BASEBALL

FROM PEE WEES TO PROS

A LECTURE ON DEVELOPING PITCHERS
FOR A SUCCESSFUL CAREER

Friday, June 15 Additional Speakers (see reverse for profiles)

5:30–6:00pm Registration Robert H. Pertsas, MS
6:00–6:40pm Panel discussion Baseball Commissioner, Public Schools Athletic League
6:40–7:30pm Q&A Jordan Baltimore, MBA, CPC
Director of Research & Training at New York Empire Baseball!
NYU Langone Health
National Pitching Association,
Smilow Seminar Room
Associate Coach, NYC
550 1st Ave, New York, NY 10016
James Labartino, ATC
Topics
• Lessons learned from a career in professional baseball Athletic Trainer, Sports Medicine
• Parental involvement in youth development Mandeep S. Virk, MD
• A physician’s perspective on common shoulder
Assistant Professor, Department of Orthopedic Surgery
and elbow injuries
• Injury prevention and rehabilitation April Davis, OT/L, CHT, ACSM
• Training techniques to improve performance Clinical Specialist, Occupational Therapist,
With guest speaker Keith Couch, former pitcher Sports Performance Center
for the Boston Red Sox Heather Milton, MS, RCEP, CSCS
Exercise Physiologist Clinical Specialist,
Sports Performance Center

RSVP
nyulangone.org/cmcevents
No fees are associated with this lecture.
For questions, please contact Andrea Ybarra at
SportsPerformanceCenter@nyumc.org
Speakers

Keith Couch, was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft out of Adelphi
University. He was rated by Baseball America as having the best control in the Red Sox system following the 2011 season. In
2012 he tied for High-A lead with 2 complete games and placed 5th among Carolina League qualifiers and 3rd among Red Sox
minor leaguers with a 3.46 ERA (56 ER/145.2 IP). In 2013, he tied for the most wins in the Red Sox system and ranked among
Eastern League leaders in ERA and winning percentage. In 2014, he went 8-2 with 1 save and a 2.96 ERA (33 ER/100.1 IP) in 18
appearances (17 starts) for Double-A Portland, before being placed on the disabled list.

Robert H. Pertsas, is in his eighteenth year as baseball commissioner for the Public Schools Athletic League. Pertsas holds
both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in physical education and a professional certificate in administration and supervision.
He served for ten years as commissioner of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League, having already served as President
for the previous five years. Pertsas also served on the executive committee of the National Alliance of Collegiate Summer
Baseball. He is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association. Pertsas has received many honors including the
Kingsborough Community College Wall of Fame, the Steve Lembo Memorial Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award and the
Lou DeMartino Lifetime Achievement Award at John Jay College.

Jordan Baltimore, is the founder and director of research & training at New York Empire Baseball, an innovative and
progressive baseball organization that is known for its unique culture, inspiring coaching and science-based content.
Coach Baltimore was named the National Pitching Association’s area director for NYC Metro in 2017 after being certified for
over 6 years by that organization, led by Dr. Tom House. Coach Baltimore is also a member of the Positive Coaching Alliance,
and his coaching philosophy and work in training young pitchers and hitters has been featured on NBC News, ESPN Radio
and in the Wall Street Journal.

James Labartino ATC, played professional baseball in Europe, where he hit .400 finishing second in the league in batting
average. He earned first team all-conference honors in 2010 along with ABCA/Rawlings gold glove honors and again in 2011
also earning ABCA all New York Region honors. James acquired his B.S in Athletic Training from Hofstra University and is
now part of the NYU Winthrop Sports Medicine team. James is coaching a nationally ranked 13u baseball team he is able
to educate with his baseball background, and his athletic training background helping to maximize potential and keep his
athletes safe.

Mandeep S. Virk, MD, is an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at NYU Langone Health. Dr. Virk is a fellowship trained
shoulder and elbow surgeon with expertise in advanced arthroscopic and open reconstructive techniques for the shoulder
and elbow. Dr. Virk’s research interests include understanding the healing mechanisms involved in shoulder and elbow injuries
following surgical repair and his research work is published in leading, peer reviewed orthopedic journals.

April Davis, OT/L, CHT, ACSM, ASSET, is an occupational therapy clinical specialist at NYU Langone’s Orthopedic
Center where she provides treatment of orthopedic injuries in athletes and active individuals of all ages. April earned her
Occupational Therapy degree at Boston University. April is a Certified Hand therapist and is certified by the American Council
of Sports Medicine (ACSM) as a clinical exercise specialist. She has lectured on current concepts of orthopedic rehabilitation
of the shoulder, elbow, and hand and has a special interest in the treatment and prevention of injuries in the overhead athlete.
April is one of the founding members of the NYU Langone Pitching Analysis program.

Heather Milton, MS, RCEP, CSCS, is a exercise physiologist clinical specialist at NYU Langone’s Sports Performance
Center, where she conducts physiological testing and trains a diverse clientele that ranges from competitive athletes to
those wishing to improve their overall health and fitness. Heather is a registered clinical exercise physiologist and a certified
strength and conditioning specialist. Heather’s interests include biomechanical analysis and performance improvement of
rotational sports. Heather is one of the founding members of the NYU Langone Pitching Analysis program.

Dennis Cardone, treats people with acute sports injuries as well as non-sports injuries, and manages injuries that occur in
most parts of the body. In addition to seeing patients at NYU Langone, Dr. Cardone serves as the head team physician for the
athletic programs at NYU and Long Island University, the chief medical officer for the New York City Public Schools Athletic
League, and as a team physician for the U.S. Open tennis tournament. He is currently researching regenerative medicine
and stem cell advancements for sports injuries and osteoarthritis. When he is not seeing patients or performing research, he
cohosts shows on SiriusXMTM Radio that focus on sports medicine and orthopedics.