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We’ve proven that whereas pitchers (502 injured checklist stints in 2023) get harm extra typically than hitters (355 instances on the IL), additionally they get harm worse. Hitters spent 13,142 days on the injured checklist final yr. Pitchers misplaced 32,107 days. Pitchers bought harm 41% extra typically however spent 144% extra days rehabbing. Put one other method, pitchers accounted for 59% of injured checklist stints however 71% of days spent on the IL.
That’s in line with John Wholestaff’s Valentine’s Day article on pitcher accidents. (Sure, he’s an actual pitcher. Sure, that’s a pseudonym, clearly. No, we don’t know who he’s, don’t ask.) His level was that pitchers get harm loads primarily as a result of, in his phrases, “The act of pitching is insanely hectic on the physique, and anybody who performs it for any vital period of time is sure to get harm ultimately.” That’s a ringing endorsement for the vocation, huh?
He goes on to dispel the straightforward explanations some individuals cite for the uptick in pitcher accidents: Pitchers not utilizing their legs sufficient, throwing too laborious, and so forth. It is best to learn the article for those who haven’t already. The hyperlink’s within the prior paragraph. He lays out a persuasive case.
Essentially the most controversial assertion within the article, although, is that this one:
Now, if I have been in command of making selections at Main League Baseball, and I have been conscious of the truth that pitching could be very hectic and that muscle tissues don’t work fairly so nicely after they don’t have sufficient time to recuperate, I’d most definitely put a pitch clock in place. That’s, after all, if I have been being bribed closely by Large Orthopedic Surgical procedure. It isn’t but clear how a lot this specific piece of the puzzle is contributing to the upper damage price this yr, however it’s definitely contributing.
We are able to’t actually take a look at this. We are able to’t replay the 2023 season with no pitch clock and see if the damage counts are totally different, or if the accidents are much less extreme. We are able to solely take a look at what occurred in 2023 and evaluate it to prior years (whereas admitting that one season isn’t sufficient of a pattern). If accidents are up—or down—we are able to’t definitively level to the pitch clock. Correlation isn’t causation, as they are saying.
