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Essay / The Biomechanics of Pitching - 748
To many, baseball is known as America's pastime. They find it enjoyable to see two teams strategize against each other in order to win each individual match. Many factors combine to affect the outcome of the game. Usually, the team with the most quality hits, the fewest errors, and the best pitching wins. One of the most important factors is a decent pitch. If the pitcher is struggling, it's easier for the other team to get on base and score. Throwing a ball both quickly and accurately is harder than it seems. These factors all depend on how the pitcher controls their body or how their mechanics work together. This is one of the main reasons why people started to become interested and study biomechanics. Biomechanics is the study of the human body and its movements. Biomechanists take advances in engineering and mechanics and apply them to see what effects they have on the body and how they can improve production. When throwing, the pitcher must understand the different ways to use their body and learn about all the different ways of throwing. throw the ball. Most people choose how to throw based on their comfort, but the risk of injury is also an important factor. Biomechanics shows people the best way to throw to achieve the greatest success and avoid injury. Many throwing experts have separated throwing into phases. Not everyone agrees on the exact number of stages, but there is consensus on six main phases. It is important that pitchers learn and perform each phase correctly to reduce the risk of arm injury. The six phases are as follows: The Windup: The Windup is generally used when there are no runners on base. For this reason, some biomechanists believe it should not be included in the list ... middle of paper ... momentum home). Throwing puts a lot of pressure on the thrower's body, especially the elbow. and arms. The reason is that the act of throwing contains many unnatural body movements. The body is not designed to perform the jerky movements involved in pitching. Some of the forces that affect the body when throwing include gravitational force and the resistance of the ball. Even though the ball is small and you wouldn't think the resistance force is very high, you would be surprised how big a difference it makes and how much it actually affects your body. So, to recap, the six phases of throwing are:• The windup• The stride• Arm cocking• Arm acceleration• Arm deceleration• Follow-throughRemember these steps, and with a little practice, you could become a good launcher in no time.Works Citedsciencebuddies.org