QUANTIFYING sEMG IN PRE-FATIGUE AND FATIGUE STATES DURING THE FASTBALL BASEBALL PITCH

Abstract

Injuries to baseball pitchers typically occur as a result of constant repetitive overuse. In attempt to eventually prevent overhead throwing overuse injuries, it is important that the biomechanics and muscle activations are understood. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe upper and lower extremity muscle activations involved in the pitching motion while in a pre-fatigue and fatigued state. Fourteen male pitchers volunteered to participate in the study. Participants were analyzed with surface electromyography and motion analysis software. The muscle firing patterns were described during the phases of the baseball pitch while in a pre-fatigued and fatigued state.