Electrical Stimulation for Baseball Players / Pitchers (E-stim)

Electrical Stimulation, or e-stim, uses an electrical current to cause a single muscle or group of muscles to contract. By placing electrodes on the baseball player or pitcher's skin in various locations, the trainer can recruit the appropriate muscle fibers. While strengthening the muscle through contracting via e-stim is still debated, it is true that the contraction of the muscle promotes blood supply to the area and assists in healing. The trainer can also change the current setting to allow for a forceful or gentle muscle contraction depending on the players tolerance.

Baseball players and pitchers usually use the e-stim or electrical stimulation after they throw or pitch in a game or if they are rehabbing an injury. The e-stim can be used before working out, hitting, throwing, or pitching, as a warm up.

The contractions create blood flow, thus helping the player warm up. The can be used in this situation with a hot pack. The e-stim can also be used after a workout, hitting, throwing, or pitching in combination with ice. A lot of pitchers use this technique to try to shorten their recovery time between outtings. One last way the e-stim or electrical stimulation can be used is in combination with the ultra sound. While this is not too common in the baseball community, it has been done, and is still a reputable way of treatment for sore muscles, or recovering from and injury.

I personally have an e-stim machine that I can take home with me from the baseball field so I can get some extra electrical stimulation at home. The portable e-stim machine I have is a TENS unit called BioMed 2000xl. One of my trainers ordered it for me so I assume it is one of the best one the market. I love it and it works great on me. I like to use it after throwing to help with recovery.

I try to only have it on for 15-20 mins for 2 to 3 times, but sometimes it feels to good so it stays on a little longer. If you are a baseball player or pitcher and want to get the same TENS unit e-stim machine I have, I will leave a link for it here: BioMed 2000xl e-stim machine