The influence of shoulder abduction and external rotation on throwing arm kinetics in professional baseball pitchers.

Background: The relationships between shoulder abduction and external rotation with peak kinetic values at the shoulder and elbow in professional baseball pitchers are not well established.

Methods: Professional pitchers ( = 322) threw 8-12 fastballs under 3D motion analysis (480 Hz). Pitchers were stratified into quartiles by shoulder abduction and external rotation at distinct timepoints.

The Relationship Between Maximum Shoulder Horizontal Abduction and Adduction on Peak Shoulder Kinetics in Professional Pitchers.

Background: Repetitive horizontal shoulder abduction during pitching can cause increased contact between the posterosuperior aspect of the glenoid and the greater tuberosity of the humeral head, theoretically putting baseball pitchers at increased risk of shoulder internal impingement and other shoulder pathologies.

Hypothesis: Increased shoulder horizontal abduction is associated with increased shoulder anterior force, while increased horizontal adduction is associated with increased shoulder distraction force.

Study Design: Descriptive laboratory study.

Increased Knee and Meniscal Injury Incidence in Professional Baseball Pitchers With Wider, Positive Stride Width.

Background: Professional baseball pitchers sustain 75% of knee injuries while at the pitcher's mound, yet no pitching motion has been associated directly with such injuries. Stride width is a potential, modifiable risk factor worth investigating.

Hypothesis: Increased stride width in both the positive and negative directions (deviations from neutral stride width) would correlate with increased incidence of knee injury in pitchers.

Kinematic and kinetic analyses of professional pitchers with history of core or groin injuries: A propensity-score matched analysis.

Background: Core injuries in professional baseball pitchers have been linked to both diminished performance and time missed during the season injury was sustained. It is currently unclear how a history of a core injury may affect the future pitching performance and mechanics of professional baseball pitchers.

Purpose: To compare kinetic and kinematic variables between professional baseball pitchers with prior core/groin injuries and those without prior injury.

Increased Elbow and Olecranon Injury History in Professional Pitchers With Increased Elbow Flexion at Ball Release.

Background: Elbow flexion at late portions of the pitch has been associated with increased elbow varus torque, a kinetic surrogate associated with injury risk. Direct examinations of injury incidence with elbow flexion angles have not been conducted in professional pitchers.

Purpose: To compare elbow and shoulder injury incidence among professional baseball players stratified by degree of elbow flexion at ball release (BR).

Decreased Trunk Rotation at Foot Contact in Professional Baseball Pitchers With Prior Conservatively Managed SLAP Tears: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis.

Purpose: To compare kinematic and kinetic parameters between a cohort of fully recovered professional pitchers with prior shoulder injury treated conservatively and a cohort with no prior shoulder injury.

Methods: Twenty-six fully recovered professional baseball pitchers with a history of shoulder injury treated conservatively pitched 8 to 10 fastball pitches using 3-dimensional motion capture (480 Hz). All shoulder injuries occurred within a 1- to 4-year time span from biomechanical evaluation and were severe enough to prevent pitchers from playing for between 1 and 12 months.