How Much Does The Pitch Clock Affect Pitchers?

Major League Baseball has a UCL problem. This past week alone, Shane Bieber and Eury Pérez became the latest MLB pitchers to require Tommy John surgery to repair damage to the ulnar collateral ligament in their throwing elbow, and Atlanta Braves star Spencer Strider was diagnosed with his ligament injury.

In response, the Major League Baseball Players Association released a statement saying that a recent rule change could be playing a role in this trend: the pitch clock.

The pitch clock was originally implemented in the Minor Leagues, so young pitchers like Eury Perez, who will undergo the surgery are accustomed to the pitch clock, but older pitchers like Shane Bieber are not, so there are many ways you can go with the pitch clock and who is affected by it more.

Although the general public believes that this is the case and the adjusted rules going into 2024 may cause that, according to general research and stats, the rule changes did not affect the number of elbow injuries in the 2023 MLB season.

The example that we will be referring to is one on the FIU campus with pitcher Owen Puk who went through Tommy John surgery and is finally back on the mound after over 13 months of rehab.

Through five starts this season, Puk has struck out 14 hitters and thrown 9.1 innings. The FIU starter is currently on an innings limit, so he is incrementing his pitch count and innings count per start.

Before going into the specific stats on how these rule changes affected these pitchers, Tommy John surgery happens when a pitcher has a partial or full tear of the UCL.

The surgery itself consists of cleaning out the joint and securing the graft inside the elbow. The recovery process usually takes about over 13 months, but about six before throwing again.

“Going into surgery I knew there would be ups and downs,” said Puk. “I know people who have gotten the surgery and they told me the same thing, you just have to keep going every day and know what you are working towards.”

The recovery process saw Puk focus more on several aspects of his life that he knew would be crucial. “Things that stood out to me personally were nutrition and the weight room,” said Puk. “If I took care of my body the best possible way, I knew I would be able to bounce back quicker and come back better.”

A little over 13 months after the surgery, he was back on the mound and threw in live action. “Over 13 months now, so I was pretty eager to get back out there and honestly there’s just not a better feeling than just going out there and competing, especially against your teammates too. It felt good,” said Puk mere moments after he finished his live BP session.

Usually after the surgery, you see some higher velocities, but then it drops down to what it was pre-injury. For Puk, it’s been consistent at 96-97 mph, which you don’t usually see, but enjoy having when coming back from injury.

“Before surgery, no I never threw that hard,” said Puk when asked about his change in velocity. “I think from surgery, just having a year to add some good weight and attack the weight room as well as cleaning up my mechanics, I would come back throwing harder. Time of the rehab gives you a chance to attack the weak spots you had prior.”

In 2023, 202 total players across all levels of Major League organizations underwent Tommy John surgery, compared to 2022 where 243 total players underwent this procedure.

Many thought this number would increase going from 2022 to 2023 given the new rules didn’t happen, but Puk isn’t surprised by this despite acknowledging the fact that the pitch clock can bring some issues.

“The pitch clock can add fatigue to a pitcher,” said Puk. “You throw more throws quicker but it’s part of the game now and we as players need to learn to adjust.”

Through many opinions that can be made from various national media outlets, the player’s opinion is where it matters the most and Puk shared his opinion with the Paws Up Podcast.

“I don’t mind the pitch clock because if you are in a groove you will be fine,” said Puk. “Those times things aren’t going your way you want to step off and take a deep breath, but you just won’t have as much time to regroup and reset.”

Although there is no certain way to prove that the pitch clock will impact injuries from a pitcher, as the Tommy John Surgery List tracker shows, injuries were down with the new rules. Currently, in 2024, we already have 15 injuries on the tracker, with all of them being pitchers.

In 2024, the new pitch clock times will be reduced from 20 seconds to 18 seconds when runners are on base. Pitchers will have 15 seconds to throw a pitch without any runners on base.

There’s no way to prove that the pitch clock is a big reason for pitchers primarily undergoing Tommy John, but a clearer picture will be made following the 2024 MLB season.

Through the first couple weeks of these new rules, Miami Marlins 21-year-old pitcher Eury Perez will undergo Tommy John surgery after attempting to return from his injury. It may or may not be due to the pitch clock, but pitchers now need to be working a lot quicker and harder throughout games.

All in all, the pitch clock has its highs and lows, but at the end of the day, there isn’t a clear answer right now if this new rule will affect a pitcher.

It’s only been a year, so it’s too early to tell if this exactly is the reason, but general managers, managers, and even players have shown their dislike towards the new rules along with the modified rules. It is still a mystery that will be solved in a matter of time.