I'm sure you're aware that Lebron James returns to Cleveland this week (with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in tow) for the first time since leaving his hometown team this summer. If he's hoping for the warm welcome that Donovan McNabb got when he went back to Philadelphia as a member of the Redskins, he's about as naive as James Harrison was to think that he wouldn't get fined after stating his intention to "hurt people" in his violent and often questionable collisions on the gridiron. There's enough James-related vitriol in northern Ohio right now to light the Cuyahoga River on fire (again), though I don't think fans/arsonists will actually be dumb enough to set the Quicken Loans Arena aflame no matter how badly they want Lebron to feel their heat; in any case, he's certainly not feeling his own Heat right now, given Miami's barely .500 winning percentage nearly a quarter of the way through the season. If James is really serious about proving his doubters wrong, he won't be affected by angry fans or needling chants, but he should definitely take note of what Michael Jordan says in the video response to his "What Should I Do?" commercial (posted below). Jordan is as savvy and as fiery as they come, and the used-to-be-number-23 James would do well to heed anything his numerical predecessor says. I, for one, hope James plays well and that there are no extracurricular incidents that might throw a wet towel on an already stormy night.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Bear-ing Down: Robert Griffin, Art Briles & Baylor's Quest for Big 12 Respect
Since losing to conference opponent Missouri on Saturday night, the Oklahoma Sooners have fallen all the way to number nine in the BCS standings, momentarily boxed out of the national championship picture by the seven undefeated teams still remaining in college football. They also ceded their position atop the Big 12 North because of the in-conference loss.
The new tenants? The Baylor Bears.
Baylor?
Yes, that Baylor, the school that has yet to post a winning record in 14 seasons as a member of the Big 12. Although it may seem like a sick joke to the other 11 public universities that populate the conference, this is no hoax. In a little less than three seasons, head coach Art Briles has lured the Bears (6-2, 3-1 in Big 12 play) out of their bottom-feeding cave and steered them to bowl-eligible status despite playing in a division that includes two of the last four BCS National Championship participants. These are not uncharted waters for Briles: when he took over as head coach at Houston (his alma mater) in 2003, the Cougars had won eight games in the previous four years, but he managed to lift the program to a 34-28 overall record and four bowl appearances in the next five seasons.
That said, the turnaround at Baylor is not born solely out of Briles' wisdom. The coach does possess one commodity not afforded to any Bears coaches before him: believe it or not, the most valuable quarterback in the Big 12, Robert Griffin III, goes to class in Waco.
"You know, Robert brings a dynamic, energetic quality to your football team," Briles said before this season. "Without a question, we are a different football team [with him playing]."
Hello, understatement.
In his 2008 true freshman campaign, the 6'3" signal-caller from Copperas Cove, TX wowed the whole league, drawing all-conference freshman honors despite playing for an overmatched squad that finished 4-8, not to mention 2-6 in the conference. Griffin's playmaking abilities were prominently displayed even against a schedule that included six bouts with ranked opponents, among them No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 4 Texas, No. 7 Texas Tech and No. 8 Oklahoma State; he threw only three interceptions in those games (they were his only picks of the season) while completing 81 passes, often using his feet to gain ground while covering up shoddy blocking on the offensive line. His end-of-year stats (2,091 yards passing, 843 yards rushing, 28 total touchdowns), though not eye-popping from a yards perspective, established him as an up-and-coming player that belonged in the same category as Ryan Broyles, DeMarco Murray, Kendall Hunter and Roy Helu Jr.
Despite his claim that he "couldn't have had those stats or all the accolades without the 10 other guys on the field," Griffin's importance was highlighted last year when he tore his ACL in a blowout win at Northwestern State. Without Griffin under center, the Bears went 2-7.
"I felt like I let the community down, the fans and those seniors from last year," Griffin said in an interview after the season. He refused to let that disappointment shake his focus. "I don't wanna come back with that 'I'm back' mentality, trying to prove that I'm still the man. I just want to come back, have fun with the guys. I don't think it'll be a drastic change [from before the injury]."
