Fast or Curvey… Either Way, Just Keep Count!

Spring is the start of baseball for many young athletes and so we thought a recent study from Athletic Training and Sports Health Care was relevant.  This study looked at both little league and high school players and made some useful points.  Previous studies have already shown that high pitch counts lead to more elbow and shoulder injuries.  It is thought that as children and their arms tire, poor form results, and leads to more arm, elbow, and shoulder injuries.  As a result many leagues limit the number of pitches kids can pitch each game.  This new study found that kids who play baseball in multiple leagues (i.e. local and travel leagues) seem to have more arm injuries–including more surgeries–even if they adhere to pitch count limitations in individual games. They point out that total pitch count limitations need to take into account pitches thrown in every league in which a child is playing.