A kinematic and qualitative evaluation to predict ball velocity in baseball pitching

Despite the considerable amount of research describing the biomechanics of pitching, little has been done to utilize these observations to develop an understanding of how to improve pitch velocity quantitatively and qualitatively. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) Replicate and expand on previous kinematic descriptions of pitching performance, and (2) develop an effective qualitative analysis tool for analyzing pitching performance. Participants consisted of 16 pitchers from a NCAA Division II baseball team. Three-dimensional motion analysis was conducted to quantify six kinematic variables: peak rotational pelvic velocity (PPAV), hip to shoulder separation (HTS), coordination, stride length (SL), knee extension (KE), and ball velocity. The final regression model (R^2 = 0.361) included PPAV (p = 0.00), HTS (p=0.01), and KE (p=0.02) as significant predictors of ball velocity. Two-dimensional video of the pitching trials was used to complete the qualitative assessment. Three independent raters performed analyses of the video using a qualitative assessment tool to identify movements that might indicate high velocity biomechanics. The tool allowed raters to give conditional (i.e., yes or no ) responses for 5 specific landmarks within the pitching motion, giving each pitch a score out of 5. No significant association was found between the average rater score out of 5 for each pitch and ball velocity (rs = 0.167; p = 0.272 ) . Continued attempts to perfect qualitative analysis and reevaluation of the phase breakdown of the pitching motion are likely essential to unlocking the keys to velocity enhancement.