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Effects of a Short-Duration Stretching Drill After Pitching on Elbow and Shoulder Range of Motion in Professional Baseball Pitchers.

PMID 27810848 (2017): stretch, stretching — Injury risk (study note for endurance athletes).

Last updated/Feb 23, 2026, 11:13 PM

Study note • PMID 27810848

Effects of a Short-Duration Stretching Drill After Pitching on Elbow and Shoulder Range of Motion in Professional Baseball Pitchers.

The American journal of sports medicine2017 • DOI 10.1177/0363546516671943
Evidence C56/100
Action 2: Consider

Worth trying if it fits your goal and context.

ELI5

In plain language

BACKGROUND: A glenohumeral internal rotation (IR) deficit or a total rotational motion (IR plus external rotation [ER]) deficit in the throwing shoulder compared with the nonthrowing shoulder has been… (controlled study; participants).

The abstract doesn’t indicate a clear change in Injury risk under the tested conditions. Treat this as a signal, not a guarantee; confirm methods and context in the full paper.

Takeaways

What the abstract suggests

  • Study question: BACKGROUND: A glenohumeral internal rotation (IR) deficit or a total rotational motion (IR plus external rotation [ER]) deficit in the throwing shoulder compared with the nonthrowing shoulder has been…
  • The abstract doesn’t indicate a clear change in Injury risk under the tested conditions.
  • Population: participants.
  • Protocol cues (title/abstract): 8 minutes.

Protocol

Protocol (as reported)

  • Intervention/exposure: stretch, stretching (vs comparison group).
  • Dose/time/duration cues in abstract/title: 8 minutes.
  • Outcomes: Injury risk.
  • Replication note: abstracts often omit adherence and timing; confirm details before changing training or supplementation.

Fit

Who it helps, and who should skip it

Who it helps

  • Athletes similar to the study population (participants) working on mobility.
  • Athletes who can measure Injury risk with a repeatable workout or time-trial effort.

Who should skip

  • If you have symptoms or conditions that make the intervention risky, get professional guidance.
  • If you’re near race day and can’t safely test, defer the experiment.

Methods

What the study actually did

  • Design: controlled study.
  • Population: participants.
  • Comparator: comparison group.
  • Outcomes measured: Injury risk.
  • Protocol cues mentioned: 8 minutes.
  • Source: PubMed PMID 27810848 (2017) — The American journal of sports medicine.

Results excerpt

What the abstract reports

Bonferroni post hoc analyses revealed (1) significantly greater ER during prepitching and postdrill versus the postpitching condition (94 degrees +/- 7 degrees [prepitching] and 94 degrees +/- 8 degrees [postdrill] vs 88 degrees +/- 8 degrees ; P = .010 and .005, respectively),…

Note: excerpts are short; for full context, read the paper.

Limits

Limitations & bias

  • Abstract-only summaries can miss critical details (population, protocol, adherence, and context).
  • Single studies often don’t generalize to your event, history, and training load; treat results as a starting point.
  • If your context differs (elite vs recreational; cycling vs running), adjust expectations and be conservative.
  • This is performance information, not medical advice.

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Sources