Does the Pitcher?s Mound Cause Injuries?

Back in 1969 the height of the pitcher’s mound was lowered from 15″ down to 10″ in an attempt by major league baseball to level the playing ground between the era’s dominant pitching and the effect they were having on batters. Hitters were at an all time low for batting average of .237 the year before (1968). Last year, research was done concerning the possible negative affect this 10″ mound has on a pitcher’s arm, elbow and shoulder. The analysis starts out by mentioning how pitchers in years gone by threw more complete games at the 15″ mound height, but noted that careers were significantly shorter as a possible result of this combination. Then refocuses it’s analysis on the stress that is induced upon a pitcher’s arm, elbow and shoulder given the necessary motion that is needed to throw a baseball at such high velocities as is seen in MLB games in an effective manner to get batters out from the height in which the pitches are...