New App to Help Pitchers Avoid Tommy John Surgery
Photo via ESPN
With Tommy John surgery—a procedure that replaces an injured ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow—being performed with increasing frequency on young baseball pitchers, Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Kevin Wilk are using technology to do something about it.
RELATED: Tommy John Surgery 10 Times More Common than a Decade Ago
Andrews, a noted orthopedic surgeon, and Wilk, a physical therapist, have created “Throw Like a Pro,” an iOS app aimed at teaching players, parents and coaches how to prevent injuries caused by repeatedly throwing a baseball. Features of the app include a pre-season preparation guide, pre-game warm-up routines, and videos with advice and exercises from both Andrews and Wilk.
“Throw Like a Pro” also features a pitch counter to track the number of pitches you throw over the course of the season, and a rest calculator, which takes into account your age and number of pitches thrown before telling you how many days you should rest your arm before throwing again.
It’s been tough to see star pitchers like Stephen Strasburg and Jose Fernandez lose a year to Tommy John surgery. Hopefully the Throw Like a Pro app will contribute to keeping young pitchers healthy and their elbows intact.
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New App to Help Pitchers Avoid Tommy John Surgery
Photo via ESPN
With Tommy John surgery—a procedure that replaces an injured ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow—being performed with increasing frequency on young baseball pitchers, Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Kevin Wilk are using technology to do something about it.
RELATED: Tommy John Surgery 10 Times More Common than a Decade Ago
Andrews, a noted orthopedic surgeon, and Wilk, a physical therapist, have created “Throw Like a Pro,” an iOS app aimed at teaching players, parents and coaches how to prevent injuries caused by repeatedly throwing a baseball. Features of the app include a pre-season preparation guide, pre-game warm-up routines, and videos with advice and exercises from both Andrews and Wilk.
“Throw Like a Pro” also features a pitch counter to track the number of pitches you throw over the course of the season, and a rest calculator, which takes into account your age and number of pitches thrown before telling you how many days you should rest your arm before throwing again.
It’s been tough to see star pitchers like Stephen Strasburg and Jose Fernandez lose a year to Tommy John surgery. Hopefully the Throw Like a Pro app will contribute to keeping young pitchers healthy and their elbows intact.