"What we do fits him to a T," Briles said, "so we're just gonna cut loose and play and let Robert do his thing along with everybody else."
After a year of surgery, physical rehabilitation and lots of practice, the political science major returned to the Floyd Casey Stadium turf on September 4th, throwing for 242 yards with two touchdowns and running for another score in the Bears' season-opening win. RG3 was still himself.
""He is the same Rob," offensive tackle Danny Watkins said after the game. "He's still the wizard back there. I mean, at times we weren't clicking on offense but we're going to get better every week."
For the most part, the Bears have done that. They won their next game against Buffalo, with Griffin throwing for 230 yards in the first half of 34-6 victory; since then, Baylor has only been held under 30 points once, dropping a tough game to No. 4 TCU on September 18th in Fort Worth. (The vaunted Horned Frogs defense held Griffin to just 164 yards passing and one touchdown.) Even in a painful 45-38 loss to a streaky Texas Tech team, Griffin passed for 384 yards and two scores and added a pair of touchdowns on the ground.
The bad news for the Bears at this point in the season is that the meat of their schedule is right in front of them. Baylor, which plays 12 straight games from September through November without an idle week, is about to go toe-to-toe with Texas (in Austin) and No. 17 Oklahoma State (in Stillwater) before returning home for games against Texas A&M and No. 9 Oklahoma. In their bid to win the division, the loss to Texas Tech was a huge blow, but there is still some scratching and clawing left in these Bears. Though it's doubtful that Briles' guys will run the table, it isn't ridiculous to believe that they can go 2-2 over that stretch. Texas has trouble scoring; OSU struggled mightily against dual-threat quarterback Taylor Martinez; the Sooners are relatively weak against the run and play suspect red-zone defense; the Aggies have turnover issues. With the right combination of balanced playcalling and on-the-money execution, the Bears can steal a win in any one of these games.
"Like we said from day one: every week is a new season and we are just trying to become a better football team each week," Briles told the media yesterday after beating Kansas State 47-42. "We haven't peaked and that is the encouraging part as a team member and a coach."
Clearly, Griffin and running back Jay Finley need to be playing their best brand of mistake-free football if the Bears are to finish November with a winning record. They need one more win to complete a turnaround season on which they can lay the foundations for next year, but Briles doesn't sound as though he'll be happy with just one. It won't be easy, but the Bears certainly seem capable and motivated to finish the job.
While Griffin remains overshadowed by Terrell Pryor and Darron Thomas, fellow 2008 recruits leading their own November charges at Ohio State and Oregon, he will keep doing 'his thing' for the No. 25 Bears, who are ranked in the Associated Press Poll for the first time since 1991. A win against Texas, OU or Oklahoma State would be huge, though it would totally blow Griffin's cover as an underdog diamond-in-the-rough and potential 2011 Heisman candidate. But that's alright - Baylor believes they still have yet to play their best football. The Big 12 had better take notice.
The new tenants? The Baylor Bears.
Yes, that Baylor, the school that has yet to post a winning record in 14 seasons as a member of the Big 12. Although it may seem like a sick joke to the other 11 public universities that populate the conference, this is no hoax. In a little less than three seasons, head coach Art Briles has lured the Bears (6-2, 3-1 in Big 12 play) out of their bottom-feeding cave and steered them to bowl-eligible status despite playing in a division that includes two of the last four BCS National Championship participants. These are not uncharted waters for Briles: when he took over as head coach at Houston (his alma mater) in 2003, the Cougars had won eight games in the previous four years, but he managed to lift the program to a 34-28 overall record and four bowl appearances in the next five seasons.
That said, the turnaround at Baylor is not born solely out of Briles' wisdom. The coach does possess one commodity not afforded to any Bears coaches before him: believe it or not, the most valuable quarterback in the Big 12, Robert Griffin III, goes to class in Waco.
"You know, Robert brings a dynamic, energetic quality to your football team," Briles said before this season. "Without a question, we are a different football team [with him playing]."
Hello, understatement.
