The chin up v. pull up debate has been mulled over by the baseball community for quite some time now.  We all know that performing either or both of these exercises is the key to developing strong, wide back.  Yet, some say pull-ups are harmful for throwing athletes, and it’s hard to know what to believe.

First off, the difference: a chin-up is done with a supinated (palms facing) grip, as opposed to the pronated (palms away) pull-up grip.

The baseball fitness community seems to be accepting of chin-ups just fine; the issue is with pull-ups, which are supposedly the cause of too much rotator cuff stress, hypertrophy, and tightness.

Why are pull-ups associated with such negatives for throwing athletes, whereas chin-ups are not?

The noteworthy difference between the two, as far as rotator cuff stress is concerned, is in the arm placement.  On pull-ups, especially with wide grips, the arms are externally rotated, which causes more recruitment (and stress) of the rotator cuff.  I agree with avoiding wide pull ups because of the high amount of rotator cuff strain.

A wide pull up - note the externally rotated arms

Chin up; note the arms are tucked close to the body, keeping the focus on the back

Because of the supinated grip on chin-ups, the arms track closer to the body, resulting in far less rotator cuff recruitment.  The arms simply cannot flare outward as easily on chin-ups, until the grip gets extremely wide.  Yet, the arms can stay tucked on close-grip and neutral grip pull-ups as well…

Close-grip Pull up; Notice the arm position - a carbon copy of the chin up

So, if the salient difference between pull ups and chin ups is arm position (externally rotated or not) then anyone who accepts chin ups into their training program (hopefully everyone -they’re a crucial strength builder for ALL athletes) should accept close-grip pull ups as well, as long as they are done with a focus on keeping the arms tucked to the sides of the body.

Neutral grip pull up - also a great choice

Mix up your overhead pulling exercises to challenge your grip strength.  A chin up grip will work the biceps and forearm flexors of the arms more, while a close or neutral grip pull up will help beef up the forearm extensors, including the brachioradialis.  The verdict: use chin ups and pull ups, but keep those arms out of external rotation.