Persistent Sore Back

When I was coaching, we had a player around age 13/14 develop a persistent soreness in his back and it turned out to be a stress fracture of one of the vertebrae. If I remember correctly, it was caused by a growth spurt and/or overuse (sorry, I can't remember the specifics). 

It might be worth a trip to a dr. for an xray/mri to rule that out and perhaps get him into some physical therapy/treatment (assuming it isn't anything more serious).

With 2017, he was told he had weak hips in relation to other muscles and it created strain (too much leg work without any real hip work during summer).  PT helped solve the issue and work towards getting muscles in sync - laid off leg work and focused on hips.  No back pain since.  If he has really muscular legs/thighs in comparison to overall size (high squat weight) that could be the issue or a contributing issue.

It definitely seems muscular (as opposed to skeletal).  Although his body is lean, he is very muscular and his legs are like solid tree trunks.

My son is also a 2020, and has had back issues, though he has a specific back condition(Scheuermanns Variant).  Now, that's not the same, but wanted to relay the info.  He also had a bit of a growth spurt last year, he just went past 6' and not rail thin but strong/lean at around 155 lbs,  growing 2" this past year, but more like 4-5" the year before, when the problems began.  I know there are some 6' 180lb man childs out there at 14, but not him.

We did go to an Ortho and ended up going to PT, and have followed that up with him working with a personal trainer.  The focus, per the Ortho and PT, was core strengthening to support his back.  He goes 2x a week usually, and they do a lot of core work, but do hit legs as well and introduced some lifting.  Core work is the focus, to support his back, and is good for him anyway.  In addition, his baseball training 2-3x a week, has about 1 to 1-1/2 hours of training, but that's more of your dynamic/agility style exercises.  Overall, it has been great, especially working with the personal trainer.  

He's not the most athletic kid, partially I think due to not having the strength to handle his height, but the past 6 months has brought some noticeable improvement.  He's improved in many areas, speed, big increases in things like box jumps, etc.

The most important thing is that, other than a minor soreness for one day, he has had no back pain in the past year, or anything he's told us.  If he ignores this, it could result in kyphosis later on, which is my concern, far more than anything baseball/sports related.  Knock on Wood big time that it continues well.

A visit to the Ortho or at the least a PT for an injury screen(often free) may be worthwhile, just to rule something out and/or catch it early.  In any event, my son has benefited very much from the strength work.  

Best of luck to your son on getting this behind him and the upcoming season!

My 2017 went through similar over 12-14 month period.  Went back and forth with pain as it would feel good for a while then tweak it again swinging.  It turned out to be internal hip rotation as his core wasn't strong enough to support the hundreds of swings and pitches(hits and pitches from right side).  One of the giveaways was that it appeared that one leg was longer then the other when he stood.  Rest, then PT to rotate the hips back in place relieved pressure on the SI joints and a strengthening program geared towards that body part.  All started during a 6" growth spurt and doctor said its common among baseball players during early teen growth spurts.  Concerned that it was stress fracture but ruled out right away.

Don't put off seeing doc as it may be a simple PT program that will make immediate results.

Our 2017 had lower back issue in 8th grade. He originally strained it putting on the brakes rounding third when coach changed his mind.  He rested, iced, etc., and got nowhere. Went to sports doc at Kaiser, who saw nothing wrong but recommended shoe inserts to help with posture as well as yoga and stretching. No progress. His current HS coach, who at that time was giving him occasional hitting lessons, recommended seeing a chiropractor.  Bingo.  Good as new after just 3-4 visits. 

Go to a chiropractor - after you find one that knows and understands sports medicine.  Lots of posts on here about it.  Have done this for myself throughout my soccer and powerlifting career and have had my oldest do the same for various aliments over the years.  If you find a good one, they do not perform adjustments just because you showed up, but only if you need one.  I can tell you that my regular doctor and orthopedic surgeon both recommend chiropractic medicine for issues with your lower back - go figure.  Maybe it's not witchcraft after all.

Your son is at an age, with a growth spurt, where pars fracture and spondylolisis is common.  Some have even called it an epidemic in our area.

Not trying to scare you, but you might Google those terms, and see if the symptoms match. 

If so, I would highly recommend you visit a doctor specialist who can take X-Rays, and they may order an MRI.  It needs to be a specialist so they know what to look for, and also how to order the right X-Rays.  It is worth traveling a bit to find the right specialist for this issue if that's what it is.

This is not going to get better with ibuprofin.  See a sports medicine doctor and quit playing around.

/rant over

Thanks to everyone who replied. He has an appt this week with the doc.  

Not sure why Sultanofswat felt the need to accuse me of being careless with my kid's health. It's not THAT unusual for an athlete to pull a muscle, get better, then pull it again.  When it happened a third time, I came here for help from other parents who may have had to deal with the same problem.

Thankfully many people offered constructive advice and insight instead of criticizing me when I was simply seeking answers.  Jeez.