In his 2008 true freshman campaign, the 6'3" signal-caller from Copperas Cove, TX wowed the whole league, drawing all-conference freshman honors despite playing for an overmatched squad that finished 4-8, not to mention 2-6 in the conference. Griffin's playmaking abilities were prominently displayed even against a schedule that included six bouts with ranked opponents, among them No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 4 Texas, No. 7 Texas Tech and No. 8 Oklahoma State; he threw only three interceptions in those games (they were his only picks of the season) while completing 81 passes, often using his feet to gain ground while covering up shoddy blocking on the offensive line. His end-of-year stats (2,091 yards passing, 843 yards rushing, 28 total touchdowns), though not eye-popping from a yards perspective, established him as an up-and-coming player that belonged in the same category as Ryan Broyles, DeMarco Murray, Kendall Hunter and Roy Helu Jr.
Despite his claim that he "couldn't have had those stats or all the accolades without the 10 other guys on the field," Griffin's importance was highlighted last year when he tore his ACL in a blowout win at Northwestern State. Without Griffin under center, the Bears went 2-7.
"I felt like I let the community down, the fans and those seniors from last year," Griffin said in an interview after the season. He refused to let that disappointment shake his focus. "I don't wanna come back with that 'I'm back' mentality, trying to prove that I'm still the man. I just want to come back, have fun with the guys. I don't think it'll be a drastic change [from before the injury]."
"What we do fits him to a T," Briles said, "so we're just gonna cut loose and play and let Robert do his thing along with everybody else."
After a year of surgery, physical rehabilitation and lots of practice, the political science major returned to the Floyd Casey Stadium turf on September 4th, throwing for 242 yards with two touchdowns and running for another score in the Bears' season-opening win. RG3 was still himself.
""He is the same Rob," offensive tackle Danny Watkins said after the game. "He's still the wizard back there. I mean, at times we weren't clicking on offense but we're going to get better every week."
For the most part, the Bears have done that. They won their next game against Buffalo, with Griffin throwing for 230 yards in the first half of 34-6 victory; since then, Baylor has only been held under 30 points once, dropping a tough game to No. 4 TCU on September 18th in Fort Worth. (The vaunted Horned Frogs defense held Griffin to just 164 yards passing and one touchdown.) Even in a painful 45-38 loss to a streaky Texas Tech team, Griffin passed for 384 yards and two scores and added a pair of touchdowns on the ground.
The bad news for the Bears at this point in the season is that the meat of their schedule is right in front of them. Baylor, which plays 12 straight games from September through November without an idle week, is about to go toe-to-toe with Texas (in Austin) and No. 17 Oklahoma State (in Stillwater) before returning home for games against Texas A&M and No. 9 Oklahoma. In their bid to win the division, the loss to Texas Tech was a huge blow, but there is still some scratching and clawing left in these Bears. Though it's doubtful that Briles' guys will run the table, it isn't ridiculous to believe that they can go 2-2 over that stretch. Texas has trouble scoring; OSU struggled mightily against dual-threat quarterback Taylor Martinez; the Sooners are relatively weak against the run and play suspect red-zone defense; the Aggies have turnover issues. With the right combination of balanced playcalling and on-the-money execution, the Bears can steal a win in any one of these games.
"Like we said from day one: every week is a new season and we are just trying to become a better football team each week," Briles told the media yesterday after beating Kansas State 47-42. "We haven't peaked and that is the encouraging part as a team member and a coach."
Clearly, Griffin and running back Jay Finley need to be playing their best brand of mistake-free football if the Bears are to finish November with a winning record. They need one more win to complete a turnaround season on which they can lay the foundations for next year, but Briles doesn't sound as though he'll be happy with just one. It won't be easy, but the Bears certainly seem capable and motivated to finish the job.
