ARMED AND DANGEROUS
By BRANDON HURLEY
Sports Editor
In a move to preserve young arms, the Iowa High School Athletic Association announced a new pitch county policy last week effective for the 2017 baseball season.
All pitchers will now be on a pitch-by-pitch limit, with the maximum number of pitches allowed in a given day or on consecutive days 110 and the maximum pitches in a seven day span 180. The policy includes different plateaus as well with required days of rest with each level reached.
It was a change that had been rumored to gain traction back in June when the National High School Federation baseball rules committee announced they would implement a pitch count in all states. Todd Tharp, Iowa High School Association assistant director, who oversees all baseball operations, said the change was something they were in full support of.
“Our philosophy has been that we will always follow the rules of the federation,” he said. “We were supportive of that measurement and started to move forward.”
The old pitching limitation, most recently used in 2016, was based on a innings limit. No high school pitcher could pitch more than 16 innings in a seven day span and a pitcher could not throw more than nine innings in a single day or on two consecutive days. The completion of the ninth inning was followed by two required days of rest.
Likewise, any pitcher that threw four innings over a consecutive two day span was required to have two days of rest.
Now, there were many positives and negatives to these restrictions. The biggest negative was the fact that no pitch count was required. With that being said, Tharp said many coaches had already implemented their own pitch limits, but this rule change now requires it. Before, a pitcher theoretically could toss four innings and though he only threw 25 pitches, would be required to have two days of rest before his next appearance. Similarly, since there was no pitch count restrictions, an athlete could throw as many pitches as it took to fill that 16 inning limit, regardless if they threw 100 pitches, 200 or 300.
What the new pitch count policy does is keep an eye on the athlete’s arms. Once a pitcher reaches the 110 limit, they cannot face another batter, they can only finish facing the current hitter. It’s a policy that aims to preserve athletes and keep them from burning out or damaging their arms permanently. Sophomores through seniors are allowed to throw 180 pitches in a given week. Eighth graders and freshmen are only allowed to throw 150 pitches in a seven day span. An Iowa High School Athletic Association week is defined as Sunday through Saturday.
“It’s risk minimization – we won’t have pitchers throwing 130, 140, 150 pitches in a game. We feel that is going to be advantageous so we are not ruining arms,” Tharp said. “As we go forward, we think (there will be) opportunity for coaches to create and develop more kids that may be interested in pitching.”
A number of note is 25. If a pitcher throws in the first game of a double header but only reaches 25 pitches or less, they are allowed to pitch in the second game of the day, up to 110 total pitches. Vice versa, if a pitcher throws more than 25 pitches in game one of the double header, they cannot pitch in the second game and must have a day of rest before their next appearance on the mound, depending on how far they exceeded the first plateau. If a pitcher reaches the 110 pitch limit in a single day or on consecutive days, they must sit out four days for rest, and so on.
That focus on pitcher development is something Tharp said is the biggest beneficiary of the new policy. The pitch count will require coaches to learn more about player safety and how to protect arms while helping athletes perform to the best of their ability.
“Those are things we need to attack and provide coaches with that education. How coaches can go about properly helping someone who wants to be a pitcher?” Tharp said. “And there’s the safety aspect of having proper education for our coaches and what to do in that off time.
If you pitch Monday, what are some things that you can be doing for that young man so when it is his time to pitch again so he is properly recovered?”
A few examples of proper recovery, Tharp said, could be learning better ways to stretch out your arm on off days, how to ice said arm, what arm angles are best and how to properly throw a curveball, a pitch that often puts the most stress on a young arm. And if a recovering pitcher still plays in the field in games they aren’t on the mound, when at practice, instead of throwing fielded grounders or pop ups to first base, Tharp suggests placing a bucket next to the so they don’t have to put strain on their arms. It’s all in an effort to make sure athletes are training their arms in the right way and that they are ready to come back in a timely manner.
The IHSAA went through a thorough screening process to settle on the 110 and 180 pitch limit. They pooled together athletic trainers, head coaches and athletic directors from across the state and poured through pages of research and information. They scoured over data from the well-known and respected doctor James Andrews, who often handles arm surgeries among professional athletes, and looked at pitch policies in other states. Together, the group came up with a recommendation that was later approved by a separate baseball advisory committee made up of baseball coaches which then was moved ahead to the IHSAA board of directors. The board then made the policy official at a meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 26.
“We feel very comfortable with (these numbers),” Tharp said. “From the data that we got from the coaches and the medical professionals, we are very confident.”
Coaches won’t be left own their own in this transition either, the IHSAA plans to have a vested interest in helping everyone adjust smoothly. Tharp said he hasn’t felt much of a blow back either.
“The coaches have been receptive, I’d say nine out of 10 of them,” Tharp said. “A lot them said they do something similar to this already. I think they are very proactive with this.
What we need to do know is continue to educate the coaches and help them instead of saying ‘Here’s the pitch count, go at it.’ I believe there are steps that we need to take as an association to help our coaches out.”
Designated pitch counters approved by each school will track the amount of pitchers thrown each inning. All levels of high school baseball (including junior varsity and freshmen) are required to record pitch counts through a sanctioned pitch count chart following each game.
Any team that violates the new policy, using a pitcher on a day they are supposed to be resting or goes over the 180 pitch limit, they are using an ineligible player. When a team trots out an ineligible player, a forfeit will be imposed on the said team.
2017 PITCH LIMITS
10-12 grade 8-9 grade
No Rest 1-25 1-25
1 day 26-40 26-40
2 days 41-65 41-65
3 days 66-90 66-90
4 days 91-110
- Log in to post comments