(from press release)

Contrary to common belief, softball pitching subjects the biceps to high forces and torques when the player’s arm swings around to release the ball, according to an analysis of muscle firing patterns conducted at Rush University Medical Center.

Published in the current issue of the American Journal of Sports Medicine, the study of the “windmill” pitching motion appears to explain the high incidence of anterior shoulder pain seen in female softball players.

“The conventional belief has been that the underhand throwing motion of softball places little stress on the arm,” said Dr. Nikhil Verma, lead author and a specialist in sports medicine at Rush. “But that is not the case.”

In the study, seven women – three collegiate and four professional pitchers – underwent motion analysis and surface electromyography to evaluate the muscle firing pattern of their biceps in the course of a windmill pitch. Electromyography detects electrical potential generated by muscle cells when they contract.

The researchers found that even though the upper arm movement in both baseball and fast-pitch softball gives the ball about the same velocity, muscle force during the windmill pitch was much higher.

Moreover, the maximum force, or maximum contraction, occurred not when the arm was cocked, as in baseball’s overhand pitching, but when the arm circled around from the 9 o’clock position, almost fully extended back, to the 6 o’clock position, perpendicular with the ground, completing its windmill motion to release the ball. Consequently, the biceps took the majority of the stress, not the elbow.

“The greatest impact is on the biceps, as the muscle first accelerates the arm and then puts on the brakes, after transferring force to the ball,” Verma said.

Fast-pitch softball is one of the most popular female athlete team sports in America. In 2008, roughly 2.5 million adolescents competed in the game, and about 1.3 million players were registered with the Amateur Softball Association.

Despite the game’s immense popularity at the high school and collegiate levels, Verma said, there is a dearth of sports medicine research on the game’s most notable activity: the windmill pitch. Many have assumed that injury is rare with the underhand throw.

Verma launched his study in Rush’s human motion laboratory when he found that female softball players from the local professional team were coming into his practice complaining of pain in the front of their shoulders. He was able to localize the pain to the biceps tendon. In one case, a pitcher had ruptured her tendon during play, which implicated the long head of the biceps tendon as the source of stress.

The study findings correlated with these clinical observations.

According to Verma, female softball pitchers are prone to overuse injury not only because of windmill pitching dynamics, but also because they pitch so many games.

“Competitive female pitchers often pitch in every game during a weekend tournament – the equivalent of 1,200 to 1,500 pitches in as little as three days.” Verma said. “This is the opposite of the baseball world, where pitchers receive three to four days of rest before returning to the mound.”

“Previous studies have shown that shoulder problems cause a significant amount of lost game time among windmill pitchers, with anterior shoulder pain being the common culprit,” Verma added. “This study helps explain the etiology of that shoulder pain, and may help doctors devise better treatment and prevention strategies.”

(from press release)

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will welcome five Hall of Fame members to headline the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame Classic on Sunday, June 21, 2009, at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, New York.

The first-ever Classic Weekend will feature Hall of Famers Bob Feller, Ferguson Jenkins, Paul Molitor, Phil Niekro and Brooks Robinson, along with 20 other former Major League stars in a seven-inning exhibition game, with first pitch slated for 2 p.m. on Father’s Day. The game will be preceded by the Cooperstown Game Day Parade at noon and a hitting contest featuring several former Major Leaguers at 1 p.m.

Tickets for the Classic are $12.50 for first- and third-base seats and $11 for outfield seats. Tickets will first be made available on Saturday, April 18, with a one-day sale at the Museum, beginning at 10 a.m. Approximately 2,500 tickets will be made available during this one-day, in-person sale.

Concurrently on Saturday, April 18, Museum Members may purchase tickets over the phone from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. by calling a special number active only for this sale: 1-866-849-7770. All callers to this phone number must be Museum Members prior to April 18, as day-of-membership sales will not be permitted for the purpose of purchasing tickets on this date. Members must provide their membership number at the time of their call. Tickets purchased by phone are subject to a $3.50 handling fee per ticket. A six-ticket maximum per active membership will apply. Members will have an exclusive opportunity to buy tickets by phone through Sunday, April 26, though sales are subject to availability. Any remaining tickets on Monday, April 27, will be made available by phone to the general public.

Among the 20 other recently retired players already committed to participate in the Classic include former Major League stars George Foster, Bill Lee, Steve Rogers and Lee Smith. Additional participants will be announced throughout the spring. Following the game, children 12 and under will be permitted to run the bases at Doubleday Field.

For more information on Hall of Fame Classic Weekend events, call 1-888-Hall-of-Fame.

(from press release)

A group of devout baseball fans has started “Baseball Fans Give Back” — a social initiative to respond to the steroids scandal that has tainted Major League Baseball.

Determined to see a positive outcome in an otherwise negative situation, the group is encouraging people to stay away from big league baseball for one day, but asking them to take a portion of the money or time they were going to spend on the game that day and give it back to their community instead.

