Abstract
Purpose
To assess the relationship between pitch velocity and throwing arm kinetics, injury,
and ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction(UCLr) among high school, collegiate,
and professional baseball pitchers.
Methods
The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled
Trials, PubMed(2008-2019), and OVID/MEDLINE(2008-2019) were queried for articles that
reported on pitch velocity predicting throwing arm kinetics, injury, or UCLr. The
Methodological Index for Non-randomized Studies checklist was used to evaluate the
quality of all included studies. Descriptive statistics with ranges were used to quantify
data where appropriate.
Results
A total of 24 studies examining 2,896 pitchers, with level of evidence II-V were included.
Intergroup analysis noted pitch velocity was significantly correlated with elbow varus
torque in high school(R
2
=0.36), collegiate(R
2
=0.29), and professional(R
2
=0.076) pitchers. Elbow distraction force was positively associated with ball velocity
in inter-pitcher analyses of high school(R
2
=0.373), professional(R
2
=0.175), and mixed cohort evaluations(R
2
=0.624). Intragroup analysis demonstrated a strong association between pitch velocity
and elbow varus torque(R
2
=0.922-0.957) and elbow distraction force(R
2
=0.910) in professional pitchers. Faster ball velocity was positively associated with
a history of throwing arm injury(R
2
=0.194) in non-adult pitchers. In two studies evaluating professionals, injured pitchers
had faster pitch velocity prior to injury compared to uninjured controls(p=0.014;
p=0.0354). The need for UCLr was positively correlated with pitch velocity(R
2
=0.036) in professional pitchers. The consequences of UCL reconstruction noted little
to no decrease in pitch velocity.Conclusions
Professional baseball pitchers with faster pitch velocity may be at the highest risk
of elbow injury and subsequent UCLr, potentially through the mechanism of increased
distractive forces on the medial elbow complex. When a pitcher ultimately undergoes
UCLr, decreases in pitching performance are unlikely, but may occur, which should
encourage pitchers to caution against maximizing pitch velocity.
Level of Evidence
Level IV, systematic review of Level II-IV studies
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
January 8,
2023
Received in revised form:
January 5,
2023
Received:
July 12,
2022
Publication stage
In Press Journal Pre-ProofFootnotes
Investigation performed at Hospital for Special Surgery
Identification
Copyright
© 2023 Published by Elsevier on behalf of the Arthroscopy Association of North America
