Return to Sport and Performance Outcomes After Hand Fractures in Professional Baseball Players

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic surgery
• Sports medicine
• Baseball analytics

Background:

• Hand fractures account for approximately 7% of Major League Baseball (MLB) injuries.
• Outcomes for professional baseball players with hand fractures, treated operatively or nonoperatively, are not well-documented.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the return-to-sport (RTS) rate, RTS time, and performance outcomes in professional baseball players with hand fractures.
• To compare RTS outcomes based on player position and treatment type (operative vs. nonoperative).

Main Methods:

• A retrospective cohort study analyzed data from the MLB Health and Injury Tracking System (2011-2022).
• Included were professional position players with metacarpal or phalangeal fractures.
• Outcomes assessed included RTS rate, RTS time, and offensive statistics up to one year post-injury.

Main Results:

• 81.6% of 801 players returned to sport at a mean of 58 days.
• Operatively treated players had similar RTS rates (83%) but longer RTS times (86 days) compared to nonoperatively treated players (82%, 51 days).
• No significant differences in offensive performance were observed one year post-injury compared to pre-injury levels across positions and treatment types.

Conclusions:

• Hand fractures in professional baseball players have a high RTS rate with no long-term performance decline.
• While operative treatment increases RTS time, it does not affect the overall RTS rate or long-term player performance.
• Player position and treatment modality do not significantly impact post-injury performance metrics.