For professional baseball players, injuries are a real part of life. In fact, there were over 424 placements on the injured list in the 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) season alone. Depending on their severity, injuries can drastically affect an athlete’s health, career, and mental well-being.
As leading suppliers of sports radar guns and training equipment, we discuss the four most frequently seen injuries among baseball players and how to treat them. Awareness of these conditions can help your team avoid burnout and maintain peak form.
Muscle strains
Hitting, pitching, running, and throwing are all intense motions that require explosive power from muscle groups. When muscles are overstretched or used, strains may occur.
Commonly strained muscles among baseball players include the quadriceps, oblique abdominals, calves, and hamstrings. Depending on the severity of the injury, symptoms include swelling, bruising, spasms, and inflammation in the injured area.
Surgery is rarely needed unless the muscle is severely torn. For minor strains, treatment typically involves sufficient rest, physical therapy, muscle compression, and anti-inflammatory medications. Recovery time varies, but if the process gets rushed, the risk of future strains increases.
Rotator cuff tears
The rotator cuff is a network of joints and muscles that firmly connects the head of your upper arm bone to your shoulder. Repetitive shoulder movements, such as baseball pitching, can cause rotator cuff tendons to fray and tear over time.
A tear can cause extreme pain in the shoulder and crackling sensations in the arm. It can also make certain arm movements, including lifting and lowering, extra difficult.
Healing of rotator cuff tears takes time. Surgery and therapy are often required to restore full strength and function in the shoulder. Without proper care, this condition can develop into severe tendonitis, often requiring a rest period between a few weeks to several months.
Ulnar Collateral Ligament (UCL) injury
Located on the inner side of the elbow, the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) secures the upper arm to the inside of the forearm. Repetitive use or physical impact to the elbow joint can cause stress in the UCL.
Torn or damaged UCL can trigger soreness and tightness along the inner elbow. The athlete may find difficulty straightening their arm and grip strength may be reduced. In some cases, a UCL injury can trigger possible bruising along the arm and tingling or numbness in the fingers.
UCL injuries can be treated with non-surgical methods, but if joint instability continues, surgery may be required. Athletes generally need 12 to 14 months of recovery time after UCL reconstruction.
Head injuries
In baseball, concussions occur when players collide, get hit by a ball or bat, or run into walls, fences, and backstops. Such traumatic head injuries can result in fatal skull fractures and bleeding in the brain.
Symptoms may include chronic headaches, dizziness, disorientation, memory loss, nausea, and sleep disturbances. Signs of a concussion usually appear immediately after injury. In some cases, symptoms only develop after a few weeks.
Reduce injury with quality training gear
Keeping your team in top shape starts with investing in the right training gear. Here at Radar Sports, LLC, we offer high-quality Phantom Sports Pro radar guns to help you improve performance and lower the risk of injury and fatigue. Contact us today to get the best training equipment for your team.