Differences between bullpen and game baseball pitching biomechanics

Pitches made during a game are highly monitored and regulated in all levels of baseball with no attention made to any other throws, especially in the bullpen. Assumptions have been made that bullpen throws are not as stressful as in game pitches and do not need to be monitored; however, there are no studies to back these assumptions. In this study, arm biomechanics were compared between bullpen throws and game pitches for 14 professional baseball pitchers. There were no statically significant differences in elbow torque, arm rotation, arm rotational velocity, and arm slot between bullpen throws and game pitches. While not significantly different, elbow torque for bullpen pitches were 92% of game pitches suggesting that these types of throws should be included in workload management.