While Griffin remains overshadowed by Terrell Pryor and Darron Thomas, fellow 2008 recruits leading their own November charges at Ohio State and Oregon, he will keep doing 'his thing' for the No. 25 Bears, who are ranked in the Associated Press Poll for the first time since 1991. A win against Texas, OU or Oklahoma State would be huge, though it would totally blow Griffin's cover as an underdog diamond-in-the-rough and potential 2011 Heisman candidate. But that's alright - Baylor believes they still have yet to play their best football. The Big 12 had better take notice.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Brian Wilson: The Will Ferrell of Baseball Interviews
Today is October 15th. This is an interview from September 3rd, and how it has escaped my viewing until this week is beyond me. Maybe it was on SportsNation when I wasn't watching, or maybe it was just too preposterous to be taken seriously. Whatever the case, in this clip from Rome is Burning, Giants closer Brian Wilson presents himself as the Will Ferrell of baseball interviews. His style is more eclectic, and his tone has more edge and less play, but I'll be damned if he's not equally absurd. The phrases spilling out of his mouth are unbelievable, and Jim Rome eats it all up. Whether or not Wilson is actually the resident I-dare-you man in the San Francisco clubhouse is irrelevant; he plays the part like a champ. It's really a shame that he had to tone down his Twitter account - I can only imagine the things he might have to say if the world were not so politically correct. In any case, I think I know who I'm rooting for in the NLCS. Enjoy the yucks.
Friday, October 1, 2010
San Diego's Salvation Series: Padres Desperate to Keep Their Season Alive
If divine intervention services are required in Major League Baseball, clearly the San Diego Padres are the leading candidate at the moment.
As of this morning, San Diego is 3 games behind the San Francisco Giants in the race for the NL West division crown. There are only three games remaining for the Padres, all of them in San Francisco.
For a team that Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci described as "the closest [team] to a sure thing [to make the playoffs]" just one month ago (they sported the best record in the National League at the time), time has not flown quite as quickly as the Padres had hoped. In the month of September, San Diego was just 13-16, inluding an 8-9 mark against division rivals. The starting rotation has just six wins in that timespan, including one by the newly activated Chris Young, who's been on the DL for almost the entire season. To complicate the matter, the Giants are not the Pads' only competition at this point - if Atlanta wins two of its next three, they will pull the wild card rug right out from under Petco Park. The Braves, of course, are playing a three-game homestand against Philadelphia, and there's a good chance that the Phillies, owners of the best record in the either league, will be looking to rest their starters as they prepare for a postseason run.
I wish there were room enough for all three teams. Statistically, the Padres are worse than the Giants and the Braves, but they've worked awfully hard this season to come away with nothing. For a team that finished 19 games out of first place last year, they deserve a bid for turning the ballclub around as they have. The Giants have made remarkable progress since the All-Star break, rising from 3 games above .500 to a 91-68 record atop the West, buoyed by the development of catcher Buster Posey (.313 BA/.365 OBP/.511 SLG) into a future franchise backstop. The Braves are trying hard to claw their way into a playoff spot for retiring manager Bobby Cox, hoping to allow for an appropriate October exit for a man who ranks 4th on the all-time managerial wins list. It's difficult to pick a villian in that group.
That said, I'm pulling hard for the West. It would be cool to see the Padres and Phillies take 2 of 3 on the road, forcing a San Diego-Atlanta one-game playoff next week. Here are the pitching matchups for this weekend:
Phillies @ Braves
FRI: Kyle Kendrick (10-10, 4.76 ERA) vs. Brandon Beachy (0-1, 2.89 ERA)
SAT: Cole Hamels (12-11, 3.09) vs. Tommy Hanson (10-11, 3.41)
SUN: Vance Worley (1-1, 2.25) vs. Tim Hudson (16-9, 2.76)
Padres @ Giants
FRI: Clayton Richard (13-9, 3.71) vs. Matt Cain (13-10, 2.95)
SAT: Tim Stauffer (5-5, 1.89) vs. Barry Zito (9-13, 4.08)
SUN: Mat Latos (14-9, 2.92) vs. Jonathan Sanchez (12-9, 3.15)
If the Phillies are going to win 2, it will probably have to be the first two, given the inexperience of Beachy and the fact that Hamels' only complete game this season has been away, at night, on grass. The Richard-Cain duel should keep you glued to your seat; whatever happens, the Padres absolutely have to win on Sunday and steal a win tonight or tomorrow. Let's hope this weekend is as good as it gets.
