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Matt D’Amico

Prof. Leonard

English 1201

25 March 2020

Sport Specialization: Is it Hurting Athletes?

Today, many student athletes find themselves having to quit multiple sports and instead

dedicate themselves to only one sport in order to play at a high school varsity level, and possibly

beyond. This was the case for Adam Schomburg, a baseball player from Springboro, Ohio. Like

most high school athletes, he played several sports growing up, including basketball, soccer, and

baseball, but he ended up quitting every sport in order to focus on baseball. During the winter of

his sophomore year, Adam suffered an unexpected injury. Years of pitching without any long-

term rest had worn down his body, and an MRI showed that he had torn muscle in his ankle.

Fortunately, after months of physical therapy, he was able to recover from this injury, and is

currently a pitcher at Ashland University. Adam was fortunate enough to make a full recovery

from his injury, but the choice to specialize in baseball had almost cost him his entire career.

The strategy for student athletes to only play a particular sport to improve their chances is

referred to as sport specialization, and is becoming more popular as the level of competitiveness

in high school sports rises. Though possibly increasing the chance to make the team, it ultimately

hurts an athlete’s time spent playing throughout the season and their entire athletic career.

Student athletes should play more than one sport rather than specializing in only one because it

helps to prevent injuries, both short and long term, and it lowers the chance of burnout due to

pressure, overuse, and disinterest.

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According to writer Robert Malina of Current Sports Medicine Reports, it is believed that

the idea of specializing in a particular sport began around Eastern Europe, specifically former

communist nations. Malina says that these countries began kids of high talent at the ages of 3 and

4 in year-round, intense physical training. He describes that these countries felt a desire to win in

all areas of countries of the West, including the United States of America. To defeat these

countries in events such as the Olympics, the prodigious children were put through tough

training, and spent most of their lives perfecting their craft. The media coverage of these young

children likely led to the widespread use of sport specialization throughout these Eastern

European nations as a way to get ahead.

Malina believes this trend began in the United States during the 1990s. He writes that

coaches from these nations migrated to the United States, ultimately implementing these ideas of

specialization into their new programs in an attempt to become elite. These ideas were accepted

by parents, who became major players in the spread of sport specialization across the United

States. In a study titled Developing Talent in Young People by Benjamin Bloom, a psychologist

who studied mastery learning, showed that children who excelled in a certain area, including

music, sports, and education, at a young age were subject to child-centered homes. This means

that the parents became very involved with their child’s interests, and were more controlling of

other aspects of the child’s lives.

Further education also becomes a big motivator and influencer for parents to become

more involved in their child’s early lives. Sports is seen as a large venue to earn scholarship

money, and the practice of “educational redshirting,” or holding a child back a year in preschool,

is becoming more and more common. The purpose of holding a child back, causing the child to

be a year older than their peers, is to improve chances of success in sports at a middle and high
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school level. An educational redshirt allows for a child to have an extra year of maturity and size

over their opponents and teammates, which means the young athlete will hopefully stand out and

perform at a higher rate in hopes of earning a sport scholarship when they graduate high school.

A study taken by Malina on the graduating class of 2000, however, shows that the

chances of receiving money for athletics is very low. Of the classes, only a mere 2.2% of girls

and 2.0% of boys were given any sort of scholarship money, and of those small percentages,

none were held back at a young age. Also, only 1.2% of those students received a full

scholarship. So, according to these statistics, the chance of getting any sort of scholarship is low,

and financial aid received most likely won’t cover on campus rent and food services. His

research shows that the idea of educational redshirting is flawed and does not improve the

chances of receiving a sports scholarship when graduating.

Additionally, some parents have hopes of a child going farther and becoming a

professional at their sport. Jessica J. McClelland of Otterbein University found that 1 in 4 parents

who have a child that specialized in a school sport has aspirations of them playing at a

professional level. She also found that parental income plays a big factor in sport specialization

and professional dreams as well. In families whose base income is below $50,000, the

percentage jumps to 39%, despite only 0.05% of baseball players who play at a varsity level will

go on to play professionally, and a meager 0.0004% of basketball players at the same level will

play professional basketball.

