Seven Tips to Protect the Arms, Knees and Careers of Young Catchers

There is a great demand for willing and talented catchers, and many great demands are placed especially on the shoulders, elbows, and knees of those who toil behind the plate.

From bullpen warm-ups to bunt defense to gunning out runners at second or third, catchers are a focal point of both practices and games.

All while doing the routine return throwing of the ball to the pitcher with most of this work done in the squat position with foul balls coming right at them.

In all, no player makes more total throws than a catcher.

Yes, the majority of those are fairly easy tosses back to the pitcher.

However, there are those harder pick-offs or throws to catch steals that only add to the cumulative stress.

And when pitchers get tired, they get replaced- unlike the catcher who tends to stay out there even for both ends of a doubleheader.

While there are pitch count limits and required rest days for pitchers, the only such formal guidelines placed on catchers are by Little League Baseball which mandates that any player who throws more than 41 pitches in a game cannot move to catcher in the same game.

So what other guidelines can help protect the overall health and longevity of catchers?

1. Have catchers alternate standing and being in the squat position with return tosses to the pitcher.

• Throwing from the squat is quicker and looks pretty cool, but the lack of lower body involvement in the throw places more stress on the shoulder. Coming out of the squat not only gets the legs involved in the throw but also reduces lower leg cramping.

2. Have catchers sit on a bucket for practice and bullpen sessions- allows them to give a consistent target while putting less deep squat-induced pressure on the lower legs. The "knee saver" products are designed in theory to similarly reduce deep knee bending in the squat position.

3. Try to limit unnecessary throwing during practices or bullpen sessions. Let catchers roll balls back or drop them in a bucket- less throwing means less overall stress and likely better throws when they matter.

4. Have a regular rotation of catchers. While inning counts or throw counts like for pitchers do not exist, monitor catchers for signs of fatigue such as slower to come out of squat, weaker throws back to pitchers or to bases, and giving a lower target due to shoulder fatigue. Better even to plan ahead with catcher substitutions rather than waiting for more obvious signs of overload.

5. Select sensible alternate positions- first base is attractive as there is a limited throw demand which then allows some arm rest, and also takes advantage of the fact that most catchers are taller and used to providing good targets for balls coming at them.

6. Caution with the pitcher-catcher combination that results in too many throws and increases the risk of injury.

7. Limit seasonal or annual arm overuse. Catchers playing for more than one team or not taking at least 2-3 months a year off from throwing are at higher risk of shoulder or elbow injuries.

When Can Kids Throw a Curveball?

Want to ignite baseball passions perhaps even more than a Yankee-Red Sox or Dodger-Giant rivalry?

Ask the question “When should young pitchers throw a curveball?” and then stand back.

The basic concern is that the still developing bone and soft tissue structures in the shoulder and elbow may not be able to adequately handle the rotational forces needed to throw a curveball. A wicked curveball thrown early in a career could potentially lead to wicked damage and early termination of said pitching career.

Do scientific studies and articles offer any substantial help?

The USA Baseball Medical and Safety Advisory Committee has the recommendation that a curveball should not be thrown until age 14, with only fastballs and change-ups thrown before this age.

Why age 14? Most likely because most pitchers at this age have nearly full if not complete maturity of growth centers around the elbow and shoulder and thus these joints can better handle the forces of throwing a curveball.

• Now, not every child develops at the same point, and in pediatrics we are often trained not to use an absolute age to determine maturity, but rather to use certain milestone to better gauge individual development.
• A pretty solid (and simple) recommendation that maintain this spirit comes from a Major League team physician who states “Don’t throw breaking pitches until you nave shaved".
• The age or development-based recommendations are primarily based on baseball expert opinion and have no significant evidence-based supporting data.

On the other hand, a systemic review of published studies by Grantham et. al in Sports Health concluded that limited biomechanical and most epidemiologic data do not indicate an increased risk of injury when compared with the fastball in pitchers from Little League through professional ranks.

• The epidemiologic evidence to support limitations on the curveball is lacking rigor in study design
• The current biomechanical evidence (kinematic and kinetic analysis of the torso, shoulder, elbow and wrist) does not support limiting the use of curveballs at any level of baseball

         However, before one rushes off to the local diamond to teach the curveball to young throwers, I must share some other important conclusions:

• A young pitcher has a wicked curveball very likely will be perceived as a better pitcher and thus be asked to throw more often, leading to higher pitch counts which have been shown to contribute to  arm overuse injuries.

o   In my experience, anything that makes a young pitcher stand out (taller than peers, good control, stronger fastball) put more pressure on coaches and families to protect those talents and not let them be overused at too young an age.

• The “over the top” wrist snap motion routinely used to increase curveball spin may overload certain forearm supinator muscles, so training these muscle groups along with the shoulder rotator cuff muscles for the curveball.

o   Share this opinion, and would also recommend addressing any limitations in shoulder internal rotation range of motion that can also overload the elbow and wrist regions.

•  Do not underestimate the often unsung virtues of the change-up pitch. The authors found two studies found that throwing a changeup pitch reduced the incidence of elbow and/or shoulder pain and voiced support for USA Baseball’s recommendations to use the change-up to prevent arm injuries.

My bottom line: use stage of development, not simple a specific age, to help determine when a child is ready to throw the curveball. Realize that a good curveball sets a kid up for being asked to pitch more frequently, which can lead to overuse. Assessing shoulder, elbow, and arm strength and range of motion can reduce risk of injury when throwing a curveball.

Identifying and Preventing Arm Injuries in Youth Baseball Players Video

Thanks to colleagues at Intecore Physical Therapy for filming this video on Youth Arm Injury Prevention that has been distributed and shared with several local Little League groups.