Do you reduce the injury risks for jugs with lower arms?

Photo credits:
Chris Sale (photo by Rich von Bibersstein/Icon Sportswire about Getty Images)

In baseball, it is common for coaches and fans to describe pitchers through their “arm slit”.

Regardless of whether it is upper hand, three quarters or side weapon, many believe that ARM slot is only a stylistic decision-eswas, which can and should change jugs due to preference or performance. In fact, we have seen how many prominent professional jugs have recently taken a lower slot, Paul Slenes and Jacob Degrom, to name just a few.

However, new studies suggest that ARM slot is far less about personal selection and rather about how the body moves. Especially how the attitude affects the throwing.

In a recently carried out study, 87 Elite College pitchers were examined, all of which achieved an average of 86 miles per hour on the radar gun. The goal? To understand how different arms affect the strain on the shoulder and elbow – and whether certain slots are equipped with biomechanical advantages.

What the researchers found was convincing: Slots lower flashes of arm reduce the joint stress significantly– Both on the elbow and the shoulder –to sacrifice without speed. But before we unpack what that means, let's zoom in.

Why arm slit is not what you think

When most people think about the arm slit of a jug, imagine the angle of the forearm during the release. But this angle does not exist in the vacuum – it is the result of a chain of movements that take place earlier and deeper in the body.

For example, the shoulder blade (shoulder blade) does not work independently. It glides over the chest while the arm moves through the throwing movement. That means The position and shape of the chest – aka your attitude – appear how the shoulder blade moves.

And if your shoulder blade is not in an optimal position, this limits the movement and control area that you have over your throwing arm. In other words: The position of your trunk drives the path of your armnot the other way around.

So if a pitcher throws from a low or side weapon slot, this is not necessarily due to the fact that you have “chosen” this slot. It is often due to the fact that your keeping of this movement pattern allows (or restricts). The attempt to change your arm slit without addressing your trunk and the rib positioning is like trying to control a car by turning the wheels while the axis is frozen – it doesn't work.

What the study showed

Here are the most important findings from research:

• Elbow stress: Overhand jugs experienced the highest elbow torque -6.7% of their body weight body height -while the side arms jugs had 6.0% the lowest. That may sound like a small difference, but over thousands of throws it adds up.

• Shoulder stress: A similar trend appeared on the shoulder. Over -hand jugs had a higher internal torque (6.6%) compared to side weapons (5.8%).

• Efficiency wins: Side arms jugs were torque. This means that you have generated more speed per tension unit for the joint – essentially get more “for your money”.

• Trunk position in publication: Overhand jugs showed a significantly more lateral tendency (-23 degrees) and forward flexion (39 degrees), while the side arms mugs were upright, with only -12 degrees to the side and 26 degrees forward flexion.

• speed: Despite this attitude and torque differences, the throwing speed in all groups was statistically the same (AVG. 86.3 miles per hour).

So what is the snack? The keeping of the suitcase – not only the arm – is the critical lever in the throwing movement.

The posture chain reaction

Let us break this down with a simple analogy.

Imagine your chest as the basis of a building and shoulder blade as a sliding window. If the foundation is inclined or unstable, the window does not slide smoothly. Similarly, the shoulder blade cannot properly lead the arm into a secure and strong position if the breast cage is rotated, extended or amazed on the side.

For this reason, athletes try to “change” their arm slit without addressing their trunk posture, often uncomfortable or loses the speed – or worse. The shoulder blade can only do what the chest allows.

The more side and forward tendency an athlete adds in the ball delivery (as is often over hand jugs), the more extreme the shoulder position and the more stress is placed on the joint. It is not the case that the welding goods are naturally safer-it is that the posture associated with this slot enables a more efficient load division between body and arm.

Should jugs try a slot of the lower arm?

That is not the point.

The study does not indicate that every jug should switch to a side weapon delivery. What it does suggest that Cumes should stop treating arm slit as something that can be changed manually. Instead, you should concentrate on improving posture, scapular armobility and regular control in order to of course enable efficient and safe throwing path.

Power and mobility work, movement ratings and throw-specific exercises should aim to unlock a better movement from the inside out. If the posture improves, the arm slit can change – but in a way that works with The body, not against it.

Last thoughts

Looking for harder and healthy, athletes and trainers often look for quick corrections – Twaks for mechanics, different handles, new exercises. But the body doesn't work that way. Litter is a full body movement, and the arm follows what the trunk and shoulder blade enable.

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Kenny Hayden is a former baseball of Division I for the University of Albany and works as media director for Velou.