Funky Deliveries

All 30 MLB teams evaluate their athletes' biomechanics, especially when it comes to scouting amateurs.  

Although, what constitutes perfect biomechanics? 

I have no idea because biomechanics research does not have enough evidence to link biomechanics to injury. And despite the overwhelming information that shows biomechanical attributes in high-velocity pitchers (here's a recent article referencing key mechanics associated with high-velocity deliveries in high school and collegiate pitchers,) only one study to date created a connection between high joint torques on the elbow and injuries in a small sample of 23 pitchers (ref). No other research has concluded game biomechanics data and injury. 

I can also tell you that most of the injured athletes I have worked with in professional baseball have had high biomechanical grades and were in range for ideal movement patterns. 

Presently, the only clear underlying link for throwing arm injuries is fastball velocity (ref).  

What About the Inverted W?

Even more puzzling is that our view of the inverted-W position, where the throwing arm has the hand below the elbow at foot plant (hand below the 0-degree line in the illustration below), is not any more risky than pitching with your hand above the elbow at foot plant (ref). 

From personal experience researching physical and biomechanical qualities in injured professional pitchers from 2017-2020, not one single pitcher on the injured list delivered the baseball in an inverted-W position. 

In short, there is no means of delivery that is injury-proof, and actually, unique biomechanics can be a significant advantage for a pitcher.

Advantage of a Funky Delivery

As a hitter, I have always had a tough time with pitchers who have funky deliveries and can hide the ball for a long time before they reach their arm slot. 

I could hit over-the-top high-velocity pitchers all day long, but I ran into trouble the moment a slinger was in front of me and had the baseball hidden behind his back pocket.  

It should make sense that a ball is harder to hit if you can't see it coming out of the hand, or if it has irregular timing or a different look, but these unique mechanics are often "adjusted" because of a belief that athletes who throw with funky deliveries will get hurt.

In truth, pitchers injure their throwing arms because they are weak! This results in:

1. movement changes,
2. varying joint loads,
3. a struggle to maintain position,
4. muscles lose the ability to dampen tension on the tendons and ligaments.

In other words, in scouting, I would be more drawn to pitchers who have funky deliveries and high throwing arm strength than clean deliveries with weak throwing arm strength. Maybe it's time for scouting departments to initiate throwing arm strength testing to confirm this relationship before the amateur draft. 

In this week's podcast, we feature Carter Capps, an MLB pitcher turned coach who had one of the craziest deliveries in the history of baseball. 

Unique Perspective

Carter is a former MLB pitcher and has transcended his experience into coaching. He talks about his journey related to his mechanics and how he looks at pitching performance without imposing his mental model on how the ball should be thrown. 

Carter is unique as he has had to adapt his delivery many times before getting it right and has a firm grasp of how to arrive at the best solution and create buy-in with his athletes. Talking with him was like talking to a coach with 20 years of experience. He has an exciting career ahead of him.

In a nutshell, whether you are right-handed or left-handed, throwing over the top or sidearm, have a herky-jerky delivery, or move gracefully down the mound, only strength can save you from injury.

As most players and teams head into the pre-season, where is your own strength or your athletes' strength currently? If you don't know, I cannot stress it enough, STRENGTH MATTERS MOST, and you should find out before games start as most injuries occur within the first two months of play.  

Don't be a statistic, be terrific!

If you have any questions or want to chat about what you have just read, please email me at [email protected].

From a biomechanist who believes more in strength than mechanics – train hard and create the strongest arm you possibly can.  

Ryan