The M, Hyperabduction, and Baseball Cards...

Ferguson Jenkins not making the M, 2002 SP Legendary Cuts


Matt Peterson makes the M, 2003 Topps


Billy Wagner Hyperabducting, 2000 Topps


Okay, if you read my second post, you probably noticed I alluded to an oft-used term in pitching mechanics the "M" also known as the "Inverted W." For a clear explanation of the M/Inverted W and why exactly it's bad/at the very least not necessarily a good thing, go to either http://www.drivelinemechanics.com/ or http://www.chrisoleary.com/. Kyle and Chris know a heck of a lot more than I do regarding pitching mechanics. Let's get that straightened out. A variation on a theme with the M is known as "hyperabduction." That's when a pitcher gets his elbow above the level of his shoulder BEFORE he starts rotating his shoulders. Again, please go to the two websites above for clarification. Chris and Kyle will be glad to help you with any questions you may have if their FAQ's don't answer your questions.

So, do pitchers appear on baseball cards in these two potentially-injurious positions? Why yes. Yes they do. As you can see at the top of the page, Matt Peterson, a former Mets pitching prospect who went nowhere, is making the M/Inverted W in his scapular load. Although the photo isn't the greatest (Matt Peterson's head kinda hides his elbow), he *is not* making the safe scapular load position known as the Horizontal W. Perhaps not too surprisingly, Peterson's career has been riddled by arm injuries.

Below him, we see Billy Wagner's 2000 Topps card. See how Billy's elbow is above the level of his shoulder (even if his shoulders WERE level)? That's hyperabduction. But wait, you say, Billy Wagner has had a great, almost Hall of Fame caliber career! Yes, he has. One-inning relievers like Billy Wagner in general tend to have their careers impacted a lot less by things like the M or hyperabduction (although there are guys like John Rocker who burned out early because of it...like I said, you can't make completely sweeping judgements). Keep this in mind when buying the first year card or rookie card of a reliever whose mechanics may not look all that great. Don't let it scare you off as much.

But what's that first card with the cryptic caption? It's Fergie Jenkins, a Hall of Fame pitcher, and if you went to the website I'm suggesting you go to for the third time now, you might think he was making the M. But take a closer look. See how his body is leaning toward third base? Jenkins' arms are pointing straight backward (with his pitching arm side elbow a little BELOW the level of his shoulders), NOT above the level of his shoulders. That's a safe way to scap load and plenty of great pitchers (i.e. Randy Johnson, Nolan Ryan, and Bob Gibson) all did that. It's called the horizontal W. Brian Matusz from this year's draft does this. David Price from last year's draft does it (though his shoulders don't get quite as high). I believe Stephen Strasburg, next year's top draft prospect, does it. Bottom line, don't immediately jump to conclusions, as I once did with Jenkins (and Strasburg, for that matter).

Because this idea...using proper pitching mechanics to not overspend on guys' rookie cards...is just a little radical, I decided I'd cover it a lot for the first couple blog posts. However, now that you can see my basic premise, I'm going to move off the subject for a little while and get to one of my favorite topics...sleepers!