Table 4. Performance changes with fatigue.
Studies examining velocity prior to, and post-fatigue protocol. Absolute velocity, pre and post fatigue, as well as the relative change in velocity. Additionally, studies related to throwing accuracy listed.
| Study | Sample size | Fatigue protocol | Velocity pre-fatigue | Velocity post-fatigue | Relative change (% velocity decrease from pre-fatigue) | Throwing accuracy/other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dale et al. (2007) | A total of 10 collegiate pitchers | A total of 60 maximum effort pitches, 15 each inning | 82.5 ± 1.3 mph | 81.5 ± 0.9 mph | −1.2 % | N/A |
| Crotin et al. (2014) | A total of 19 collegiate/high school pitchers | Warmup. A total of 80 pitches (15 seconds between pitches, 9 min between innings) | Over-stride: 81.6 ± 5.4 mph Under-stride: 80.3 ± 5.0 mph |
Over-stride: 79.8 ± 5.4 mph Under-stride: 79.8 ± 5.0 mph |
Over-stride: −2.2% Under-stride: −0.6% |
N/A |
| Keeley, Barber & Oliver (2010) | A total of 10 collegiate pitchers | Five pitches for strikes. two kg ball throws until maximum perceived fatigue | 75.0 mph | 72.0 mph | −4.0% | N/A |
| Murray et al. (2001) | Seven major league pitchers | No protocol, collection during season | 90.0 mph | 85.0 mph | −5.6% | N/A |
| Erickson et al. (2016) | A total of 28 male pitchers | Warmup. A total of 15 pitches per inning for six innings | 73.0 ± 5.0 mph | 71.0 ± 6.0 mph | −2.7% | N/A |
| Escamilla et al. (2007) | A total of 10 collegiate pitchers | A total of 15 pitches per inning for seven to nine innings | 77.6 ± 4.0 mph | 75.4 ± 3.4 mph | −2.8% | N/A |
| Whiteside et al. (2016) | A total of 129 MLB pitchers | No protocol, collection during season | N/A | N/A | N/A | Percentage of hard-thrown pitches decreased as game progressed. Largest decrease in ball speed between 1st and 7th inning (velocity not provided) |
| Wang et al. (2016) | A total of 15 pitchers | Six maximum effort fastballs before fatigue protocol. 8–12 reps, three sets, wrist ulnar deviation and flexion with dumbbell. Within 1 min of completion, pitcher threw six maximum effort fastballs |
N/A | N/A | N/A | Strike percentage changed from 70.1 ± 17.8% pre-fatigue to 49.3 ± 17.2% post-fatigue |
| Crotin et al. (2013) | A total of 12 minor league pitchers | No protocol, collection during season | N/A | N/A | N/A | Home run rate increased with each pitch |
| Bradbury & Forman (2012) | A total of 1,058 MLB pitchers | No protocol, collection during seasons | N/A | N/A | N/A | With each pitch in preceding game, 5th game and 10th game, the pitcher’s Earned Run Average increased by 0.007, 0.014, and 0.022, respectively |
| Yang et al. (2016) | Seven intercollegiate pitchers | A total of 15 pitches per inning for seven innings | N/A | N/A | N/A | Both throwing accuracy and velocity significantly decreased below baseline following the 4th inning in the 8-s (p = 0.05) and 12-s (p = 0.05) trials |
| Keeley et al., 2017 | A total of 14 youth pitchers | A total of 88 pitch simulated game | N/A | N/A | N/A | Total and first pitch strike percentage decreased at “moderate” perceived fatigue levels (52.4% and 49.8%) and further at “severely” fatigued (45.3% and 40.0%) |