Adam Wainwright and
the Inverted W

2/23/2011

Adam Wainwright just went down with a significant elbow injury. I assume he is going to need Tommy John surgery. As a result, I have put together this updated piece that pinpoints his exact problem using more recent video.

Frame 37

Toward the end of 2010, Adam Wainwright was shut down early. Now it's reported that he is having serious problems with his elbow and may need Tommy John surgery. Let's go through some frames from a clip of him pitching and see if we can identify the root cause of his problems.

Frame 37

In Frame 37 above, Adam Wainwright has the ball at his Pitching Arm Side (aka PAS) hip and is starting to swing his Pitching Arm back toward Second Base.

Frame 48

In Frame 3 above, Adam Wainwright has swung his Pitching Arm back toward Second Base and is just starting to bend his PAS elbow. However, and IMO critically, his PAS elbow keeps moving upward after this frame.

Frame 49

Frame 50

Frame 51

Frame 52

Frame 53

Frame 54

Frame 55

In Frame 55 above you can see Adam Wainwright's PAS arm forming a fairly pronounced "M" or Inverted W with his PAS elbow above the level of his shoulders and his PAS forearm hanging down below it. This creates a timing problem and increases the distance over which, and the force with which, his PAS upper arm will externally rotate and in place an increased load on both his elbow and shoulder.

Frame 56

Frame 57

Frame 58

Frame 59

What you see in Frame 59 above is what led me to be concerned about Adam Wainwright's PAS shoulder and elbow. Notice that his PAS forearm is horizontal, not vertical, and his PAS elbow is still above the level of his shoulders as his front heel plants. What's more, if you look at the birds on the bat logo on his chest, you can see that his shoulders have been rotating for a number of frames (at least since Frame 57). That will increase the load on both his elbow and his shoulder.

Adam Wainwright

You can see the same thing in the picture above of Adam Wainwright. Notice how his front foot is planted but his PAS forearm is horizontal and his PAS elbow is above the level of his shoulders.
     If you compare this picture with a picture of Greg Maddux at the same moment, Greg Maddux's PAS forearm will be vertical at this moment and his PAS elbow will be 6 to 9 inches lower. I believe that is a very significant difference and that if Adam Wainwright doesn't fix this, then his shoulder will go next.

Frame 60

Frame 61

Frame 62

Frame 63

Frame 64

Frame 65

Frame 66

Frame 67

Frame 68

This is Just the Beginning

This isn't just an academic, post-engagement exercise in Monday morning quarterbacking. Instead, it actually represents an opportunity. Elbows can be fixed, but shoulders are much harder to fix. Adam Wainwright needs to improve his pitching mechanics if he is to realize even a portion of his potential.