Baseball gods, are you listening?
As of this morning, San Diego is 3 games behind the San Francisco Giants in the race for the NL West division crown. There are only three games remaining for the Padres, all of them in San Francisco.
For a team that Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci described as "the closest [team] to a sure thing [to make the playoffs]" just one month ago (they sported the best record in the National League at the time), time has not flown quite as quickly as the Padres had hoped. In the month of September, San Diego was just 13-16, inluding an 8-9 mark against division rivals. The starting rotation has just six wins in that timespan, including one by the newly activated Chris Young, who's been on the DL for almost the entire season. To complicate the matter, the Giants are not the Pads' only competition at this point - if Atlanta wins two of its next three, they will pull the wild card rug right out from under Petco Park. The Braves, of course, are playing a three-game homestand against Philadelphia, and there's a good chance that the Phillies, owners of the best record in the either league, will be looking to rest their starters as they prepare for a postseason run.
I wish there were room enough for all three teams. Statistically, the Padres are worse than the Giants and the Braves, but they've worked awfully hard this season to come away with nothing. For a team that finished 19 games out of first place last year, they deserve a bid for turning the ballclub around as they have. The Giants have made remarkable progress since the All-Star break, rising from 3 games above .500 to a 91-68 record atop the West, buoyed by the development of catcher Buster Posey (.313 BA/.365 OBP/.511 SLG) into a future franchise backstop. The Braves are trying hard to claw their way into a playoff spot for retiring manager Bobby Cox, hoping to allow for an appropriate October exit for a man who ranks 4th on the all-time managerial wins list. It's difficult to pick a villian in that group.
That said, I'm pulling hard for the West. It would be cool to see the Padres and Phillies take 2 of 3 on the road, forcing a San Diego-Atlanta one-game playoff next week. Here are the pitching matchups for this weekend:
Phillies @ Braves
FRI: Kyle Kendrick (10-10, 4.76 ERA) vs. Brandon Beachy (0-1, 2.89 ERA)
SAT: Cole Hamels (12-11, 3.09) vs. Tommy Hanson (10-11, 3.41)
SUN: Vance Worley (1-1, 2.25) vs. Tim Hudson (16-9, 2.76)
Padres @ Giants
FRI: Clayton Richard (13-9, 3.71) vs. Matt Cain (13-10, 2.95)
SAT: Tim Stauffer (5-5, 1.89) vs. Barry Zito (9-13, 4.08)
SUN: Mat Latos (14-9, 2.92) vs. Jonathan Sanchez (12-9, 3.15)
If the Phillies are going to win 2, it will probably have to be the first two, given the inexperience of Beachy and the fact that Hamels' only complete game this season has been away, at night, on grass. The Richard-Cain duel should keep you glued to your seat; whatever happens, the Padres absolutely have to win on Sunday and steal a win tonight or tomorrow. Let's hope this weekend is as good as it gets.
Baseball gods, are you listening?
Friday, September 24, 2010
Whoa, Philly: Michael Vick Deserves to Start... For Now
So the Philadelphia Eagles, according to head coach Andy Reid, are going to start Michael Vick at quarterback this week against the Jacksonville Jaguars and for the remaining part of the season.
