Hey Coach, My Arm is Sore!

This is the time of year when your pitchers are starting to get both sore and tired. That part is not unusual as it’s happening to almost every pitcher out there in travel ball. What matters is that your pitcher knows how to tell the difference between being sore and being hurt.

Of all the things that are important for a pitcher to know one of the most important is being able to tell the difference between when they’re simply sore from having pitched a lot, and when they’re actually injured. It’s the difference between saying my arm is “stiff or sore” and “my arm is killing me!”.

Stiffness and soreness can happen after a pitcher pitches a lot of innings in either a day or an entire weekend, or even when those innings and weekends begin to add up. Any pitcher that pitches for very long will end up stiff and sore but what we all should work hard to avoid is our pitchers getting injured.

Knowing the difference between these two closely related feelings is hard for anyone other than the pitcher to distinguish. I’ve been pitching or working with pitchers most of my life and I can’t tell if a pitcher is sore or injured just by looking at her – only the pitcher can tell. We not only want our pitchers to be stronger at the end of the season when the really important games and tournaments happen, but we also want them to stay injury-free.

While the logical thing to do when any player gets really sore, tired or even injured is to rest, that logic goes out the window when we’re talking about a pitcher. Pitcher’s are often afraid to rest and actually take a break because they think it will somehow hurt their pitching or that they’ll forget how to pitch. While that might sound crazy, the biggest reason that pitcher’s don’t take breaks when their arms are telling them to is that coaches either don’t let them, or don’t insist on it. Players get a little nervous telling coaches they’re sore so you’re going to have to do a better job of knowing the signs.

So let’s look at a few simple things we can all do as coaches and players to help our pitchers take better care of their arms based on whether they’re “sore/tired” or “hurts”.

Sore or Tired:

Signs

• This is the first step for a pitcher on the road to hurt or inured so pay attention to it.
• It’s common the first 1-3 days after a weekend tournament where the pitcher pitched a lot.
• Its common 1-3 days after a pitcher threw a long game of 10+ innings or after a weekend of 2-4 games.
• It happens toward the end of the season when all the practice & games before that have taken their toll on the pitcher’s arm and she gets a tired arm.
• The pitching arm doesn’t hurt unless you’re pitching.
• The pitcher will really notice it when she first starts warming up. Her arm will feel stiff or “dead” meaning it doesn’t have any energy.

Care

• Be sure to warm up slowly and thoroughly. Jog more and raise your body temperature before you start actually warming up your pitches.
• Make sure you ICE your arm every day – especially after a game or workout.
• Rest – take a break from pitching at least 1-3 days a week.
• Cut your practices a little shorter
• Don’t pitch as fast during practice and don’t pitch at full distance
• Listen to your arm!

Hurt or Injured:

Signs

• The pitcher will usually say her arm is killing her.
• Pitching arm hurts at the joints (shoulder, elbow).
• The pitching arm hurts even if you aren’t pitching.
• Pitcher never can get warmed up because of the pain.
• Pitcher can’t throw full speed because her arm is just too sore.

Care

• ICE and rest!!!
• Don’t pitch for at least 4-5 days.
• See a doctor if necessary.

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• Pitching Clinic 4 DVD Series
• The Complete Book of Pitching
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