PURPOSE: Certain pitching mechanics is thought to lead pitchers in danger of surgical risk and decrease performance. The objective of this study is to analyze the effect of shoulder hyperabduction position during early cocking phase in association with surgical risk and performance in professional baseball players.METHODS: From 2009 to 2013, total of 93 candidates reached minimum inning qualification. After exclusion criteria (overlapped players, foreign players, age over 31 years, proceed to other league and retirement), 19 players were analyzed with slow-motion pitching video for hyperabduction of the shoulder and hyperpronation of forearm in cocking-phase. Also players were analyzed with innings pitched, earned run average (ERA), walks and hits divided by innings pitched (WHIP) and surgical history with database offered by official Korean Baseball Organization website.RESULTS: Out of total 19 players, nine players had hyperabduction arm movement and 10 players did not. Group with hyperabduction had average age of 24.3 years old, average inning/ERA/WHIP for 5 years were 55 innings/yr, 6.52 ERA/yr and 1.33 WHIP/yr, respectively, and seven players (77%) had surgeries eventually. Group without hyperabduction arm movement had average age of 25.4 years old; average inning, ERA/WHIP for 5 years were 127 1/3 innings/yr, 4.84 ERA/yr, and 1.32 WHIP/yr, respectively and five players (50%) went for surgeries. Player performance (ERA, p=0.66; WHIP, p=0.14) was not statistically influenced by the certain arm position at cocking phase but average inning pitched was statistically affected (p<0.01).CONCLUSION: Hyperabduction of shoulder in early cocking phase of throwing motion does not lead to decrease in performance (ERA, WHIP) but will result in tremendous decline of average IP. Also, risk of surgery is not associated to hyperabduction motion of the shoulder.
Arm ; Baseball ; Forearm ; Mechanics ; Shoulder

The aim of this study was to evaluate the change of supraspinatus muscle and tendon as well as biceps tendon after pitching in Korean professional baseball league pitchers by the application of sonoelastography. A total of 10 pitchers from Korean professional league were evaluated their supraspinatus muscle and tendon and long head of biceps tendon of dominant arm by sonoelastography at all-star break period. After one month later, re-evaluations were performed after pitching in the game. The strain ratio of supraspinatus muscle and tendon (red portion, soft; blue portion, hard), thickness of supraspinatus and long head of biceps tendons were evaluated. For the correlation analysis with pitching, numbers of pitches, maximal velocity, maximal difference of velocity and ratio of breaking balls among pitches were investigated. The strain ratios of supraspinatus muscle, thickness of supraspinatus and long head of biceps tendon were decreased but not statistically significant. However, the strain ratio of red portion in supraspinatus tendon was significantly increased. There were no correlations between sonoelastograpic findings and pitches.
Arm ; Baseball* ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques* ; Head* ; Tendons*

Spiral fractures of the humerus that occur during throwing, such as in baseball, are not very common but have been well described in orthopedics and sports medicine. They are known to occur by sudden extreme muscular action while throwing balls. I report on a case of spiral fracture of the humerus shaft while pitching in a baseball game with a review of the literature.
Baseball* ; Humerus* ; Orthopedics ; Sports ; Sports Medicine

Paralabral cysts of the shoulder are rare, and there are few reports available that describe anteroinferior paralabral cysts arising from a detached antero-inferior glenoid labral tear without shoulder instability. We report an antero-inferior labral tear without shoulder instability in adolescent overhead athlete associated with paralabral cyst that leads to axillary nerve neurapraxia. Although nonoperative management of such labral lesions may provide symptoms of relief, it may not be enough for the athlete to return to the game. However, surgical treatment in this case provides successful recovery and rapid return to playing baseball play without having to worry about the progression of muscle denervation.
Adolescent* ; Athletes* ; Baseball ; Humans ; Muscle Denervation ; Shoulder

Bony changes about the elbow in the baseball players are common problem. Pure bony injuries occur in the elbow of the throwing arm, but most often they have some associated soft tissue counterpart. The importance to understand the elbow lesion in baseball players is that many of this lesion seem mild at onset and can often be easily managed, but permanent disability can result from the delayed or inadequate treatment. The authors have performed radiological study in 32 professional baseball players and obstained following result. 1. Among 32 baseball players we studied, twenty-four plsyers(75.0%) had 41 bony changes in the throwing elbow. 2. Forty one bony changes were classified into three groups by Slocum classificstion,;twenty nine medial tension overload injury, eleven extensor overload injury and one lateral compression injury. 3. Incidences of bony changes in each age group were 63.6#% in 20~24 years, 71.4% in 25~29 years and 100% in 30~35 years of age. 4. Incidences of bony changes in each csreer group were 63.6% in 10~14 years, 69.2% in 15~19 years and 100% in 20~25 years of career. 5. Incidences of bony changes in each position were 72.7% in the piteher and 76.2% in the fielder. 6. In conclusion, the best treatment is prevention, namely, exercise to increase the stren- gth, flexibility, and endurance of elbow musculature, which should be coupled with attention to proper mechanics of throwing. If an injury does take place, prompt treatment consisting rest, physical therapy and appropriate medicstion when indicated-should lead to a successful result in most cases.
Arm ; Baseball ; Elbow ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mechanics ; Pliability

