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Article from Brian Grasso's blog.....
Pitch Counts and Young Baseball Players
By Brian Grasso
* * * * * * *
I received a TON of questions through my open Q & A yesterday.
Many folks posted their questions on my blog, while several
others emailed them to me directly.
I am going to spend some time answering ALL OF THEM over the next
few weeks.
One of the questions that came in yesterday caught my attention:
* * * * * * *
First I want to thank you for all the valuable information you provide.
My question pertains to junior high schoolers and pitching.
Are there any studies that you know of that have looked into
number of pitches thrown and arm injuries? What would you
recommend to a parent who asked you about the relationship
between pitching at a young age and potential arm injuries?
Thanks
* * * * * * *
Fantastic question and thank you for asking it!
There have been studies - I believe the most notable ones were
conducted through the Alabama Sports Medicine Center.
Let me start by answering your question this way...
... Scientific research is fine, great in fact, but it must be
considered within certain contexts and parameters.
Research can give us generalizations of findings.
More importantly, it can't always give us the entire story.
Dr. Kwame Brown, who you likely know by now, is my 'right hand
man' when it comes to the International Youth Conditioning
Association, is forever telling me this...
... The danger in scientific research is that very few people
ever read the entire study.
And even then, fewer are able to understand the contents from an
application standpoint.
It is virtually impossible to say with any conclusion that a
given young athlete can throw no more than 'x' number of
pitches in a game.
Although VERY trainable, a great deal of injury avoidance can be
found in the genetic make-up of someone.
For example:
- Joint Structure (specifically of the shoulder)
- Muscle and Bone Length
- Ligament and Tendon Strength
These are things that are determined at birth and seldom (if
ever) considered in the scope of the study itself.
But can be very critical in the whole 'arm injury' consideration.
Also, there is the whole concept of training and past
experiences.
It has been my overwhelming observation (and I have written about
this many time) that kids who participate recreationally in many
different sports during their primary growing years, are much
less prone to overuse and acute injuries.
This is even more true for kids who also enjoy the luxury of
free and active play - without the intrusion of coaches who try
to make the child do 'certain things in certain ways'.
The combination of this multi-sport exposure and free play
experience, leads to a very capable young athlete who is both
mechanically sound (i.e. they move well) and injury resistant.
Case in point, think back to your own childhood.
For me, every summer day was spent playing baseball with my
friends for HOURS.
There were no coaches telling us about throwing mechanics...
No instruction on how to turn an effective double play...
And certainly no pitch counts.
By my estimations, I must have thrown or pitched a ball between
1,000 - 1,200 times in a given 5-day week.
And had NO shoulder injuries to speak of!
My point is that early sport specificity and over-coaching seem
to have led to the problems we are seeing in terms of injuries
and youth sports these days.
In between playing baseball, me and my friends did all of the
following:
- Rode our bikes
- Climbed trees
- Wrestled
- Played basketball
- Ran obstacle courses through playgrounds
All of these 'free play' activities left us strong, mobility and
flexible.
And of course... INJURY RESISTANT.
In fact, I can't remember any of us ever having to go to see a
doctor due to sore shoulders, backs, hips or anything else.
The point of my rather long and winding story , is
that we are looking too narrowly at what is causing the problem
and not accounting for the reality of the 'big picture'.
Kids today specialize in sports early.
It is all baseball, all the time.
There is no infusion of basic elements of play and strength
development that isn't specific to making them a better baseball
player.
I gave commented on this many, MANY times before, but have no
problem bringing it up again -
From the ages of 6 - 16 (or so), the bulk of a child's training
and sport participation should come in the form of NON-DIRECTED
LOADS... In fact, as much as 65 - 70%.
In practicality, that means that nearly 3/4 of the training and
sports play a child does over a ten year span should be based
on global and basic development - not specialized and focused.
The real answer to the question then is simply this -
Pitch counts would cease to be an issue if kids were allowed to
(and even coaxed) enjoy multiple activities and participate
ONLY in training systems that were based on general athletic
ability.
Now, I am a pragmatic kind of guy and although the above point
is the direction I am trying to take this youth sports crazy
culture of ours, I also want to give you some guidelines that
work in the current day model you likely find yourself in.
Here they are -
:: Play baseball (or any other sport) seasonally. It cannot be
a full-year project for kids.
:: Have the kids play all the positions in a given sport. This
will serve to increase their athletic ability and also reduce
the risk of injury in terms of overuse from the constant strain
of playing the same position day in and day out.
:: Try to enroll your kids with teams whose coaches understand,
embrace and ACT ON the whole principle of development. It
shouldn't be about winning in Little League - it should be about
learning, having fun and developing skill.
:: Kids should never be allowed to get to the point of 'technical
failure' (when their form starts to break down). It is not good
enough to pull them from a game AT this point, it is necessary
to pull them from a game BEFORE they get there.
:: Be proactive. Using the above point, keep pitch counts of
your young athlete or team and ascertain when they 'look' like
it's time to switch them up. Do this one or two times, and I
guarantee you will find the specific pitch count that is
appropriate for specific young athletes.
:: Don't work with Trainers who promise quick increases in
speed, strength or power in short training programs. Training
is just like school (and SHOULD be just like sport). It is
monumentally more important to develop skill and understanding
over time than it is to create quick increases in the short
term. Making kids faster in the short term is very easy...
Creating lasting speed improvements that can be applied to sport
is a complex issue that takes time.
I truly hope this has helped and thank you sincerely for taking
the time to ask me your question.
Do you have a question you want me to answer, ?
Just go to my blog and post it.
I will answer it (guaranteed) over the next few weeks.