“Baseball Fans Give Back” is asking people to boycott the game on April 17th, the date that Roberto Clemente made his big league debut in 1954. Specifically the group has petitioned fans to take any of the following four actions:

1. Refuse to go to one of the 15 big league baseball games on April 17th.
2. Refuse to watch the television broadcasts of one of the 15 big league baseball games on April 17th.
3. Pledge to spend three hours giving back to your community by volunteering on April 17th, the average length of a big league baseball game.
4. Pledge to donate $13 to a charity or other non-profit organization, half of the average cost of a big league baseball ticket.

Fans can sign-up on the group’s web site, www.baseballfansgiveback.com. The group is not a charity, so they provide recommend charities they would like people to consider when deciding where their donation will go. They have also collaborated with VolunteerMatch.org to connect people with rewarding volunteer opportunities in their area.

Lucas Swineford, Founder of Baseball Fans Give Back, said, “We want to inspire people who, like us, are frustrated. For one day, we can come together as baseball fans to make a positive impact on our communities. Then we can all go back to watching the game we love the very next day.”

(from press release)

Take a pitch from HOF ’91 pitcher Fergie Jenkins. Hit a single off Rollie Fingers HOF ’92. Swing at a fast ball from Juan Marichal HOF ’83. Catch a fly ball off Harmon Killebrew, HOF ’84.  Strike out against strikeout leader, Bob Feller HOF ’62.

Get some hints from honorary team managers Bobby Bell (Football HOF ‘80) and Meadowlark Lemon (Basketball HOF ’77). And hang out on field and on the bench with All-Stars Glen Beckert, Gary Bell, Vida Blue, Byron Browne, Bernie Carbo, Jody Davis, Tommy Davis, Bob Dernier, George Foster, Randy Hundley, Tommy John, Dave Kingman, Pate Lacock, Rick Miller, Amos Otis, Milt Pappas, Ron Robinson, Lee Smith, Luis Tiant, Steve Trout, and Jon Warden.

It’s a baseball fan’s dream come true!!!

Catch the excitement of spring training and join the starting line up of the Arizona All-Stars for the 2nd annual “Fergie & Friends” Celebrity Baseball Game for charity at Mesa HoHoKam Stadium (1235 N. Center Street, Mesa, AZ 85201) on Wednesday March 25th. Game time is 7:10 pm. Locker room check-in is at 3:30 pm.

The cost to play is just a $2,500 donation to charity. Your package will include VIP preferred seating tickets and an on-field meet & greet for 12; General Admission tickets for 50; an autograph package with a variety of memorabilia and an Arizona All Star Jersey for you to wear in the game. Your company will receive a quarter page ad in the Fergie & Friends Event Guide, PA and Scoreboard Message. (Note: If you’d like to share the excitement but don’t want to play in the game, join us as an honorary manager or bat boy/girl.)

For information, please contact FieldWorks Events & Marketing Inc. at (480) 609-3978 or email info@fieldworksevents.com. For more about the game, see www.fergieandfriends.com.

Proceeds support the Ferguson Jenkins and the Mesa HoHoKam Foundations.

About the Mesa HoHoKams:

The HoHoKams are synonymous with the Chicago Cubs, with their founder Dwight Patterson playing an instrumental role in attracting the Cubs to Mesa for their annual spring training – a tradition that is now in its 57th year! Mesa HoHoKam Stadium is the winter home of the Cubs, hosting over 175,000 avid Cubs fans to spring training games during the month of March.

About Ferguson Jenkins:

Ferguson Jenkins (“Fergie”) too has a long history with the Cubs, with his first All-Star season as a starting pitcher the year after the Cubs drafted him as a reliever in 1966. Fergie set a Cubs record with 274 strikeouts in 1970 and was the first Chicago Cub to win the NL Cy Young Memorial Award, leading the NL with 24 wins, 30 complete games, 325 innings and a 2.77 ERA. Fergie ended his long, successful career as a Chicago Cub, retiring in 1983 after a record six consecutive 20-game winning seasons. Fergie was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991, truly one of the Cubs’ (and baseball’s) greats!

Since his retirement, Fergie has focused his energy on helping others, establishing the Ferguson Jenkins Foundation and raising thousands to support charities like the Red Cross, Special Olympics, and a variety of local charities, including several in Mesa.

Mel Ott (born March 2, 1909)
John Ward (born March 3, 1860)
Willie Keeler (born March 3, 1872)
Dazzy Vance (born March 4, 1891)
Sam Thompson (born March 5, 1860)
Lefty Grove (born March 6, 1900)
Willie Stargell (born March 6, 1940)
Billy Southworth (born March 9, 1893)
Arky Vaughan (born March 9, 1912)
Frank Baker (born March 13, 1886)
Kirby Puckett (born March 14, 1960)
Lloyd Waner (born March 16, 1906)
Jose Mendez (born March 19, 1887)
Richie Ashburn (born March 19, 1927)
Joe McGinnity (born March 20, 1871)
George Sisler (born March 24, 1893)
Miller Huggins (born March 27, 1878)
Effa Manley (born March 27, 1900)
Cy Young (born March 29, 1867)
Mule Suttles (born March 31, 1900)