OBJECTIVE: In this five-year cohort study, we hypothesize that factors of temperament and character in professional baseball players predict the speed of obtaining success and the quality of success as well as anxiety control. METHODS: Participants included 120 male rookie players from the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) and 107 male non-players with no history of playing baseball. The personality/characters and state/trait anxieties of participants were assessed with the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and Spielberg's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Y (STAI-Y). Over the duration of five years, all the players were subsequently classified into either a success group (major leaguers) or a non-success group (non-major leaguers), depending on their status in the professional baseball league in Korea. RESULTS: The players in the group of starters had higher novelty seeking (NS) scores than those of non-starters. The reward dependence (RD) scores of the success group were higher than those of the non-success group. The state anxiety scores in the starter group were negatively correlated with NS scores. The state and trait anxieties in the non-success group were positively correlated with RD scores. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that predictive temperamental factors for success in baseball players include traits of novelty seeking and reward dependence.
Anxiety ; Baseball* ; Cohort Studies ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Reward ; Temperament*

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the ultrasonographic findings of little leaguer's shoulder among adolescent baseball players. Forty-two little leaguer's shoulder patients (age, 11–16 years; mean, 13.8 years; right, 39; left, 3), based on plain X-ray, were examined by bilateral shoulder ultrasonography. All patients were divided into groups on the basis of sonographic abnormalities and bilateral differences of physeal gap were measured in the cases of significant physeal widening. Sonographic abnormalities of dominant shoulder were physeal irregularity (45%), physeal fragmentation (21%), periosteal thickening (36%) and physeal widening (83%) that was the most common abnormalities. Seven of 42 patients (group A) had only physeal irregularity with minimal physeal widening, 26 patients (group B) had more than 1-mm physeal widening compared with nondominant shoulder. Nine patients (group C) had both physeal widening and fragmentation. Mean physeal gaps of the dominant and nondominant shoulders in 35 patients (group B and C) were 3.4±0.8 mm and 1.4±0.1 mm, respectively (p=0.013) and increased average physeal gap of dominant shoulder was 2.0±0.8 mm. Among three groups of patients, the duration of symptom was significant longer in group C (p=0.011). Physeal widening and fragmentation were associated with progression of the disease, but physeal irregularity was relatively early sonographic finding. Ultrasonography is a useful tool to evaluate the status of proximal humeral epiphysis and can aid early diagnosis of little leaguer's shoulder in the field.
Adolescent ; Baseball ; Early Diagnosis ; Epiphyses ; Humans ; Humerus ; Shoulder* ; Ultrasonography

BACKGROUND: To investigate how many rookie pitchers suffered from injuries while playing in the amateur league without guidelines for prevention of excessive pitching, we analyzed their amateur pitching patterns based on the pitch count, use of breaking balls, and pitches during winter camp. METHODS: Forty-one rookie pitchers who graduated from high school or university in 2013 and joined professional baseball teams. Participants were interviewed by a trainer using our questionnaire. Injury inclusion criteria were 1) history of shoulder surgery, 2) history of elbow surgery, 3) shoulder pain requiring treatment, and 4) elbow pain requiring treatment. RESULTS: Mean number of pitches per game and warm-up pitches for practice was 84.5 pitches (range, 15 to 130 pitches) and 16.4 pitches (range, 2 to 210 pitches), respectively. Mean number of pitches during the last year was 906.9 (range, 80 to 2,000). Mean number of maximal pitches was 127 pitches (range, 50 to 210 pitches). Fourteen pitchers had pitched over 150 pitches. Twenty-seven pitchers (65.9%) had pitched in spite of enduring pain. During winter training (mean 1.8 months), mean number of pitches per day was 162.5 pitches, and 20 pitchers (48.8%) had practiced pitching excessively despite the cold weather. Twenty-six rookies (63.4%) had shoulder pain or history of shoulder surgery, and 31 pitchers (75.6%) had elbow pain or history of elbow surgery. Only four participants (9.8%) did not have pain and history of surgery. CONCLUSIONS: For young baseball pitchers, guidelines for prevention of excessive pitching and for regulating the winter training program may be needed.
Baseball* ; Education ; Elbow* ; Humans ; Shoulder Pain ; Shoulder* ; Weather

We analyzed three-dimensional (3D) humeral deformity (valgus–varus, flexion–extension, and rotational deformation) after little leaguer's shoulder using 3D computed tomography in a 15-year-old male baseball player. Humeral retroversion was increased by 27.1° on the dominant side compared with the nondominant side. Compared with the nondominant shaft, the dominant humeral shaft was deformed in the varus direction (9.4°), resulting in a decreased neck–shaft angle (dominant side, 127.5°; nondominant side, 135.1°), and it was also deformed in the extension direction (21.0°). This case demonstrates that little leaguer's shoulder can cause markedly greater humeral retroversion than has been reported previously and can result in varus and extension deformation of the humerus. These findings suggest that humeral deformity in overhead throwing athletes may not always solely reflect adaptation to throwing.
Adolescent ; Athletes ; Baseball ; Congenital Abnormalities* ; Humans ; Humerus ; Male ; Shoulder*

Unfused olecranon epiphysis has been reported rarely. We found an unfused olecranon tip within joint and a few small spurs on the apposing olecranon fossa and removed it successfully through the arthroscope. We think that it is a part of secondary ossification center of the olecranon and tbat it was separated through the epiphyseal plate by repetitive impaction of the tip of the olecranon into the olecranon fossa during pitching. In conclusion, fusion of the intra-articular part(articular center) of the olecranon epiphysis can not occur by nature. Repetitive extension overload during pitching may cause symptoms, and could be treated with arthroscopic control.
Adult ; Arthroscopes ; Baseball ; Epiphyses ; Growth Plate ; Humans ; Joints ; Olecranon Process