No.
I hate sites that don’t answer simple questions. So, no, you cannot play baseball with a pulled hamstring. Stick around a little bit and I’ll explain.
Bartolo Colon is a pitcher for the Yankees and his 2011 season is going pretty good given he’s a pitcher in the American league. The problem is his hamstring. He strained it, pulled it and is headed to the 15 day disabled list.
What is your hamstring? Running behind your knee, it is a group of muscles that go from your thigh to your calf. They are strong, very fibrous muscles that allow you flex and bend your leg.
How do you use your hamstring in baseball? Baseball is a surprisingly physically demanding sport. You use your hamstring in baseball for running, obviously, but also hitting and pitching. In hitting, the hamstring is used to anchor your legs and to provide a push when hitting the baseball. In pitching the hamstring is even more critical as it provides the strength needed to launch the baseball towards the plate. When you pull your hamstring you do suffer power loss, but more significant is your body preventing you from using it. Your body isn’t stupid, so it signals your brain to stop using or back off using your hamstring through pain signals.
Can you play baseball with a pulled hamstring? Not really. All aspects of the game rely on your ability to run, throw or hit, so the limitations of the pulled hamstring are too much to overcome.
How long does it take to recover from a pulled hamstring? It depends on the severity of the injury, but usually it is two weeks. The more you’ve injured your hamstring in the past, the longer it takes to recover.
Will Bartolo Colon recover properly? More than likely, though his pre-injury conditioning may play a part in the time it takes to bounce back.