Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) on X: When we see so many up and coming MLB pitchers with fewer than 200 innings in the minors, lots of muscle mass, underworked baby ligaments and a team demanding max velo on everything they throw, we’re seeing the perfect lethal combination for arm injury
April 10, 2024
Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) on X: When we see so many up and coming MLB pitchers with fewer than 200 innings in the minors, lots of muscle mass, underworked baby ligaments and a team demanding max velo on everything they throw, we’re seeing the perfect lethal combination for arm injury
11 comments
“Baby ligaments” 😂
Teams demand max velo/spin because pitchers can’t thrive with anything less. Deadening the ball might be the only way out of this.
Pitchers either need to adjust and go back to throwing hard but not trying to hit 100 on every pitch or they need to get used to injuries being common.
Daddy is right
Kids start trying to throw max spin/velo too young, before they develop the right kind of arm strength to withstand it. You’re seeing HS juniors need TJ. That wasn’t true 20 years ago.
Preach Pedro!
And all the velocity truthers need to watch Pedro mow down the 1999 Indians – a historically great offense – for 6 no-hit innings while maxing out at 90 mph.
Pitchers who do not take the time to contemplate life under the mango tree will suffer.
It is known.
BABY LIGAMENTS
BuT tHe PiTcHcLoCk AnD tHeY tOoK aWaY oUr SpIdEr GrIp
I think there’s a goldilocks zone in there somewhere. Stuff like fine-tuning pitch grips and spin rate and efficiency is great imo.
It just gets muddy when we train pitchers to be someone they’re not. If you’re not a “natural candidate” to throw 95+ like Aroldis Chapman, maybe you shouldn’t. But Koji threw one of the most deceptive four-seamers ever and he topped out at 91-92. There needs to be a shift from teaching to throw, to teaching to *pitch*.
Unfortunately data shows as velocity increases, pitches, including breaking balls, get harder to hit. The only way to throw harder is to throw harder. And for most guys it’s probably harder than god intended. If a guy throws hard, great, nurture that. If he doesn’t, we can’t just default to 110% effort on weighted balls and pull downs until he can.
Tread Athletics is a great example. Some videos, they adjust a guy’s finger by 1mm on his changeup grip and it moves a mile. Others, they tell the guy “you’ve got five more pitches, let’s try to hit 93”.
It’s shocking how bad the injuries have gotten as modern technology and medicine has improved. Obviously the rules and limitations are not helping.
11 comments
“Baby ligaments” 😂
Teams demand max velo/spin because pitchers can’t thrive with anything less. Deadening the ball might be the only way out of this.
Pitchers either need to adjust and go back to throwing hard but not trying to hit 100 on every pitch or they need to get used to injuries being common.
Daddy is right
Kids start trying to throw max spin/velo too young, before they develop the right kind of arm strength to withstand it. You’re seeing HS juniors need TJ. That wasn’t true 20 years ago.
Preach Pedro!
And all the velocity truthers need to watch Pedro mow down the 1999 Indians – a historically great offense – for 6 no-hit innings while maxing out at 90 mph.
Pitchers who do not take the time to contemplate life under the mango tree will suffer.
It is known.
BABY LIGAMENTS
BuT tHe PiTcHcLoCk AnD tHeY tOoK aWaY oUr SpIdEr GrIp
I think there’s a goldilocks zone in there somewhere. Stuff like fine-tuning pitch grips and spin rate and efficiency is great imo.
It just gets muddy when we train pitchers to be someone they’re not. If you’re not a “natural candidate” to throw 95+ like Aroldis Chapman, maybe you shouldn’t. But Koji threw one of the most deceptive four-seamers ever and he topped out at 91-92. There needs to be a shift from teaching to throw, to teaching to *pitch*.
Unfortunately data shows as velocity increases, pitches, including breaking balls, get harder to hit. The only way to throw harder is to throw harder. And for most guys it’s probably harder than god intended. If a guy throws hard, great, nurture that. If he doesn’t, we can’t just default to 110% effort on weighted balls and pull downs until he can.
Tread Athletics is a great example. Some videos, they adjust a guy’s finger by 1mm on his changeup grip and it moves a mile. Others, they tell the guy “you’ve got five more pitches, let’s try to hit 93”.
It’s shocking how bad the injuries have gotten as modern technology and medicine has improved. Obviously the rules and limitations are not helping.