Another very common idea that leads parents into persuading their child into specializing

in a particular sport, according to Dr. Greg Rose, is the 10 Year Rule. This rule was created

based on studies in the fields of music and mathematics, and says that a person must go through

10 years of repetition and training before a person will be considered an expert and experience
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international success. After studies on Tiger Woods, professional golfer, and Roger Federer,

professional tennis player, this rule was then applied to most sports. Both Federer and Woods

had decided to specialize in their particular sports, and both were used as sports examples of the

10 Year Rule.

On the contrary, research on some Olympic athletes shows that specialization is not

required to be an expert at a sport, and that the idea of the 10 Year Rule could be flawed. A 2013

study by TPI on current US Olympians shows that they played approximately 3 different sports

during their adolescence. This data disproves the credibility of the 10 Year Rule, and shows that

it is not always applicable to every young athlete looking to achieve success at an expert level.

One of these athletes is Jordan Spieth, professional golfer. Jordan credits his ability to golf at a

professional level not to hours of practice at the driving range, but instead the other sports he

played growing up that kept his love for the game of golf. Along with golf, Spieth grew up as his

high school’s starting quarterback in football, point guard in basketball, and pitcher in baseball.

Another flaw of the 10 Year Rule leads into another large point that shows why athletes

who play multiple sports experience longer careers. Overuse is a very common concept in sports

today. When an athlete spends an increased amount of time playing a particular sport, they are

working on the same motions repetitively. The most common sport that experiences overuse,

according to MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred, is baseball. In baseball, overuse is

experienced when a player constantly swings a bat or throws a ball. Manfred describes that

children growing up play year-round for multiple teams, dissuading a player from taking the

allotted rest needed to let a player’s body rest from these repetitive motions.

Manfred stated that two years ago, many pitchers who were drafted had to have TJ, or

Tommy John surgery. This surgery is done in order to repair a torn ligament in the elbow that is
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caused by overuse of a pitcher’s arm. Many pitchers have had to go through Tommy John

surgery due to overuse. Former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz had to get Tommy John

surgery during his long professional career. Unlike many youth baseball players, Smoltz didn’t

have his surgery until he was 34 years old, and was already an established verteran and

champion. During a televised speech, Smoltz claimed that it isn’t normal for kids to have surgery

during their adolescent years, and that baseball isn’t meant to be a year-long sport. He believes

that young athletes should try other sports and stay active through different activities. Smoltz

credits that he didn’t experience his elbow injury until the late stages of his career due to

growing up playing multiple sports. As well as baseball, Smoltz also played basketball and

football, and received All-State honors for baseball and football in Michigan. Today, Smoltz is

an activist for youth athletes to enjoy multiple sports, and credited these early injuries in a later

interview to athletes working too hard and competing too early. He believes that the only way to

take care of a player’s future in a sport is to give enough time to rest and play other sports in the

offseason.

(“The
Athletes in youth sports are Multi-Sport versus Single-Sport
inclined to compete too hard due to the rising level of
Athlete.”)
competitiveness, since more kids are playing sports than in previous years. According to this

graphic, the number of youth athletes in America in 2008 was at 60 million. They estimated that

this number could potentially be over 100 million today.

Baseball isn’t the only sport that has been looked at for effects of athletes who partake in

sport specialization versus multisport athletes. Dr. Caitlin Rugg, Dr. Adarsh Kadoor, Dr. Brian

Feeley, and Dr. Nirav Pandaya of the University of California, San Diego took a study in 2017

on players in the NBA, or the National Basketball Association. They interviewed as well as

collected data on players who were active between 2008 and 2015. They researched which sports
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each player participated in between the ages of 15 and 18, any injuries they suffered during their

professional career, percentage of games played during a span of 7 years, and if they were still

active by 2015.

