QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF CORE MUSCULATURE DURING TWO TYPES OF BASEBALL PITCHES: FASTBALL AND CHANGE-UP

Abstract

Previous biomechanical studies have compared kinematic and kinetics of the fastball baseball pitch to the change-up, but there is yet to be a description of muscle activations between the two pitches. With the fastball being the most common baseball pitch and the change-up being the staple off-speed pitch, it is typical for a baseball pitcher to have these two pitches in his compilation of pitches. The change-up is thrown in attempt to mimic the fastball, however has a much lower velocity than the fastball. The intention of both pitches exhibiting the same delivery is an attempt to distract the batter. Therefore it was the purpose of this study to quantitatively analyze the core musculature attached to the pelvis during both the fastball and the change-up baseball pitches.