Stop. Slow down. Contain yourself. Having learned about this development, there are probably hundreds of people, mostly NFL analysts, former players, or Eagles fans who either just tied a hangman's noose or fell to their knees in appreciation. And those people need to cool their jets. There was considerable backlash from an ESPN football panel in light of Reid's choice to bench Kevin Kolb in favor of Vick, including sentiment expressed at what many believe a knee-jerk reaction and a miscarriage of judgment in how the Eagles are dealing with Kolb's progression as a quarterback. NFC West Blogger Mike Sando seemed to be the only one talking sense:
Photo credit to Ed Yourdon, courtesy Creative Commons
I'm not sure what all the drama's about. Everyone in the Eagles' locker room can see Michael Vick is the best option right now. Go with him and make no apologies. Andy Reid's obligation is to the team. His first responsibility is to play the best players, not to make sure Kevin Kolb or anyone else gets a fair shake.Sando nails the current objective for Reid and the Eagles, i.e. winning. If having Vick at the helm is the best option, go with it. The frustration of losing a starting job on the basis of injury is understandable, but to rationalize the back-and-forth waffling of a quarterback situation in order to stick to one's guns fails to use all the information at hand to make the best decision possible. Right now, given Vick's statistics and the way he is conducting Philly's offense, it would be illogical to take the ball away from him. That said, people are acting like this is a watershed decision, and it isn't. Kolb will be right there on the sideline, ready to answer the call when needed (and that call will come, eventually). Is it unfair to Kolb? After everything he's been promised, sure, it can certainly be seen that way, but there's no human decency clause in an NFL contract. Coaches change their minds all the time; if Kolb is good enough and Vick fades towards the bye week, we're going to see exactly how "permanent" this decision is. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" - at this moment, Michael Vick seems far from broken.
Photo credit to Ed Yourdon, courtesy Creative Commons
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Ashes to Ashes: Is It Time for a Maple Bat Moratorium?
Don Long/Nate McLouth - April 2008
Todd Helton/Susan Rhodes - April 2008
Miguel Olivo/Brian O' Nora - June 2008
Mike Napoli/Brad Ziegler - August 2010
Welington Castillo/Tyler Colvin - September 2010
The names and dates above link to six separate, highly publicized incidents in which broken or shattered maple bats have hit and or injured persons at an MLB game, both those on the playing field and off it. In the most recent case, Colvin, a Chicago Cubs rookie playing in his first full season, was struck in the chest by the sharp end of Castillo's bat and ended up with a wound that will prevent him from playing in any further action this year. The injuries sustained by Long, O'Nora (pictured) and Rhodes were considerably more horrifying than Colvin's, but in spite of maple's notoriety for emulating a cruise missile with Frisbee rotation, there has yet to be any action taken by the league. I know I'm far from the first person to bring this up, but here's what people aren't talking about: it's almost a certainty that the situation will get worse before it gets better. According to an official quoted in the Byrnes/Olivo article, it would take years to end the production and use of maple bats if commissioner Bud Selig were to put the kibosh on them after this season. Here's the 2006 quote from Chuck Schupp, an employee for the company that makes Louisville Sluggers:
Schupp, in his 24th year with Hillerich & Bradsby and the liaison between the company and the players, said he recently warned MLB not to make a hasty decision on eliminating maple.Do the math and you see that maple will still be terrorizing ball fields for at least another 3 years; with a possible maple extermination looming, veterans will be racing to use whatever maple is still left in production at the time of decree. That said, at least there is something being done - certain maple bats were banned in the minor leagues this year, and bat specifications were tweaked to promote bat strength. It seems that the MLB is trying to root out the problem by applying the rules to all who have yet to make a 40-man roster, but the rule needs to be clarified considerably. An example: if a player spends his entire time in the minor leagues hitting with an ash bat, and then gets called up and wants to use a maple bat, can he? Sure, you would guess he would stick with what works, but if he thinks maple gives him added power over the contact he felt using an ash bat, wouldn't he use it? More importantly, anyone who has already made it to The Show has free reign to use whatever they like, so the present rule would not completely eradicate the existence of maple until all of the players who debuted last year finish their careers.
"I told Major League Baseball if they say maple bats can't be used anymore, do not do it until late 2008 or 2009," Schupp said. "We already ordered everything for next year. You've got to cut the wood, dry it, process it. I can't call the lumber mill and say I need 10,000 ash bats."
