A THREE-DIMENSIONAL CINEMATOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS OF THE BASEBALL PITCH

Abstract

Pitching is one of the most important aspects of the game of baseball. However, only a small number of quantitative biomechanical studies have been reported (Feltner & Dapena, 1986). Specifically, there have been few studies of the motion of the forearm and wrist joints during a pitching action. The purpose of this study is to record the changes in angles and angular velocities of the shoulder, elbow, radioulnar and wrist joints during a baseball pitch. In this study, three dimensional (3-D) high-speed cinematography was used to record the fastball pitches of varsity baseball pitchers.