NEW YORK — A year-long study by Major League Baseball concluded that increased velocity, pitch shaping and an emphasis on maximum effort may be responsible for a significant increase in pitcher injuries and recommended exploring rules changes to solve this problem.
The 62-page report released Tuesday said the trend extends to high school and youth baseball due to attention from professional scouts. There is no evidence that pitch clocks are linked to injuries, the study said.
The report contains 26 data tables and is based on interviews with more than 200 people, including players, front offices, orthopedic surgeons, athletic trainers, physical therapists, biochemists, major league, college and independent coaches, and international coaches.
“This is a landmark event,” said Glenn Fleisig, director of biomechanics research at the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham, Alabama, who was involved in the study. “This is a very important first step in identifying the problem and identifying possible risk factors. I’m pleased that there is such consensus… The next step is to conduct various types of studies.”
Areas that may need research include off-season training and early season workload, non-match activities, defining and measuring fatigue, biomechanics and pitching style, obtaining more data from international leagues and differentiating the results of domestic and international signings.
MLB pitchers’ IL plate appearances increased from 212 in 2005 to 485 this year, and the number of days on the IL increased from 13,666 to 32,257.
“Probably the most important reasons are the increase in pitch velocity, the emphasis on optimizing ‘stuff’ (a term referring to the compound motion characteristics of a pitch, including horizontal and vertical break and spin rates), and the modern pitcher’s focus on maximizing effort in the game and Pitching in a non-game situation,” the report said.
“Some experts have speculated on the potential impact of other factors on the short-term increase in injuries over the past few years, including the lasting impact of the COVID-19-affected season, the introduction of ballpark clocks, and the inconsistent grip of ballpark surfaces in baseball. There is insufficient consensus or evidence. to determine the link between these other factors and pitcher injuries.”
The report said experts recommended that MLB consider rule changes that would “increase the value of pitcher health and durability and decrease the value of short-term, maximum-effort pitching.”
“For example, game rules could be adjusted or designed to encourage or require starting pitchers to retain sufficient energy to enable them to engage more deeply in games,” the report states. “These incentives could be supported by roster rules that could be more Appropriately regulate the availability of pitchers on the roster or in the team’s bullpen for a given game, including potential changes in the number and frequency of trades that would allow clubs to replace pitchers on the roster.”
Major League Baseball (MLB) is experimenting with the use of a double-hook designated hitter in the Atlantic League starting in the 2021-13 season, and if a team’s starting pitcher has not completed at least 5 innings in the past two seasons, the ball The team will lose the DH. MLB reduced the pitcher cap from 14 to 13 on June 20, 2022, but after roster expansion from 26 to 28, the cap will be 14 as of September 1. The minimum pitching IL returns to 15 days in 2022 after dropping to 10 personnel. the first five years.
Injury factors may include the use of weighted balls in training, increased intensity of bullpen workouts, possible decreases in cardiovascular and endurance training, and workload management that incentivizes harder work in shorter periods of time.
“Multiple medical experts have described new injury patterns that they believe are related to a focus on speed and maximum effort pitching,” the report said, listing lat and teres major tears, rib fractures and oblique strains. .
1. Tommy John surgeries on major and minor league players increased from 104 in 2010 to a peak of 314 in 2020, before falling to 281 this year. This year, 41 of them are rehabbing in the majors or minor leagues, and 240 are with minor league clubs.
2. Since 2008, the average four-seam fastball velocity in the major leagues has increased from 91.3 mph to 94.2 mph, the average slider velocity has increased from 82.8 mph to 84.6 mph, and the average curveball velocity has increased from 75.7 mph. Up to 79.5 mph, the average speed of the changeup ball increased from 81.7 mph to 85.5 mph. During this period, fastball usage dropped from 60% to 48%. By comparison, Nippon Professional Baseball’s fastball velocity this year is 91.1.
3. The number of IL days for pitchers with elbow injuries increased from 3,940 in 2005 to 12,185 this year, and the number of IL days for shoulder injuries increased from 2,634 to 5,445.
4. IL attendance increased from 61 players in 2017 to 112 this year from spring training to Opening Day, and from 303 to 352 from day two to the end of the regular season.
5. From 2005-25, the rate of starts of five or more innings in the majors dropped from 84% to 70%, and the rate of starts in the minor leagues dropped from 68.9% to 36.8%.
6. Thirty-five players selected in the first 10 rounds of this year’s amateur draft underwent Tommy John surgery, compared with four in 2005.
7. The number of prospects throwing at 95 mph or above at the Perfect Game National Showcase increased from 3 in 2018 to 36 this year.
8. The proportion of adolescent and high school pitchers at the Andrews Center for Sports Medicine and Orthopedics undergoing UCL surgeries rose from 10% of all UCL surgeries in 1995 to 52% in 2021 before falling to 42% in 2023.
9. The average number of pitchers per team in the 1980 season was 15.1, which rose to 34.4 in 2021 and dropped to 32.5 this year.
10. In 2023, more international players will undergo UCL surgeries than domestic players for the first time since 2010.
11. The average number of innings pitched by college starting pitchers selected in the first three rounds of the amateur draft dropped last season from 101.1 in 2012 to 74 this year.
12. The number of pitchers selected in the first three rounds of the draft dropped from 73.3% in 2014 to 41.7% this year.