A total of 237 players were used for their study, and the data proved their hypothesis

correct. Of the basketball players included, 36 played multiple sports, and 201 played only

basketball. So, of the 237 included, only 15% played multiple sports. The researchers found that

the mere 36 multisport athletes were 18% less likely to have sustained injuries during this time.

Additionally, it was found that the 15 played in an average of 6% more games, and that their

careers were 13% longer than the single sport athletes. In their conclusion, they said basketball

players who played multiple sports growing up played in more games per season and had few

injuries. Additionally, they played at a professional level for more years.

A similar study was done by Eric Post of the University of California-Davis, Stephanie

Trigsted of the University of Wisconsin, and Jeremy Riekena of New York Presbyterian

Hospital. Unlike the previous study, this group focused their research on young athletes,

specifically a group between the ages of 12 to 18. The study was to find research backing up the

theory that sport specialization led to injuries and shorter playing careers. They had 2011 youth

athletes, 990 female and 1021 male, complete a survey regarding their athletic history,

participation, and injury history.

Their survey found that extremely specialized athletes, or athletes who played their

specialized sport for at least 75% of a year, were more likely to have experienced overuse

injuries. Additionally, they found that athletes that played for more hours weekly than their age

(i.e. a 17 year-old playing for 17 hours), which is endorsed by Dr. Katherine Coyner of

University of Connecticut Health, were more likely to report an injury of any type. So, the
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researchers concluded that highly specialized athletes were more likely to have a history of

injuries, independent of age, sex, or weekly training volume. Also, athletes who played above the

recommended time per week were much more likely to experience injuries of any kind. The

graph below is from the research of Dr. Neeru Jayanthi, and shows that the chance of injury

increases as more time is spent practicing the same sport per week without interruption. In this

case, an interruption would be a player experiencing spending their time playing another sport, or

doing something else physically active.

Another large effect of early sport specialization is referred to as burnout. As defined by

(“Sports Specialization in Young Athletes: Evidence-

Based Recommendations.”)

Jessica J. McClelland, sports burnout “is characterized by chronic physical and mental fatigue,

decreased performance, loss of passion and desire for sport, and ultimately the cessation of

participation in sport.” Sport specialization often leads to burnout, due to an increase in

organized sport participation, which McClelland describes as not allowing young athletes to

simply have fun. She compares a specialized sport to a job, and children often experience

burnout because the sport becomes work and isn’t as enjoyable.

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In an article in Sports Medicine, Dr. J. Pieter Hommen talks about burnout and how

dangerous it is for athletes who choose to specialize. He says that signs of burnout, specifically

inconsistent participation due to too much pressure, should be monitored closely. Also, training

should be neuromuscular, which means including both nerves and muscles, and should be very

diverse. Hommen says that training should include more than just the nerves and muscles needed

for a particular sport or position. An example of this would be for baseball players to

occasionally take certain repetitions opposite handed, like a right-handed batter taking batting

practice swinging left-handed.

Dr. Neeru Jayanthi of Emory University led a study on young athletes, specifically

looking at the lengths of their athletic careers compared to when they began specialization. They

also looked for signs of burnout and injuries experienced during their playing careers. The study

concluded there is no evidence that suggests a child specializing in a particular sport will achieve

elite status in that particular sport. He found that swimmers on the US National Team who

specialized early went on to spend less time playing for the US National team, and several

stopped playing early due to burnout. Additionally, players in the American Hockey League who

started on-ice training earlier were found to retire earlier than those who started later, and

Jayanthni noted a study on a group of rhythmic gymnasts who specialized from the age of 4 to 16

experienced on average more injuries and less fun than those who played multiple sports.

