PG Tech Game Changers: Peak Speeds, Gains

Blake Dowson

Photo: Perfect Game

"We talk about 'fast twitch' athletes a lot, and peak speeds in a player's swing are a measurement of that beyond the eye test. Speed gains allow us to see if a player can efficiently transfer energy from the ground up, which supplies power to the swing."

-Jered Goodwin, Perfect Game National Scouting Director

What are Peak Speeds and Speed Gains?

Kinematic peak speeds are rotational velocities of body segments during a swing. Your kinematic peak speeds are the fastest speeds during a swing.

Speed gains are the amount of speed added to the segment that reaches peak speed next in the kinematic sequence. Speed gain is an indicator that speed is building up the kinetic chain. This gives insight into efficient energy transfer, strength, control, and ultimately power.

What does that mean?

Peak speeds are simply a measurement of how fast each body part in your sequence moves during your swing. "Elite" numbers will look different for different body types at different stages of development, but as a rule of thumb, these are average peak speeds of fully mature, elite players:

(1) Pelvis: 600+ degrees/second
(2) Torso: 850+ deg/s
(3) Arm: 1100+ deg/s
(4) Hand: 1800+ deg/s

Speed Gains occur when your body is working well together. These numbers tell you how much speed is gained when energy is transferred from the ground up (in that same 1-2-3-4 sequence) from one body part to the next during your swing. Again, "elite" numbers here look different for different bodies, but these are average speed gains of fully mature, elite players:

(1) Pelvis to Torso: more than 250 degrees/second
(2) Torso to Arm: more than 250 deg/s
(3) Arm to Hand: more than 500 deg/s

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PG Tech Game Changers: Peak Speed Sequence

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