| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Learnpatience |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 08:23:07
Is it me or are we seeing a lot more sore arms this year? Any idea why this is happening? |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| greglomax |
Posted - 03/19/2009 : 09:18:46
Don't get me wrong, I much prefer the two seam movement and the art of the change-up. I think people get sucked into the curve ball because it is "Flashy".
I do see way too many of them being thrown also. Especially at the younger ages.
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| Strike 2 |
Posted - 03/18/2009 : 23:10:06
greglomax,
I have personal experience with a former minor league pitcher teaching his son(s) the "safe" curve ball, only to see both of his sons, one 12U and one middle school 14U have to sit out three months with elbow problems. While I do agree that there may be a curve ball that can be taught that is less strenuous on the elbow, I think that less than 1% of kids under puberty are able, and can be taught to throw it correctly. Well, they may be taught correctly, but something goes wrong in the end. Too much of a risk. 2 seams and changeups so much better...especially for the leftys. Good luck this weekend! |
| BBall123 |
Posted - 03/18/2009 : 12:43:35
This was from an earlier thread but explains the curve ball controversy very well;;;
Did anyone see the news this morning? Resurgens Orthopedic and the Braves have gotten together and made a free DVD about youth pitching.
Smoltz and Glavine and the Braves head trainer were on the news talking about it and both those guys did NOT throw a breaking ball till high school. And the trainer said that many of the arm injuries that they deal with today were caused when the guy was under 13 years old from kids throwing breaking balls.
They flat out said ITS WRONG DONT DO IT TO YOUR KID!
the rule is ,
if you are to young too shave you are too young to throw junk!
wake up people! if you are allowing it to happen you are wrong! |
| greglomax |
Posted - 03/18/2009 : 11:33:50
Strike 2,
The unsafe curve ball is the one that is thrown incorrectly. Unfortunately, I see a lot of kids throwing it incorrectly.
At 13, and especially in 14U tournaments, flat is "Fat" to the batters. Your pitches have to have some level of movement on them. That may mean you have to develop a 2 seam fastball that will move and definately means you have to develop a change-up that moves. Otherwise you end up throwing batting practice. A tight, late biting, curveball is a very good pitch if thrown correctly. But it goes back to whether pitchers are throwing it right or not. |
| HITANDRUN |
Posted - 03/18/2009 : 07:10:26
Counting pitches is a great start but think about all the throws a player makes during warmups, infield, practice, after pitching moving to SS or outfield, even between innings. They are still throwing and most kids don't know how to hold back, they let it go full speed every time. It is tough to run a defensive practice without throwing. Big difference between a sore arm and an injured arm also. Think about it 30 to 40 warmup throws before the game. 10 Throws between innings for 5 innings maybe 6 (outfield) less for infield but harder throws, in a tournament if you play 2 games thats atleast 80-100 throws a game. |
| Strike 2 |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 23:44:25
The "safe" curve is non-existent. There is no such thing as a "safe" curve. I do not know which age is safe, but my lefty will not throw a curve until he is in high school...if he has more hair on his chest than I do. Dangerous grounds in my opinion. What is the need to throw a wrinkle? Work on the change which is a great pitch IMHO. |
| DecaturDad |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 21:55:31
I watched a 9U throw 80 pitches in a game this weekend. And that was in the rain with temps in the 40's. Sure they won the game, but was it worth it?
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| baseball 13 |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 21:41:57
when i was 13yrs old i completely seperated my growth plate in my elbow. i was lucky not to have surgery, but i still had to wear a cast. i think my injury was from bad mechanics and not taking proper care of my arm. i see kids at 11yrs old now already throwing curveballs. the parents say that it is a "safe" curve. ive heard that there is ways to throw curveballs without hurting ur arm. i would make sure u are throwing it properly if u are. |
| Outlaw |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 16:10:47
On my team, pitchers arm's are top priority. We have always limited the number of pitches thrown. We have always stressed correct mechanics at each age. A pitcher is removed when he reaches his maximum amount of pitches regardless of win or loss. With that said, sore arms and injuries are a problem this year. We have had very little time on the dirt. Weather has kept us out of every tournament so far except the Slugfest. Too much baseball, throwing etc. is not the cause. We will play the 13U NIT with 9 most of the weekend. We have no choice. The only answer I know is rest. I do believe 13 year olds growing so fast is most of our problem. |
| baseball37 |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 13:09:26
quote:
Originally posted by greglomax
The other thing that we fail to keep up with is how much they throw "Stuff" not related to baseball.
My son's arm got sore when we started the 11U season and we were trying to determine exactly why. Turns out he was throwing whiffle balls to his sister in the front yard at home, in addition to the pitching and fielding practices we were doing getting ready for the season.
The same thing can happen with throwing rocks in the pond, or anything.
Kids are active at this age. The hardest thing to keep in mind during practice is that every throw from RF to 3B does not have to be at game speed.
Too much baseball these days at the early ages. There is no reason for these young boys to be playing baseball year round. Their bodies, and especially their arms need time off. Time away from the wear and tear of throwing a baseball. |
| greglomax |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 12:03:16
The other thing that we fail to keep up with is how much they throw "Stuff" not related to baseball.
My son's arm got sore when we started the 11U season and we were trying to determine exactly why. Turns out he was throwing whiffle balls to his sister in the front yard at home, in addition to the pitching and fielding practices we were doing getting ready for the season.
The same thing can happen with throwing rocks in the pond, or anything.
Kids are active at this age. The hardest thing to keep in mind during practice is that every throw from RF to 3B does not have to be at game speed. |
| goyard |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 11:36:56
Was at the batting cages last night speaking to a friend in the baseball community and learned of two kids in the 13/14U age range that have had recent arm surgeries - one of which I know and both of whom my son knows. Pretty crazy. One thing for sure is that we are ALL seeing an abundance of offspeed pitches these days and of many different styles. Some kids cushion there arm near the end of the pitch with their body side and some do not. How many curve balls are too many ...if any???? Huge controversy on this subject and my son also pitches in his number of positions of play. I know many say that they only work the seams and do not flick the wrist or snap the arm but darned if I don't see differently while observing. So, at 13U now....kids can hit the dickens out of a fastball and the bats catch up to the speed. Hitters have learned to sit back on a change up and drive it oppo, etc. More and more I see the reliance at this age on Curves, slurves and sliders....what is safe and how many, if any should be thrown? Take into consideration that I am of the understanding that other mechanics work into play and amplify the risk as well. |
| baseballpapa |
Posted - 03/17/2009 : 10:37:50
The Coach from the 10U Albany Stixx posted that they were missing the Super NIT due to three pitchers with sore arms. I think we might be thinking of innings pitched or pitches thrown in a game and forgetting all of the long toss, pitching on the side, pitching at practice and even throwing the ball from the catchers position or outfield. In other words these young arms might be getting too much work. Coaches, Do all you can to make sure that the boys are being treated right when it comes to this. |
