Injury Rates and Financial Dollars Lost Due to Injury Continue to Rise in Major League Baseball: An Analysis of...

To use publicly available injured list (IL) data to 1) describe Major League Baseball injury trends from 2010 to 2024; 2) analyze injury types and body regions affected to report the highest impact injuries; and 3) report the financial implications of time lost due to injury over this 15-year period.

IL data for every Major League Baseball player (pitchers and position players) from the 2010 to 2024 regular seasons were collected using publicly available sources, including player demographics, IL placements, body part injured, and length of each IL stay. Player salaries were compiled to determine the "financial loss" per injury.

Across 15 seasons, 8078 players were placed on the IL, totaling 478,085 days. The mean IL placements/year was 634, and the annual number increased by an additional 27 injuries/year (P < .001). Mean total IL days/season was 31,872, and this increased year-over-year (P = .008). Shoulder injuries represented the most IL placements (n = 1555), followed by elbow (n = 1344) and upper leg (n = 769). Elbow injuries averaged the most days missed/IL placement (mean: 93, median: 74) and the greatest total days missed (129,610), followed by shoulder (95,189). Pitchers comprised 55% of IL placements and most commonly injured their shoulder or elbow. Infielders and outfielders accounted for 21% and 16% of IL placements, respectively. A total financial loss of $9,636,753,291 was accumulated over 15 seasons. Financial loss increased season-to-season (+$32,309,178/year, P = .002). Elbow injuries accounted for the highest financial loss at $1,932,048,168 ($1,379,049 lost/injury). In 2024, $2,220,432 was lost/elbow injury, $1,110,573/shoulder injury, $1,397,322/any injury, and $952,973,760 total for the season.

This study observed that the number of players, IL placements, days spent on the IL, and financial loss due to injury increased steadily each year. Pitchers were the most frequently injured players with shoulder and elbow injuries being most common. Over the 15-season study period, there was a total financial loss of nearly $9.7 billion due to salary paid to injured players, with elbow injuries contributing the highest loss at just under $2 billion.

Injury trends and financial data from Major League Baseball highlight the growing burden of shoulder and elbow injuries, particularly in pitchers. These findings underscore the need for orthopaedic surgeons to focus on prevention, early intervention, and optimized surgical management of high-impact injuries to reduce long-term morbidity and associated financial costs at the elite level.