Ranking the 2021 College World Series Pitchers by DVS Score
The ranking of pitchers in the 2021 College World Series by DVS Score (pitching mechanics) revealed 44% of pitchers are at high risk of a throwing injury while 16% of pitchers are at low risk. The results are similar to our MLB injury statistics and further illustrate that most pitchers from amateur baseball to professional baseball are at high risk and don't even know it.
The purpose of this article isn't to dwell on the injury risk of amateur pitchers but to highlight the 16% of pitchers, including two of the biggest stars in the College World Series, Jack Leiter and Landen Sims, and how they can become positive examples of long-term success and longevity.
The graph above shows as a pitcher’s DVS Score increases, the relative percent risk of major throwing injury decreases.
How do we know if a pitcher is at more or less risk of a throwing injury? For the last seven years, we have used our proprietary Delivery Value System. The Delivery Value System is the biomechanics model used by DVS Baseball to analyze baseball pitchers. The model objectively evaluates the sequence of a pitcher's delivery using manual markerless motion capture. The Delivery Value System consists of six components of sequencing in the delivery, which are summed into an overall score; the DVS Score.
One of the Delivery Value System benefits is that it allows us to analyze large pitchers' groups based on their in-game pitching delivery. In addition, since we are quantifying the sequencing of movements, we don't need to measure the joints' speed and acceleration, which are frequently produced in a traditional biomechanics lab.
This article provides a DVS Score, injury risk coefficient, and velocity potential for all 57 pitchers we scored in this analysis. First, I'll walk you through a sample report to give you clarification when clicking on a pitcher's report. Let's use Jack Leiter's report as an example.
Jack Leiter’s DVS Report
The three red circles highlight the three main factors when viewing a pitcher’s report. From left to right above, the DVS Score, injury risk coefficient, and velocity potential. Here are some key points to understand about the three metrics.
The DVS Score, first red circle, ranges from 0-24, high risk to low risk, and provides an objective score to rate the pitcher’s overall level of sequencing through his pitching delivery. Jack Leiter currently has a DVS Score of 17.
Categories of risk by DVS Score are as follows.
High risk (0-12)
Moderate risk (13-15)
Low risk (16-19)
Minimal risk (20-24)
The injury risk coefficient, second red circle, for this analysis is based just off the components of a pitcher’s DVS Score. The data to determine the injury risk coefficient is derived from thousands of MLB pitcher’s who have analyzed through our IR Model. Two pitchers may have the same DVS Score, but two entirely different injury risk coefficients based of the combination of components that make up the DVS Score. Jack Leiter has a .78 coefficient which means he’s 22% less at risk of a major throwing injury than the average MLB pitcher.
The velocity potential, third red circle, is built of 5 years of tracking DVS Score improvement from pitchers in the United Shore Professional Baseball. Simply improving components of a pitcher’s DVS Score, can improve average fastball velocity in GAMES during the SEASON. In this case, if Jack Leiter maxed out those components, he could expect a potential 3.2 mph increase in his average fastball.
Overall, Jack Leiter is an example of a pitcher who is close to maximizing his performance potential and is a great choice for MLB Teams looking to select a pitcher than can have immediate impact to their organization and be a low risk of injury over the next several years.
Results
57 total pitchers were analyzed and scored using the Delivery Value System during the 2021 College World Series. Pitchers who pitched in a game but didn’t receive a DVS Score lacked insufficient video evidence to complete the DVS Score. The bar chart below highlights the distribution of DVS Scores amongst all pitchers with the DVS Scores of Mississippi State overlaid on top.
The average DVS Score of 12. 9 is slightly below the average DVS Score of MLB pitchers at 14. Only 9 pitchers received a DVS Score of 16 or higher.
Top 5 DVS Scores
Houston Harding, LHP - Mississippi State
Pete Hansen, LHP - Texas
Jack Leiter, RHP - Vanderbilt
Nick Maldonado, RHP - Vanderbilt
Landen Sims, RHP - Vanderbilt
57
Total Pitchers
12.9
Avg DVS Score
18
High DVS Score
44%
Pitchers at High Risk
Below you will find a breakdown of each team that participated in the 2021 College World Series with a clickable report for each player that was scored.
Arizona
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Mississippi State
Team DVS Scores
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
NC State
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Stanford
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Tennessee
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Texas
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Vanderbilt
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Virginia
DVS Score Distribution
Player Reports
Click on the pitchers name below to view full report.
Conclusion
The most important conclusion for a pitcher reading this article is that if your DVS Score places you at high risk of injury, it doesn't mean you have to stay at increased risk of injury and improve your velocity and success in the game. Once a pitcher becomes aware and understands the movements associated with his DVS Score, the process to improve the sequencing of those movements begins. On average, a pitcher can improve his DVS Score by as much as 3 points in 3 months if he puts forth the necessary time and focus. Recently, we had a player in the USPBL, named Malik Barrington, improve his DVS Score from a 13 to a 17. Not only did he improve his pitching metrics indicated below, his chances of improving his status of becoming an MLB prospect also enhanced.
Improving the DVS Score also means improving the ability for your body and arm to be in proper sequence, thus allowing consistency at ball release for all pitchers. In addition, this simple concept helps create a pitcher's ability to tunnel his pitches and the depth of movement of pitchers within the zone.
Landon Sims was dominant for Mississippi State during the 2021 CWS. In the clinching game to advance to the finals, Sims a DVS Score of 17 was more effective than Quintanilla, a DVS Score of 13.
This year has proven that pitching injuries continue to manifest at all levels of the game. But suppose we focus on what's happened from the top down this year in MLB. In that case, we see the minor league organizations being depleted due to throwing injuries and inconsistency in performance. The emphasis and culture of baseball that has become obsessed with velocity only accelerates a pitcher's time to injury, especially with a low DVS Score.
AS MLB prepares for the upcoming 2021 draft, each organization is hopeful they can re-stock their organization with promising young arms. But as our statistics indicate, within a couple of years, many pitchers drafted this year will undergo a significant throwing injury if no adjustment is made. Overall, if you want to make money in baseball, you must stay healthy for several years after you are drafted, be consistent, and have proved your value year after year to earn your big payday, and a higher DVS Score can help.
