Post by CEZAR on Dec 10, 2013 10:10:46 GMT -6
www.softballexcellence.com/dugout/pitching/pitching-break/
Here is a nice read by our Friend Cindy Bristow,, check out the link
As the Christmas holidays approach and softball takes a slight break can we afford our pitchers to also take a break? While most people will say no, the answer might actually surprise you.
The rise of softball has brought some tremendous opportunities in the form of television, scholarships, college educations and travel. But, the flip side to that is the issue of play-play-play in order to improve or be seen. And while I know I can’t stop this train I can help shed some light on the need for our players to rest, pace themselves and back off just a bit.
Recently ESPN News High School interviewed Dr. James Andrews, the world’s best orthopedic surgeon who has operated on the greatest pro baseball players in the world.
He’s extremely concerned about the arm injuries he’s seeing in youth baseball pitchers. And while he’s talking specifically about baseball pitchers, every single one of his concerns applies directly to softball and our pitchers.
Dr. Andrews invented the Tommy John surgery, which takes a blown-out arm and rebuilds it by using tendons from another part of the body and putting them into the injured arm (my simplified version). What’s made him suddenly so concerned about youth baseball players is this fact – he used to do three or four Tommy John surgeries a year on high school athletes and now it’s up to three to four times a week! A week!
Dr. Andrews identified 5 things that baseball players can do to help them keep their arms healthy and safe and I’ll focus on the top 3. When you read through these notice how many of them apply directly to softball:
1.Year-Round Ball – I know this one will make some people crazy, but Andrews thinks they should get rid of year-round ball. Year round ball doesn’t allow for a rest period for the arm, and baseball/softball are development sports and the ligaments in the elbow need rest in order to develop.
2.Velocity – If no year round ball makes you shutter then wait till you hear this one – Dr. Andrews thinks there should be a line on how fast a pitcher should be allowed to throw. Dr. Andrews says this is based on numerous years of experience and a multiple of studies. For baseball, he has found that young pitchers who throw over 85 mph have far greater potential of getting hurt. For softball, we’d have to translate this mph for 40 or 43 feet but the point is that throwing extremely fast creates stress on elbows that are still developing.
3.Fatigue – Fatigue is one of the biggest reasons for injury. Pitchers throw too many pitches in too many games on too many teams and on too many days. Going from team to team, weekend after weekend, game after game doesn’t allow a pitcher’s arm to rest – and when a pitcher gets tired is when she can really get injured.
These factors seem completely logical don’t they? When I read them my logical brain said “of course that’s what we need to do”, and my practical brain said “no way we’ll ever do that”.
And while we’ll probably never institute all of these changes we can take these 3 simple principles and apply them to our pitchers to keep them healthy throughout their career. Try by using the following tips:
•Let your pitchers take a break over the holidays – force them if you have to! They can continue their conditioning and fitness but just allow their pitching to take a break.
•Help your pitchers give their velocity a break by either shortening one of their weekly practices, by insisting half of a practice is at half-speed, or by having one day a week workout be changeups only. Particularly if your pitcher throws extremely hard, find creative ways to give her velocity a break.
•Since fatigue happens to the mind as well as the body help your pitchers keep things fresh. Give them a break during the week, force them to limit their workouts following tough games – but mainly be vigilant for even the smallest signs of fatigue.
Here is a nice read by our Friend Cindy Bristow,, check out the link
As the Christmas holidays approach and softball takes a slight break can we afford our pitchers to also take a break? While most people will say no, the answer might actually surprise you.
The rise of softball has brought some tremendous opportunities in the form of television, scholarships, college educations and travel. But, the flip side to that is the issue of play-play-play in order to improve or be seen. And while I know I can’t stop this train I can help shed some light on the need for our players to rest, pace themselves and back off just a bit.
Recently ESPN News High School interviewed Dr. James Andrews, the world’s best orthopedic surgeon who has operated on the greatest pro baseball players in the world.
He’s extremely concerned about the arm injuries he’s seeing in youth baseball pitchers. And while he’s talking specifically about baseball pitchers, every single one of his concerns applies directly to softball and our pitchers.
Dr. Andrews invented the Tommy John surgery, which takes a blown-out arm and rebuilds it by using tendons from another part of the body and putting them into the injured arm (my simplified version). What’s made him suddenly so concerned about youth baseball players is this fact – he used to do three or four Tommy John surgeries a year on high school athletes and now it’s up to three to four times a week! A week!
Dr. Andrews identified 5 things that baseball players can do to help them keep their arms healthy and safe and I’ll focus on the top 3. When you read through these notice how many of them apply directly to softball:
1.Year-Round Ball – I know this one will make some people crazy, but Andrews thinks they should get rid of year-round ball. Year round ball doesn’t allow for a rest period for the arm, and baseball/softball are development sports and the ligaments in the elbow need rest in order to develop.
2.Velocity – If no year round ball makes you shutter then wait till you hear this one – Dr. Andrews thinks there should be a line on how fast a pitcher should be allowed to throw. Dr. Andrews says this is based on numerous years of experience and a multiple of studies. For baseball, he has found that young pitchers who throw over 85 mph have far greater potential of getting hurt. For softball, we’d have to translate this mph for 40 or 43 feet but the point is that throwing extremely fast creates stress on elbows that are still developing.
3.Fatigue – Fatigue is one of the biggest reasons for injury. Pitchers throw too many pitches in too many games on too many teams and on too many days. Going from team to team, weekend after weekend, game after game doesn’t allow a pitcher’s arm to rest – and when a pitcher gets tired is when she can really get injured.
These factors seem completely logical don’t they? When I read them my logical brain said “of course that’s what we need to do”, and my practical brain said “no way we’ll ever do that”.
And while we’ll probably never institute all of these changes we can take these 3 simple principles and apply them to our pitchers to keep them healthy throughout their career. Try by using the following tips:
•Let your pitchers take a break over the holidays – force them if you have to! They can continue their conditioning and fitness but just allow their pitching to take a break.
•Help your pitchers give their velocity a break by either shortening one of their weekly practices, by insisting half of a practice is at half-speed, or by having one day a week workout be changeups only. Particularly if your pitcher throws extremely hard, find creative ways to give her velocity a break.
•Since fatigue happens to the mind as well as the body help your pitchers keep things fresh. Give them a break during the week, force them to limit their workouts following tough games – but mainly be vigilant for even the smallest signs of fatigue.