PREVENTING AN MLB HAMSTRING EPIDEMIC
When the MLB lockout ended on March 10th after 99 grueling days with the announcement that the season would begin in less than a month, the news was met with excitement and optimism by most fans and the baseball industry.
However, there was one cohort whose enthusiasm was a bit more tempered. MLB athletic trainers, the group tasked with helping players prepare their bodies for the season, immediately understood the implication: a compressed Spring Training period would put the players under their care at greater risk of injury given a faster ramp-up period. Getting players ready to play in a month – as opposed to the typical two-month Spring Training period – would make injury prevention strategies the most important part of preseason and early season preparation. And if there is going to be a spike in injuries, the most likely ailment will be hamstring issues.
Over the past few seasons, the league has seen a significant uptick in early season hamstring injuries. Data from Conte Injury Analytics showed that last year, through the first two months of the season, hamstring injuries were up a 193% compared to 2019. With players ramping up more quickly than ever this season, we can expect to see even more early season hamstring injuries.
Through the first two months of the season, hamstring injuries were up 193% compared to 2019.
To mitigate this risk, training staff must pay particular attention to players’ muscle utilization and as they ramp up activity. This spring, STRIVE is working with dozens of MLB players, including Alex Verdugo of the Red Sox, and their trainers track their muscle load, strain and activation across their hamstrings, quads, and glutes, helping them better understand when they are at risk for specific injuries.
The root cause for hamstring injuries is often muscle imbalance. When other muscles don’t do their job, the hamstrings compensate for them, and this is what ultimately results in injury. That is why the STRIVE team is working with MLB teams to collect and analyze live data on muscles such as hamstrings, glutes, and quadriceps in order to detect asymmetries and potential anomalies in dozens of players’ muscle performance. For example, if data is showing an athlete’s right hamstring has a far higher load than their left hamstring, continuing like that would almost certainly lead to injury.
At STRIVE, we are hoping for a competitive and healthy start to the Major League Baseball season, and we are doing our part by helping training staffs across the league identify red flags for hamstring injuries and developing strategies to avoid them.
If you are interested in learning more about how STRIVE helps the world’s best athletes avoid and return more quickly from injuries, please reach out to set up a demo.
