- According to a 2023 study, of 261 youth and high school pitchers, 25% experienced an arm injury. That's up 20% from a 2012 study.
- A local health expert in our neighborhoods says leading factors in rising numbers include demand for increased velocity, lack of rest, and sports specialization.
- Video shows one coach in our neighborhoods giving his perspective on those factors, and what can be done about the rising numbers.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
I'm your Neighborhood Reporter Colin Jankowski. Here in Lansing and in Detroit, baseball is back. But in the first few weeks of the professional season, we've already seen some major high-profile elbow injuries.
I wanted to see if those types of injuries have happened at the high school level here in our neighborhoods, and how your kids can try and avoid them.
According to a 2023 study published in the Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery, of 261 youth and high school pitchers followed over their careers, 25% experienced an arm injury. Up from 5% from a 2012 study published in sports health.
I spoke with MSU Athletics Physician Toufic Jildeh, a specialist in joint preservation, who says leading factors in rising injury numbers include demand for increased velocity, lack of rest, and sports specialization.
"It always has happened, it always has been there, it will always be a thing," Joe McDonald said. "We're just seeing an increase in it now at all ages."
Joe McDonald is the owner of Capital City Baseball Kingdom—an indoor baseball training facility in Lansing. He says he's seen the demand for velocity increase within the last decade.
"Now instead of having a guy or two in the league that can get it up to 100, we've got four or five guys on each roster that can," McDonald said. "So I think we're pushing our bodies to the limit."
McDonald says measures like the MHSAA's pitch count rule, established in 2017 to help prevent overuse of athletes, are a step in the right direction, but an emphasis on rest and playing other sports in school can help players avoid overuse and injures.
"I think a big thing too is to stress to our parents, especially at younger ages, it's good to play multiple sports and to be active in other aspects and take breaks from it," he said. "This is not something the big leaguers do on a year-round basis. They still have shutdown times and rest periods in their own sport."
As a coach himself, McDonald knows that sometimes winning can be the biggest concern, but he says coaches ultimately have to put the health and development of their young athletes first, and know when it's time to take them off the mound.
"You've got to put the interest of the kids forefront, and you want to make them better for the future rather than worry as much about winning that game or winning that tournament," McDonald said.
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