Article in NY Times about Arm Trouble & Pitching

Y's & T's are great...

Texasleaguer,

Y's and T's are wonderful exercises. I use them daily.

However, one must not neglect the delicate balance of posterior shoulder mobility/flexibility with the stength and stability. It is this lack of mobility in the posterior shoulder where I see young pitchers having problems.

To throw another object into the juggling discussion here... There are issues with too much tightness in a certain muscle on the front of the shoulder/chest region that is a culprit often times.

Function, function, function.... baseball pitchers need to be assessed and trained in positions and postures of function - not just lying down on a table (my opinion).

Let me know if I can be of service to anyone.


Wishing each of you health and success,

 

ATC- First Welcome to TBR! Tell us about yourself and ATC? Where are you located? How long have you been here?

I must admit the first time I saw your post I thought you were Alan Tyson-ATC- who happens to read this board.

We have had many discussions about health, workouts, rehab, etc. It's nice to have someone in the industry as a member. I hope you'll have the time to answer some questions that I know others will have.

 

Braves,

Thanks for the hospitality.

My name is Joe Mullins. Athletic Training & Conditioning, Inc. works out of the Guilford Orthopaedic building at 1915 Lendew St. in Greensboro.

I have been a practicing Athletic Trainer since 1992. Athletic Training & Conditioning, Inc. was created in 2004.

I currently work primarily (but not exclusively) with baseball pitchers. My goal is to evaluate pitchers BEFORE they become injured and create a customized conditioning program and arm care program for them (including a regimented throwing program). In addition, I enjoy doing community talks to teams and parent groups discussing pitching injuries and the prevention thereof.

I use video and computer analysis to evaluate pitching mechanics and movement patterns. From the video analysis I communicate with the pitchers' coach (if desired) as to what I see and will make suggestions (if wanted) as to what may be corrected for more efficient pitching.

Hope this helps.

P.S. I know Alan Tyson - Good man.

 

ATC!!!

I ve been in and around the game since I could walk (43 years maybe) and this was one of the best posts I have ever read/learned... Actually, knew most of what you were talking about other than not knowing a damn word in which how to explain the physics of it! Maybe that is why I got fired.... On tope of this I was watching Pardon The Interruption a few nights ago where some guru talked about how it was OK at any age to throw breaking balls. Have not had time to look into where this article and report came out of NYC I think, but what is your take on that philosophy...is there any truth or substance to that????????

 

Ah hah....

bump so this is the article about condoning pitches other than fastballs! So, ATC question still stands. Your thoughts, impressions?

 

TheOriole

Again, thank you for the nice comments.

The story you are eluding to, I believe, comes from a study performed out of Dr. Andrews' ASMI in Birmingham. It was performed by Dr. Andrews' biomechanist, Dr. Fleisig.

In the study, the curveball did not cause any more stress on the arm than the fastball or changeup.

HOLD ON! BEFORE ANYONE RUNS OUT CITING ME OR THIS STUDY AS EVIDENCE TO THROW CURVEBALLS AT AN EARLY AGE THINK THIS THROUGH... This was a STUDY IN A LABORATORY. This wasn't the real world. In my understanding of the study it didn't take into consideration game fatigue (and the possibility that the young pitcher may have pitched for 1-3 other teams within the past week or two). This was under "sterile/controlled conditions".

Once fatigue sets in or the pitcher isn't stable in the shoulder enough to begin with, the elbow drops into that "danger zone" for a longer period of time. That is when the 32Nm has a chance to do the damage.

In summary, I am not a proponent of curveballs at an early age. Primarily because I do not feel many of our young pitchers are fit to pitch (my opinion). Too many are trying to shoot cannons from canoes!

Hope this helps.

 

...cannons from canoes---I love it!

 

agreed...

and too many well intentioned coaches many of the volunteer "can't find anyone else mold".. Also, those trying to live their dreams thru their sons! Thank you sincerely for the validation I was already certain of.

 

My son is a perfect example of how overuse will eventually end in the OR. He pitched on every team he ever played on starting at age 9. As he got better, more and more teams started competing for his innings. Junior high teams, summer rec teams, AAU travel teams. Then in HS, he played on his school team, legion team, and multiple showcase teams. All this basically started in March and ended in early December for all those years. We tried to coordinate the innings and get him his rest, but its very hard to actually say "My son can't pitch in the championship game" when he wants to and his teammates and coaches need him. And yes, there was some selfish joy in watching him always have the ball with the game on the line. He had good mechanics and never complained about any pain. Then five games in to his college career...BOOM...forearm stiffness that never goes away. Next thing you know he is in Birmingham having TJ surgery. It basically cost him two years of his baseball time. He is now finally healthy heading into his senior year.
So dads of young kids, please don't fall into this trap. Regardless of how healthy your son feels, there is a limited number of pitches in that elbow and shoulder. Don't be so quick to use them up in the rec ball fall world series.

 

Asking the hard question...

Sometimes I have to play the bad guy and tell young athletes that it is my professional opinion (based on their physical findings, etc.) that they should refrain from pitching (or throwing of any kind) for a period of time.

The question that I use (in attempts to put things into perspective) is, "Do you want to be the best 10/11/12, etc. year old pitcher or the best 17/18 year old pitcher?" This often times helps pitchers and parents see that the adolescent years are the time to PREPARE for the recruiting and draft eligible years.