Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
This completed observational repeated-measures study examined the relationship between field-based physical and temporal measures and pitch velocity in adolescent baseball pitchers. Six adolescent pitchers were assessed repeatedly over five weeks. The assessment battery included rotational medicine-ball throw distance, countermovement jump height, 30 m sprint time, shoulder flexibility, temporal characteristics of two operational wind-up phases, and pitch velocity measured with a sports radar. No experimental intervention or modification of the athletes' usual training was implemented.
Pitch velocity is a relevant performance indicator in baseball pitching, particularly during adolescent development, when physical capacities, technical refinement, and sport-specific skill acquisition occur simultaneously. This completed observational study was designed to explore whether field-based measures of explosive strength, shoulder flexibility, sprint performance, and wind-up temporal organization were associated with pitch velocity in adolescent baseball pitchers.
The study used a quantitative, non-experimental, descriptive-correlational, longitudinal repeated-measures design. Six adolescent baseball pitchers were assessed once per week over approximately five weeks, yielding repeated observations nested within each athlete. The study did not involve an assigned intervention, randomization, treatment allocation, or modification of the athletes' usual training process.
The field-based assessment battery included rotational medicine-ball throw distance as an indicator of upper-body rotational explosive performance, countermovement jump height as an indicator of lower-body explosive performance, 30 m flying sprint time as an indicator of sprint performance, shoulder flexibility assessed through a behind-the-back shoulder mobility test, temporal analysis of two operational phases of the pitching wind-up using video, and pitch velocity measured with a sports radar. Wind-up phase 1 was operationally defined as the interval from maximal knee elevation to bilateral foot contact, whereas wind-up phase 2 was defined as the interval from bilateral foot contact to frontal orientation toward the target.
The main analytical purpose was to describe the magnitude and direction of the associations between the field-based measures and pitch velocity while accounting for the repeated-measures structure of the data. Analyses were planned using descriptive statistics and association models appropriate for repeated observations within participants, including mixed-effects models or exploratory correlation procedures when required by the sample size.
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adolescent Baseball Pitchers | Adolescent baseball pitchers who completed repeated field-based assessments of explosive strength, sprint performance, shoulder flexibility, wind-up temporal characteristics, and pitch velocity over approximately five weeks. No intervention or training modification was assigned by the investigators. |
|
| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Field-Based Performance Assessment Battery | Other | Participants completed a field-based assessment battery including rotational medicine-ball throw, countermovement jump, 30 m flying sprint, shoulder flexibility assessment, video-based wind-up temporal analysis, and radar-based pitch velocity measurement. These procedures were used only for observational assessment and did not constitute an assigned intervention. |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Pitch Velocity | Pitch velocity was measured in miles per hour using a sports radar during baseball pitches performed with the athlete's usual pitching technique. The best valid attempt was recorded for each assessment session. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Rotational Medicine-Ball Throw Distance | Distance achieved in a rotational medicine-ball throw, used as a field-based indicator of upper-body rotational explosive performance. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| Countermovement Jump Height |
Not provided
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria:
Not provided
Not provided
The study population consisted of male adolescent baseball pitchers aged 13 to 14 years from an organized youth baseball training process in Antioquia, Colombia. Participants were healthy athletes involved in regular baseball practice and were assessed using field-based physical, biomechanical, and performance measures related to pitch velocity.
Not provided
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| SAMUEL JOSE GAVIRIA ALZATE, PhD | Tecnologico de Antioquia | Study Director |
| Facility | Status | City | State | ZIP | Country | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tecnológico de Antioquia | Guarne | Antioquia | 054080 | Colombia |
| PubMed Identifier | Type | Citation | Retractions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Background | Hernández Sampieri R, Mendoza Torres CP. Metodología de la investigación: las rutas cuantitativa, cualitativa y mixta. Ciudad de México: McGraw-Hill Education; 2018. | ||
| Background | Naclerio Ayllón F, Santos Leyva J, Pantoja García D. Relación entre los parámetros de fuerza, potencia y velocidad, en jugadores de softball. Kronos. 2004;3(6):13-20. | ||
| Background | Cañizares Arteaga R, Peña Malibran JD, Jiménez García R. Estudio del comportamiento de algunas características biomecánicas durante el lanzamiento, en lanzadores de béisbol del equipo de Sancti Spíritus. OLIMPIA. 2020;17:581-592. | ||
| Background | Pérez Martínez I, Martínez García M, Quintana Díaz A. Interrelación entre variables relacionadas con la velocidad del lanzamiento en el béisbol. PODIUM: Revista de Ciencia y Tecnología en la Cultura Física. 2021;16(3):743-756. |
Not provided
Not provided
Individual participant data will not be shared because the study involved minors and a small sport-specific sample, which may increase the risk of indirect identification. Results will be reported only in aggregate form.
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
|
Jump height measured during a countermovement jump, used as a field-based indicator of lower-body explosive performance.
| At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| 30 m Flying Sprint Time | Time recorded during a 30 m flying sprint test, used as a field-based indicator of sprint performance. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| Shoulder Flexibility | Shoulder flexibility assessed through a behind-the-back shoulder mobility test, recording the distance or overlap between the middle fingers. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| Wind-Up Phase 1 Duration | Duration of the first operational wind-up phase, defined as the time from maximal knee elevation to bilateral foot contact, assessed using video analysis. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |
| Wind-Up Phase 2 Duration | Duration of the second operational wind-up phase, defined as the time from bilateral foot contact to frontal orientation toward the target, assessed using video analysis. | At each weekly assessment over 5 weeks |