The unknown entity here is the stance of the MLB Players' Association, which will most likely seek to retain the maple bats in spite of their dangers so that it can provide the best competitive advantage to the players who are members of the union. As someone who owns a maple bat, I understand that perspective completely - maple seems sturdier and solid contact feels more pure than the same swing made with an ash bat. The real issue, as McLouth pointed out, might be more psychological at this point, given how particular players are about the equipment they use; after all, this is the superstition-fraught sport that gave us Pedro Cerrano.
At the same time, there are extenuating circumstances here that say otherwise. When Colvin was struck, he was running in foul territory while watching to make sure the ball Castillo hit was not caught - he did not have any reason to think he was in danger of bodily harm, being that he was not in the field of play and not near the ball. Had he run just a little bit faster, he might have been struck unexpectedly in the face, and that's a fear no player wants to have while he's trying to do his job. Likewise, Rhodes and Long were paying attention a ball in the field of play when they were hit; if fans and players alike are not properly protected during game action, they can't be expected to watch/play at the risk of their own physical health. Others writing about this topic have mentioned the additional netting put in place by the NHL after an errant puck fatally struck a 13-year-old girl, and it wouldn't be a bad idea for Selig to at least consider having the same kind of netting put in place between the dugouts and the present backstop at each ballpark - though you can catch a high-speed foul ball, you can't exactly stop a shattered bat with a baseball glove.
Given the preference for maple, it will not be easy to find a suitable replacement for SamBats and other popular brands used by the pros. One thought would be to mandate a bat that is some combination of a composite handle and a maple barrel that would make the maple less likely to shatter in long, sharp fragments as it presently does. Another idea is simply trying to find a different wood source for bats - many cricket bats are made of willow, which might be a decent alternative if it can be cut down to an easy-to-wield weight. Whatever the solution, the decision needs to be made in winter meetings before the start of next season - it would not be wise or safe for the MLB to continue to allow its faithful patrons to risk their own livelihoods because they are unable to keep track of two divergent trajectories, hit ball and flying bat, at one time. No other major sport forces us to do that on a regular basis.
Credit to Yahoo! Sports, MLB.com, SB Nation, SFGate.com, ESPN.com and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for media and information used in this post.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Sorry, Mr. Deford: Baseball's Length Is Its Gift
Dear Mr. Frank Deford,
Last week, you wrote an article for SI.com lamenting what you described as the "stultifying sluggishness" that is presently plaguing Major League Baseball. The article bemoaned the "dreadful strategy" of hitters allowing themselves to see as many pitches as possible in order to tire out the pitcher. You seem to see this as one tactic among many from which teams can choose, a gameplan just like using the hit-and-run or a zone blitz. However, this "virus" that is pushing the game to average lengths nearing three hours is not as quite as simple as a belt-high fastball or a pop-fly to the pitcher.
To be clear, baseball has never been about time. There is nothing in major professional American team sports that rivals the inning, a yardstick that measures the progress of the game by action rather than duration. It's not like the game has undergone a radical rule change like the introduction of the 3-point shot or the forward pass. Working the count, rather, is the logical progression of human thinking that has been years in the making. In the days of Frankln P. Adams, who is mentioned in your article, starting pitchers regularly threw over 300 innings in a season, meaning that complete games were far more common than they are today. For batters, it made sense to swing more often at that time, particularly later in the game, because pitchers who were still pitching after six innings would be at a huge disadvantage.
Having already faced a team's lineup twice, hurlers would be physically tired, thereby making them more likely to throw pitches that missed the strike zone; if batters wanted to get on base, they had to swing at a fastball that was too far inside or outside to be called a strike, or they could wait for a breaking ball that (lucky for them) saw way too much of the plate. Or, heaven forbid, they could wait for a good pitch and stay still if one never came. Most of the time, they swung because, as Bob Klapisch points out, they had to: if they didn't, the game would extend beyond the regular nine innings and (presumably) they would not be able to finish before it was too dark to see the ball.