Here's the link you need -
Brian's Blog
'Till next time,
Brian
By Brian Grasso
* * * * * * *
I received a TON of questions through my open Q & A yesterday.
Many folks posted their questions on my blog, while several
others emailed them to me directly.
I am going to spend some time answering ALL OF THEM over the next
few weeks.
One of the questions that came in yesterday caught my attention:
* * * * * * *
First I want to thank you for all the valuable information you provide.
My question pertains to junior high schoolers and pitching.
Are there any studies that you know of that have looked into
number of pitches thrown and arm injuries? What would you
recommend to a parent who asked you about the relationship
between pitching at a young age and potential arm injuries?
Thanks
* * * * * * *
Fantastic question and thank you for asking it!
There have been studies - I believe the most notable ones were
conducted through the Alabama Sports Medicine Center.
Let me start by answering your question this way...
... Scientific research is fine, great in fact, but it must be
considered within certain contexts and parameters.
Research can give us generalizations of findings.
More importantly, it can't always give us the entire story.
Dr. Kwame Brown, who you likely know by now, is my 'right hand
man' when it comes to the International Youth Conditioning
Association, is forever telling me this...
... The danger in scientific research is that very few people
ever read the entire study.
And even then, fewer are able to understand the contents from an
application standpoint.
It is virtually impossible to say with any conclusion that a
given young athlete can throw no more than 'x' number of
pitches in a game.
Although VERY trainable, a great deal of injury avoidance can be
found in the genetic make-up of someone.
For example:
- Joint Structure (specifically of the shoulder)
- Muscle and Bone Length
- Ligament and Tendon Strength
These are things that are determined at birth and seldom (if
ever) considered in the scope of the study itself.
But can be very critical in the whole 'arm injury' consideration.
Also, there is the whole concept of training and past
experiences.
It has been my overwhelming observation (and I have written about
this many time) that kids who participate recreationally in many
different sports during their primary growing years, are much
less prone to overuse and acute injuries.
This is even more true for kids who also enjoy the luxury of
free and active play - without the intrusion of coaches who try
to make the child do 'certain things in certain ways'.
The combination of this multi-sport exposure and free play
experience, leads to a very capable young athlete who is both
mechanically sound (i.e. they move well) and injury resistant.
Case in point, think back to your own childhood.
For me, every summer day was spent playing baseball with my
friends for HOURS.
There were no coaches telling us about throwing mechanics...
No instruction on how to turn an effective double play...
And certainly no pitch counts.
By my estimations, I must have thrown or pitched a ball between
1,000 - 1,200 times in a given 5-day week.
And had NO shoulder injuries to speak of!
My point is that early sport specificity and over-coaching seem
to have led to the problems we are seeing in terms of injuries
and youth sports these days.
In between playing baseball, me and my friends did all of the
following:
- Rode our bikes
- Climbed trees
- Wrestled
- Played basketball
- Ran obstacle courses through playgrounds
All of these 'free play' activities left us strong, mobility and
flexible.
And of course... INJURY RESISTANT.
In fact, I can't remember any of us ever having to go to see a
doctor due to sore shoulders, backs, hips or anything else.
The point of my rather long and winding story , is
that we are looking too narrowly at what is causing the problem
and not accounting for the reality of the 'big picture'.
Kids today specialize in sports early.
It is all baseball, all the time.
There is no infusion of basic elements of play and strength
development that isn't specific to making them a better baseball
player.
I gave commented on this many, MANY times before, but have no
problem bringing it up again -
From the ages of 6 - 16 (or so), the bulk of a child's training
and sport participation should come in the form of NON-DIRECTED
LOADS... In fact, as much as 65 - 70%.
In practicality, that means that nearly 3/4 of the training and
sports play a child does over a ten year span should be based
on global and basic development - not specialized and focused.
The real answer to the question then is simply this -
Pitch counts would cease to be an issue if kids were allowed to
(and even coaxed) enjoy multiple activities and participate
ONLY in training systems that were based on general athletic
ability.
Now, I am a pragmatic kind of guy and although the above point
is the direction I am trying to take this youth sports crazy
culture of ours, I also want to give you some guidelines that
work in the current day model you likely find yourself in.
Here they are -
:: Play baseball (or any other sport) seasonally. It cannot be
a full-year project for kids.
:: Have the kids play all the positions in a given sport. This
will serve to increase their athletic ability and also reduce
the risk of injury in terms of overuse from the constant strain
of playing the same position day in and day out.
:: Try to enroll your kids with teams whose coaches understand,
embrace and ACT ON the whole principle of development. It
shouldn't be about winning in Little League - it should be about
learning, having fun and developing skill.
:: Kids should never be allowed to get to the point of 'technical
failure' (when their form starts to break down). It is not good
enough to pull them from a game AT this point, it is necessary
to pull them from a game BEFORE they get there.
:: Be proactive. Using the above point, keep pitch counts of
your young athlete or team and ascertain when they 'look' like
it's time to switch them up. Do this one or two times, and I
guarantee you will find the specific pitch count that is
appropriate for specific young athletes.
:: Don't work with Trainers who promise quick increases in
speed, strength or power in short training programs. Training
is just like school (and SHOULD be just like sport). It is
monumentally more important to develop skill and understanding
over time than it is to create quick increases in the short
term. Making kids faster in the short term is very easy...
Creating lasting speed improvements that can be applied to sport
is a complex issue that takes time.
I truly hope this has helped and thank you sincerely for taking
the time to ask me your question.
Do you have a question you want me to answer, ?
Just go to my blog and post it.
I will answer it (guaranteed) over the next few weeks.
Here's the link you need -
Brian's Blog
'Till next time,
Brian