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Hamstring injuries in Baseball

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Why were there so many hamstring injuries in Major League Baseball this season?

Inadequate spring training
Too many games in a short period of time
Poor nutrition/hydration
First, we will begin with why.
There are 3 basic reasons this year as opposed to previous years

Inadequate spring training

In a typical season, there are 6-8 weeks of practice, training, and games. This year there was barely 2 weeks to prepare. In order to sustain the rigors of playing daily, an athlete must build up muscular endurance. Unlike other sports such as basketball and soccer which there is continuous running, baseball is mostly sedentary, and then there are explosive movements such as sprinting to first base or sprinting for a ball in the outfield.

A baseball player should practice 30 seconds of jogging followed by 10 seconds for a total of 2-5 minutes. In a normal spring training, this typically happens just in practice games or scrimmages.

Too many games in a short period of time

During a typical spring training there is a daily practice for 1-3 weeks, followed by intrasquad games, and then actual spring training games. This year the players went into intrasquad games and then spring training games immediately. During the first week of games, there needs to be a 24-48 hour rest between games in order for the muscles to recover.

Poor nutrition/hydration

Baseball players often have high-fat content in their diet and often do not eat anything one-two hours before the game. In addition, many baseball players consume too much caffeine (coffee, tea, or energy drinks) before the game. Caffeine has the net effect of dehydrating the muscles especially the hamstrings which can lead to injury. Players often do not consume enough fluids, especially water throughout the day.

Strength and Conditioning: Prevention

What can be done weeks before?
What should be done before the game?
What should we do in between innings?

Whether the baseball player has 2, 4 or 6 weeks to prepare for the season here are 3 areas to look at:

Running

Baseball is not an aerobic sport. In the field and at the plate players rely on fast-twitch fibers, eye-hand coordination, and movement patterns. Weeks before the player should work on stop, go, change of direction exercises/training 3 times per week. This would be a 30-second jog followed by 10-second sprints, repeated 3 times with a 30-second break. This should be performed forward, backward, and sideways.

Strength-muscular endurance

2-6 weeks before the season begins the baseball player needs to focus on quality workouts which build muscular endurance, not peak strength. Lunges, squats, and stability ball hamstring curls are great exercises to incorporate into the workout. In the first 2 weeks, the baseball player should work on 3 sets of 10 repetitions. Every 2 weeks after should the player should add 1 set of 10 to get to 6 sets of 10.

Flexibility-static and dynamic

All workouts should include a 10-15 minutes aerobic warmup followup by dynamic flexibility which would be walking lunges, butt kickers, and high knees. After the dynamic warmup, static stretches should be performed (leg to 90-degree hamstring stretch, knee to chest stretch, and heel to butt stretch). Static stretches should be held for 20-30 seconds and repeated 3 times.

What should be done before the game?

Whether the player gets to the ballpark 30 minutes or 3 hours before the game time an adequate warmup should be incorporated. This includes 10 minutes of aerobic warmup (jumping jacks, jogging, or even brisk walking) followed by dynamic stretches,, walking lunges, butt kickers, high knees, and sprints. Next comes static stretches. The player can add bodyweight squats, lunges, and band work if desired.

What should be done during the game?

In basketball, soccer, and tennis we see far fewer hamstring injuries. That is because these athletes are constantly moving. Instead of sitting in the dugout in between innings the players should be walking in the dugout or at least standing. This will prevent the hamstrings and other muscles from getting stiff and tight.

What should we eat and drink before, during, and after the game?

A pregame meal should be consumed 1-2 hours before playing. This should consist of protein, carbohydrates, and low fat. This meal should be 600-800 calories and can be a peanut and butter jelly sandwich with fruit or a ½ a chicken/turkey sandwich. The player should have 50-200 calories every 1.5-2 hours and be low in fat., The player should have a large meal within 60 minutes. This is to replace the energy stores and will prevent hamstring injuries and soreness the following day.

30 minutes before game time players should consume 8-12 ounces of water, sports drink, or diluted fruit juice. Every 30-60 minutes the players should be consuming 4-8 ounces of water.

Every effort should be made to avoid caffeinated products before and during the game.

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