Dr. Timothy Neal of Concordia University Ann Arbor looked at the use of the phrase

“more is better” in comparison to sports and burnout. He said that in the terms of constant,

repetitive activity for a youth athlete, the phrase does not apply, and can hurt a young athlete

both mentally and physically. He also uses a great example of the collective bargaining

agreements used in professional sports, which offer the players a mandated period of rest to
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recover from the long seasons. This is often looked over in youth sports, as most teams who

expect elite status of their athletes practice year-round and offer little to no periods of rest. Neal

also gave a list of many different types of ways to detect burnout, including diminished

performance, a lowered self-esteem, and even psychological responses, such as a higher heart

rate. Neal’s two best strategies he gave for avoiding burnout and the causes behind it were rest

and time away from the sport. He also suggests having a child who is experiencing early stages

of burnout to try another sport, even at a recreational level, in order to avoid these effects of

burnout.

Sport specialization is a commonality in today’s world, and it is on the rise in recent

years. Believing to be stemmed from Eastern European countries in an attempt to reach an elite

status, the demands that coaches who believe in specialization make are actually harmful to the

well-being of young athletes. This year-round, repetitive work, training, and practice can often

lead to overuse injuries that will ultimately affect a player’s time on the field, as well as the

longevity of their playing career. Additionally, the stresses of playing at such a level often lead to

mental health issues in young athletes, and can cause a player to lose their love and interest in the

game. This is referred to as burnout, and the many forms of burnout make it so hard to detect in

an athlete and may cause them to experience a disinterest in the sport. Sport specialization has

become so popular due to the belief that it can improve an athlete’s competitive chances.

However, this is a rare case, and it is more likely that specialization will lead to overuse injuries

and burnout from too much pressure and repetition.

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Works Cited

Hommen, J. Pieter. “The Multi-Sport versus Single-Sport Athlete.” Dr. J. Pieter Hommen

- Orthopedic Surgeon & Sports Medicine, www.hommenorthopedics.com/blog/the-multi-

sport-versus-single-sport-athlete-12133.html. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

Jayanthi, Neeru, et al. “Sports Specialization in Young Athletes: Evidence-Based

Recommendations” Sports Health, SAGE Publications, May 2013,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3658407/. Accessed 28 Mar. 2020.

Malina, Robert M. “Early Sport Specialization: Roots, Effectiveness, and Risks : Current Sports
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Medicine Reports.” LWW, https://journals.lww.com/acsm-

csmr/Fulltext/2010/11000/Early_Sport_Specialization__Roots,_Effectiveness,.14.aspx.

Accessed 25 Mar. 2020.

McClelland, Jessica J. “EARLY SPORT SPECIALIZATION: OVERUSE INJURY &

BURNOUT.” Digital Commons at Otterbein, Otterbein University, 30 Apr. 2016,

digitalcommons.otterbein.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?

referer=www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1006&context=stu_master. Accessed

28 Mar. 2020.

Neal, Timothy. “Burnout in Athletes.” NATA, National Athletic Trainer's Association, 14 July

2016, www.nata.org/blog/beth-sitzler/burnout-athletes. Accessed 29 Mar. 2020.

Post, Eric G. “The Association of Sport Specialization and Training Volume With Injury History

in Youth Athletes.” The American Journal of Sports Medicine, Mar. 2017,

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/314979249_The_Association_of_Sport_Special

ization_and_Training_Volume_With_Injury_History_in_Youth_Athletes. Accessed 23

Mar. 2020.

Rose, Greg.“Time Required for Developing Expertise and the 10 Year Rule.” MyTPI,

www.mytpi.com/articles/juniors/time_required_for_developing_expertise_and_the_10_y

ear_rule. Accessed 27 Mar. 2020.

Rugg, Caitlin. “The Effects of Playing Multiple High School Sports on National

Basketball Association Players’ Propensity for Injury and Athletic Performance.”

Sinclair College Off-Campus Authentication Form, 9 Feb. 2018,

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https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321074276_The_Effects_of_Playing_Multiple_

High_School_Sports_on_National_Basketball_Association_Players'_Propensity_for_Inju

ry_and_Athletic_Performance. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.