Scapular Upward Rotation

Scapular Performance is a key component of Shoulder Health and Performance. It is our goal to dig deeper into the details of Scapular mechanics in a baseball player and provide the baseball world with a deeper understanding than just calling everything “Scap Work”.

What Is Upward Rotation?

Scapular Upward Rotation Is the Spinning movement of the Scap bring the Bottom portion toward the Athletes side. The only joint attachment from the Scap to the Trunk is through the Clavicle (Collarbone). This joint allows the pivoting of the Scap into both Upward and Downward Rotation. This is a very important aspect of the throwing arm as the Glenoid of the Scapula is the Foundation of the Shoulder Joint. If our goal is to keep the Humerus centered in the Glenoid at all times, the Scapular position plays just as big of a role in “Shoulder Stability” as the Rotator Cuff does. It’s just working on the opposite side of the equation. The Shoulder and Scap ideally work at a 2:1 ratio. This essentially means when fully overhead at 180 degrees, ~60 of the degrees shoulder come from the Scap Upward rotation and ~120 of the degrees should come from actual shoulder motion.

How Can Lack Of Upward Rotation Lead To Shoulder Impingement? (SA)

⚾️ Subacromial Impingement occurs when either the Supraspinatus Tendon or Bursa Sac get pinched in the Subacromial Space

WHY DOES SCAP UPWARD ROTATION HELP THIS?

✅ The Acromion (Part of the Scap) is the “Roof” of the Subacromial Space. When the Scap is more downwardly rotated, the roof lowers and the space is decreased which increases the chances for pinching. In contrast, Upward Rotation raises the roof and increases the amount of space

Lengthen Downward Rotators That Are Tight

If the muscles that pull the Scapula into Downward Rotation are restricted, this can limit the amount of Upward rotation that the Scap can Achieve:

Lat

The Lat is the Strongest Accelerator of the Throwing arm that we have so we obviously want it to be as Strong and Powerful as possible! We want to throw Gas! However, the issue arises when we don’t also pay attention to and maintain muscle length. If it becomes tight, it will drag our Scapula into a Depressed and Downward Rotated Position. That not an Ideal position to be stuck it. It is normal for the throwing arm to sit a little lower than glove side but we don’t want this to creep into the excessive category.

Rhomboids

This is a HUGE misconception! Yes, Rhomboids play a large role in Scap Retraction but they also play a large role in downward rotating the Scapula. This is part of the reason you can’t ONLY Row your way to optimal Scap function. Additionally, tight Rhomboids can also restrict full Range of motion Protraction. This can also have negative effects that we won’t dig into on this post.

Levator Scapula

Levator Scap plays a role in shrugging the shoulder but also downward rotates the Scap. The same concepts from above apply here. Tightness here can also limit the Posterior Tilt ability of the Scap in addition to neck rotation to the opposite side

Pec Major/Minor

The Pec groups can both depress and Downward rotate the Scap when they are tight. Example: Push your fist down towards the ground and feel your Pecs Activate. Much like the Lat, we need the Pecs to have as high of output as possible, this is just a reminder to also be cognizant of maintaining optimal muscle length.

Strengthen Upward Rotators

Serratus Anterior

Serratus is an incredible Upward Rotator/Posterior Tilter of the Scap. There are many way to train it including all of your Press S&C work, Closed Chain Shoulder Exercises, and Isolated movements such as slides. We believe it makes the most sense to attack them from all three angles.

Upper Trap

The Upper Trap is not the Enemy! Don’t fall into the trap of saying everyone has an “Overactive Upper Trap” or is “In Their Trap”. This is huge downfall in thought processes and needs to change. If an Upper Trap is truly tight, the Scap will sit higher than the opposite side. We find this is rarely the issue. We will do a deep dive into this exact topic next week so we will save the soap box for then.

Low/Mid Trap

There are many good ways to strengthen these, but we prefer motions the force feed them such as Posterior Wall Slides. This combo of Retraction, Upward Rotation, and Posterior tilt will lead your body to use more Low Trap/Mid Trap rather than Rhomboids.