Blogged with Flock

Embedded Video

Blogged with Flock

Don Mattingly: The people who want you to vote for him say he was great before he hurt his back. Well let me tell you something: My cousin used to be a math whiz until he fell out of a pickup truck when he was 12 and hit his head on the curb. He couldn't count his fingers after that. Did they let him into MIT anyway? No, they did not. End of parable.

Blogged with Flock

Joe Sheehan from Baseball Analysts writes this great piece about keeping the ball on the ground.  He notes two things:

"...What was a little surprising to me is how the groundball percentage of every pitch decreases at almost the same rate with increasing height."

And that sinkers have a "...huge advantage... in generating grounders compared to any other pitch. "

Best part about a sinker?  It won't wreck a young arm, because you don't twist your wrist.  Here's how Jake Westbrook does it.

Blogged with Flock

YO BRO IT’S ME LITTY » Blog Archive » The Steroid Name Game

My faves:

Pudge
He slimmed down, to the tune of 30lbs, during one off-season. Someone switched from peaches and cream for breakfast to just peaches.

Glenallen Hill
He didn’t swing. He flexed his chest and the bat moved.

Blogged with Flock

Major League Rule 3 (b) (5), which states no contract shall be approved "if it contains a bonus for playing, pitching or batting skill or if it provides for the payment of a bonus contingent on the standing of the signing club at the end of the championship season."

Blogged with Flock

We used to have a guy on my street who pitched like this, but he didn't have the same kind of velocity.  I'd say this is as unhittable as you can get.

1985, 1987, Ojeda and the hedge clipper, Orel Hershiser, they can't hit for El Sid, trading Randall K for no Johnny no, Ojeda for Hubie Brooks,  Wally Whitehurst, Trading Coney away, Pete Schourek and Eric Hillman, Anthony Young keeps losing and losing and losing, the worst team money can buy, Bret Saberhagan, Vince Coleman, Bobby Bo, Gooden's demons, I don't think McReynold's saw it right away, The Future: Pulsipher, Isringhausen, and Wilson, Butch Huskey, Bernard "I'll never hit like this" Gilkey, Kent for Baerga, Carlos Baerga, Rey Ordonez, Hideous Nomo, the Todd Hundley in leftfield experiment, Mel Rojas,  Piazza driving in 100 meaningless runs a year and grounding out into 100 double plays a year, Armando Benetiz...  Armando friggin' Benetiz, Kenny Rogers can't throw a strike, Izzy for Billy Taylor, Todd Zeile, Subway Series, Piazza plunked, Roger Clemens tossing wood, Mo Vaughn, Roger Cedeno, Jeromy Burnitz, Shawn Estes, Roberto Alomar, Tom Glavine, the Mike Piazza at first experiment, Kaz "I am under contract for $7 million to play short, even though I can't field the position" Matsui, Anna Benson, Victor "This is the guy we got for Kazmir?"  Zambrano, Doug Mientkiewicz, Kaz Ishii, Duaner Sanchez's cab ride, Mota juiced, Lima Time, Wright's second half slump, Shawn Green, Pedro hurt, The Catch... and they still lose, Yadier Molina, losing Bradford, Oliver, Bell and Bannister, Carlos Delgado, Reyes's second half slump, Mike Pelfrey, The Poison Pen, The Collapse.

They'll break your heart, these Mutts.