Citation

LaPrade CM, Cinque ME, Safran MR, Freehill MT, Wulf CA, LaPrade RF. Orthop. J. Sports Med. 2022; 10(7): e23259671221111169.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/23259671221111169

PMID

35898207

PMCID

PMC9310227

Abstract

Major league baseball (MLB) pitchers are at risk of numerous injuries during play, and there is an increasing focus on evaluating their performance in the context of injury. Historically, performance after return to play (RTP) from injury has focused on general descriptive statistics, such as innings or games played, or rate statistics with inherent variability (eg, earned run average, walks and hits per inning pitched, strikeouts per 9 innings, or walks per 9 innings). However, in recent years, MLB has incorporated advanced technology and tracking systems in every stadium, allowing for more in-depth analysis of pitcher-specific data that are captured with every pitch of every game. This technology allows for the ability to delve into the pitching performance on a basis that is more specific to each pitcher and allows for more in-depth analysis of different aspects of pitching performance. The purpose of this narrative review was to illustrate the current state of injury recording for professional baseball pitchers, highlight recent technological advances in MLB, and describe the advanced data available for analysis. We used advanced data in the literature to review the current state of performance analysis after RTP in MLB pitchers after injury. Finally, we strived to provide a framework for future studies to more meticulously assess RTP performance given the current available resources for analysis.

Language: en

Keywords

performance; baseball; pitching; throwing injuries