Stretching is a common component of an athletic warm-up even though many studies have demonstrated that pre-event static stretching can decrease strength and power performance. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of acute static stretching of the throwing shoulder on pitching velocity and accuracy of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III baseball players. Twelve collegiate baseball players, including 6 pitchers and 6 position players, participated in the study. Each participant completed 2 separate testing protocols over a span of 4-6 days. In the experimental condition (SS), 6 static stretches were applied to the throwing shoulder after an active warm-up. After a rest period of 5-10 minutes, participants were allowed 5 warm-up pitches from a pitching mound. Participants then threw 10 pitches measured for velocity and accuracy. The control condition (NS) followed the same procedure but did not include the 6 static stretches. Testing was conducted in an indoor practice facility during normal team practice. No significant differences were found in average velocity, maximum velocity, or accuracy measures when comparing the SS and NS conditions. These results suggest that acute static stretching of the throwing shoulder does not have a significant impact on baseball pitching performance. Static stretching of the shoulder may be performed during a warm-up before a throwing activity.

Previous research has shown no significant differences in time required to reach a base when sliding head-first or feet-first, but few studies have compared running through and sliding into first base in baseball players, and none have included softball players. The purpose of the present study was to examine differences in time required to reach first base when running, sliding head-first, and sliding feet-first. Twelve female collegiate softball players (20.0 ± 1.3 years old) and 14 male collegiate baseball players (20.6 ± 1.6 years old) performed three trials each of running, sliding head-first, and sliding feet-first in a randomized, counterbalanced order with 1–2 min of rest between each trial. Testing was conducted in an indoor practice facility and trials were timed using a dual-beam wireless infrared timing system. Significant differences between the three approaches were found for both softball ( p <  .001) and baseball players ( p <  .001), and follow-up pairwise comparisons showed running through the base was significantly faster than sliding head-first ( p =  .001 for softball, p =  .009 for baseball) and feet-first ( p <  .001 for softball, p =  .002 for baseball). Differences between sliding head-first and feet-first were not significant in either group. Running through first base is significantly faster than sliding in collegiate baseball and softball players. Sliding into first base should only be attempted when avoiding a tag from or a collision with a fielder.

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