problems," Shreve said. "He cleans out vents and stuff He's totally black (with soot) when he comes home."