Death To The Inverted L

Yesterday I was Googling around and stumbled across this article about Greg Maddux. While I thought the article was generally pretty good, the paragraph below drove me crazy...

What distinguishes him from other pitchers is his arm swing -- the motion of his arm from the moment he separates the ball from his glove until he releases it.
     Maddux takes the ball out of his glove with a bent elbow and his hands on top of the ball. Sports Illustrated described the action correctly as an "Inverted L." He maintains this "L" position as the hand comes above the shoulder into a regular "L" position.

Whoever wrote this has either never seen Greg Maddux pitch or is pushing their own interpretation of proper pitching mechanics and is trying (inaccurately) to use Greg Maddux to prove their point.
     As I have said before, the Inverted L (or "Inverted Goalpost" or "Inverted Goal Post") is illustrated by the photos below of Ian Kennedy, Cliff Politte, and Scott Williamson.

Ian Kennedy's Inverted L

Cliff Politte's Inverted L

Scott Williamson's Inverted L

AJ Burnett's Inverted L

The thing to notice is how their Pitching Arm Side (PAS) elbow is up at the level of their shoulders and their PAS forearm is hanging down vertically beneath it. I think the fact that AJ Burnett, Cliff Politte, Scott Williamson make (or made) the Inverted L is related to their arm problems. I also think it suggests that Ian Kennedy faces an above-average risk of arm problems.

BJ Ryan's Inverted L

BJ Ryan's pitching mechanics also include a major Inverted L. I believe this is the root cause of his elbow problems and believe it will lead to Rotator Cuff and Labrum problems over the next few years.

Barry Zito's Inverted L

You can also see the Inverted L in the pitching mechanics of Barry Zito, which makes me nervous about the health of both his elbow and shoulder. I think the fact that he makes the Inverted L may have something to do with the velocity problems Barry Zito has had over the last couple of seasons.

The Inverted L Defined
For those of you with medical or other scientific backgrounds, let me give you a more technical definition of the Inverted L. I define the Inverted L as being 90 degrees of shoulder abduction (PAS elbow at the level of the shoulders) combined with 90 degrees of shoulder internal rotation (PAS forearm pointed vertically downward) and 90 degrees of elbow flexion (elbow bent 90 degrees).

The Problem With The Inverted L
Like the Inverted W, the Inverted L isn't (that) bad in and of itself. Rather, the problem with the Inverted L is that it can create timing problems which can increase the distance, and thus the force, with which the PAS upper arm externally rotates. This can increase the stress on both the elbow and the shoulder.

BJ Ryan's Inverted L

This is very clearly illustrated in the clip above of BJ Ryan. The thing to notice is how, due to his significant Inverted L, his shoulders start rotating well before his Glove Side (GS) foot plants and his PAS forearm is in the vertical, high-cocked position. This additional, especially forceful, external rotation increases the load on both the elbow and shoulder joints.

Greg Maddux's Actual Arm Action
To see what Greg Maddux's arm action actually looks like, let me show you a few frames from a clip of him pitching and analyze his mechanics.

Greg Maddux - Frame 746

After breaking his hands at his waist, Greg Maddux drops his PAS hand to his PAS hip. Roger Clemens and David Wells do something similar.

Greg Maddux - Frame 747

Greg Maddux - Frame 748

Greg Maddux - Frame 749

Greg Maddux - Frame 750

Greg Maddux then swings his PAS arm back toward 2B and then starts to bend his elbow and externally rotate his PAS upper arm. 

Greg Maddux - Frame 751

Frame 751 makes it absolutely clear that Greg Maddux does not make the Inverted L. In this frame his PAS elbow is at its maximum height, which is 6 inches or so below the level of shoulders. Also, in Frame 751 Greg Maddux's PAS hand is almost at the level of his PAS elbow. If Greg Maddux actually made the Inverted L, his PAS elbow would be much higher, up at the level of his shoulders, and his PAS hand would be much lower.

Greg Maddux - Frame 752

In Frame 752, Greg Maddux's PAS forearm is beyond horizontal on its way up to the high cocked position. Notice how his PAS elbow is still well below the level of his shoulders.

Greg Maddux - Frame 753

In Frame 753, Greg Maddux's PAS forearm is 45 degrees off of the vertical and his PAS elbow is still well below the level of his shoulders. Also, notice how little Greg Maddux reverse-rotates his shoulders. Instead of pointing up the 3B line, his shoulders instead stay pointed at the target during his entire arm swing. This aids his deception by helping to hide the ball behind his body. The result is that Greg Maddux is sneaky fast since the batter cannot see the ball until the release point.

Greg Maddux - Frame 754

In Frame 754, Greg Maddux's PAS forearm is vertical and in the high cocked position. His shoulders are also starting to rotate by this frame. Notice that his PAS elbow is still well below the level of his shoulders.

Chris Carpenter And The Inverted L
Chris Carpenter has had a series of serious shoulder and elbow problems. I believe these are related to his pronounced Inverted L.

Chris Carpenter - Frame 18

Chris Carpenter - Frame 19

Chris Carpenter - Frame 20

Chris Carpenter - Frame 21

Chris Carpenter - Frame 22

Chris Carpenter - Frame 23

Chris Carpenter - Frame 24

As a result, by Frame 24 Chris Carpenter is in the Inverted L position with his PAS elbow at or above the level of his shoulders and his PAS forearm hanging down vertically beneath it. The problem is that in order to get his PAS forearm up into the vertical high cocked position, he will have to very rapidly (and much later than Greg Maddux) externally rotate his PAS upper arm. This late external rotation will increase the level of stress on both his elbow and his shoulder.

Chris Carpenter - Frame 25

Chris Carpenter - Frame 26

Chris Carpenter - Frame 27

Chris Carpenter - Frame 28

Chris Carpenter - Frame 29

Chris Carpenter - Frame 30

In Frame 30, Chris Carpenter is in the high cocked position, and looks quite like Greg Maddux's (although Chris Carpenter's PAS elbow is still much higher than Greg Maddux's is at this point). However, Chris Carpenter reached this point very differently than did Greg Maddux, and that difference explains why Chris Carpenter has had so many more arm problems than has Greg Maddux.