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Evaluate your pitching style !

BASEBALL is a safe and enjoyable team sport, played by millions of children and adolescents in the United States. Approximately 25% of these young athletes are pitchers. While the rate of traumatic injury in youth baseball is low, several studies have found a high incidence of chronic elbow and shoulder injuries in young pitchers. As many as 58% of children and adolescents between the ages of 11 and 18 experience elbow injuries during or after pitching in organized games.

A study of U.S. collegiate males determined that 15% of students who pitched in youth baseball felt their ability to throw in college was hindered or hampered by pain, tenderness or limitation of movement as a result of youth baseball pitching. 58% reported having arm pain during their youth league years.

A recent study found that there are few differences between youth and adult pitching kinematics, implying that a youth pitcher may be able to learn proper mechanics at a young age. However, a series of studies conducted at ASMI comparing the biomechanics of various types of pitches indicated that the curveball might be the most difficult and dangerous pitch to learn. The association between elbow and shoulder injury and throwing curveballs confirms the suspicion that breaking pitches are more dangerous for young pitchers to throw, and perhaps they should be reserved for older-aged pitchers when the throwing arm is more fully developed. The additional increased risk of elbow injury associated with throwing some types of split-fingered pitches validates the anecdotal belief that these pitches are hard on the elbow.

In the ASMI study, nearly all of the pitchers (91%) reported pitching outside of league games and practices during the season. They averaged 2.4 days of outside practice per week for an average of 26 minutes per session. Elbow injuries were reported by 19% of those who participated.

The repetitive nature of baseball pitching results in a high risk of overuse injuries and long-term disability. Since mild to moderate elbow and shoulder injuries occur at very high rates among youth league pitchers, it is very important to prevent these injuries.

A sore elbow is very common in baseball. Elbow pain located on the medial or inner (figure 1) aspect of the elbow in individual 11 to 18 years of age is frequently referred to as "Little Leaguer’s Elbow" though this term is a nonspecific diagnosis and actually includes many diagnoses. Most often the symptoms are elbow pain, limited motion, locking, clicking and/or inability to throw. Due to the large forces generated during the acceleration phase of the throw, repetitive microtraumas to the bone may cause a bony injury or muscular tendentious. Repeated throwing, especially pitching, can also cause elbow injuries that can damage the growth plate.The elbow pain is worse with throwing and improves with rest.