Upper Extremity and Hip Range of Motion Changes Throughout a Season in Professional Baseball Players

Justin M Chan; John Zajac; Brandon J Erickson; David W Altchek; Christopher Camp; Struan H Coleman; Joshua S Dines

doi:10.1177/0363546519894567

Upper Extremity and Hip Range of Motion Changes Throughout a Season in Professional Baseball Players

Am J Sports Med. 2020 Feb;48(2):481-487. doi: 10.1177/0363546519894567. Epub 2019 Dec 31.

Authors

Justin M Chan¹, John Zajac², Brandon J Erickson^{2

3}, David W Altchek¹, Christopher Camp⁴, Struan H Coleman¹, Joshua S Dines¹

Affiliations

¹ Division of Sports and Shoulder, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York, USA.
² New York Mets Baseball Organization, Citi Field, Queens, New York, USA.
³ Shoulder & Elbow/Sports Medicine Division, Rothman Orthopaedic Institute, New York, New York, USA.
⁴ Sports Medicine Division, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.

PMID: 31891517
DOI: 10.1177/0363546519894567

Abstract

Background: Loss of upper and lower extremity range of motion (ROM) is a significant risk factor for injuries in professional baseball players.

Purpose/hypothesis: The purpose was to determine changes in ROM in professional baseball players over the course of a single season and their careers. We hypothesized that pitchers and position players would lose ROM, specifically total shoulder motion (total ROM [TROM]) and hip internal rotation (IR), over the course of a season and their careers.

Study design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods: Upper and lower extremity ROM measurements were recorded during pre-, mid-, and postseason on all professional baseball players for a single organization between 2011 and 2018. ROM measurements were compared for pitchers and position players over the course of the season and their careers. Also, ROM measurements over the pre-, mid-, and postseason were compared between pitchers and position players.

Results: A total of 166 professional baseball players (98 pitchers, 68 position players) were included. Pitcher hip external rotation (ER; P < .001), IR (P = .010), and TROM (P < .001) for lead and trail legs decreased over the course of the season. Pitcher shoulder ER (P = .005), TROM (P = .042), and horizontal adduction (P < .001) significantly increased over the course of the season. Position player shoulder flexion (P = .046), hip ER (P < .001, lead leg; P < .001, trail leg), and hip TROM (P = .001; P = .002) decreased over the course of the season. Position player shoulder ER (P = .031) and humeral adduction (P < .001) significantly increased over the course of the season. Over the course of pitchers' careers, there was decreased shoulder IR (P = .014), increased shoulder horizontal adduction (P < .001), and hip IR (P = .042) and hip TROM (P = .027) for the lead leg. Position players experienced loss of hip TROM (P = .010, lead leg; P = .018, trail leg) over the course of their careers. Pitchers started with and maintained more shoulder ER and gained more shoulder TROM over a season as compared with position players.

Conclusion: Pitchers and position players saw overall decreases in hip ROM but increases in shoulder ROM over the course of the season and career.

Keywords: baseball; elbow; hip; injury prevention; range of motion (ROM); shoulder.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Baseball / physiology*
Humans
Lower Extremity / physiology*
Range of Motion, Articular
Risk Factors
Rotation
Seasons
Shoulder Joint / physiology*