In the last 30 years, the only pitchers to even approach the 300-inning mark (for one season each, mind you) were Bert Blyleven (1985) and Jack Morris (1983). The reason for that, whether you agree with it or not, is the medical concern that overworking pitchers would cause them to wear out more quickly, and signing new arms every few years would be substantially more expensive than retaining one arm for the long haul. Enter the pitch count, sworn enemy of young pitchers' mental development and aggressive hitters everywhere. Armed with the idea that throwing their aces for too long would be detrimental to their performance, managers at every level have begun yanking their pitchers after a certain number of pitches thrown, often with little regard for the game situation in which the move is made.
For disciplined batters, knowing that the man on the hill is on a pitch count is a tantalizing prospect: they realize that if they can force the starter to throw a lot of pitches in a short time, there is a better chance that they will have more at-bats against a relief pitcher who is not as skilled at getting them out. So, they watch, and they judge, and they swing if forced by the count or if lured into doing so by a floating meatball. But the ultimate goal is to wear down the opposition, just like a football team pounding run after up-the-middle run to keep the defense on the field. The difference between the two is that batters have no game clock and can therefore hold out for as long as they are able, and with many games now played under artificial lighting, they can mark time all day and all night if that's what it takes to win. A good bullpen, then, becomes the great equalizer for managers whose pitchers are lacking in stamina, having an off night, or limited by the pitch count.
To attack the practice of working the count ignores the evolution of baseball itself. The Klapisch article mentions that the Yankees saw more pitches than any other team in the American League last season, and sticking to that strategy earned them some valuable dividends, namely a world championship. If you want to fault the Yankees and Red Sox for lollygagging in the batter's box, that's alright, because according to The Hardball Times, they do. However, it should be said that the growing length of a baseball game is not a deal-breaker in terms of whether or not a baseball fan will watch a game, especially a die-hard Boston or New York fan who will fawn over their team and soak in all the ridiculous instances in which their favorite players take obscene license with the time allowed by the umpires. Admonishing the umpires and MLB officials to enforce time limits between pitches, in warm-ups and within at-bats is one thing, but blaming teams for using a strategy that has proven itself to be successful is wrong.
You're right in saying that baseball enjoys a sense of intellectual suspense that just isn't possible with timed sporting events. Your irritation, however, is misdirected - rather than wag a finger at teams for taking too long because of their strategy, be upset with players who dawdle in their at-bats. In this case, it's OK to hate the player rather than the game.
Sincerely and respectfully,
Tyler Springs
To be clear, baseball has never been about time. There is nothing in major professional American team sports that rivals the inning, a yardstick that measures the progress of the game by action rather than duration. It's not like the game has undergone a radical rule change like the introduction of the 3-point shot or the forward pass. Working the count, rather, is the logical progression of human thinking that has been years in the making. In the days of Frankln P. Adams, who is mentioned in your article, starting pitchers regularly threw over 300 innings in a season, meaning that complete games were far more common than they are today. For batters, it made sense to swing more often at that time, particularly later in the game, because pitchers who were still pitching after six innings would be at a huge disadvantage.
Having already faced a team's lineup twice, hurlers would be physically tired, thereby making them more likely to throw pitches that missed the strike zone; if batters wanted to get on base, they had to swing at a fastball that was too far inside or outside to be called a strike, or they could wait for a breaking ball that (lucky for them) saw way too much of the plate. Or, heaven forbid, they could wait for a good pitch and stay still if one never came. Most of the time, they swung because, as Bob Klapisch points out, they had to: if they didn't, the game would extend beyond the regular nine innings and (presumably) they would not be able to finish before it was too dark to see the ball.
In the last 30 years, the only pitchers to even approach the 300-inning mark (for one season each, mind you) were Bert Blyleven (1985) and Jack Morris (1983). The reason for that, whether you agree with it or not, is the medical concern that overworking pitchers would cause them to wear out more quickly, and signing new arms every few years would be substantially more expensive than retaining one arm for the long haul. Enter the pitch count, sworn enemy of young pitchers' mental development and aggressive hitters everywhere. Armed with the idea that throwing their aces for too long would be detrimental to their performance, managers at every level have begun yanking their pitchers after a certain number of pitches thrown, often with little regard for the game situation in which the move is made.
For disciplined batters, knowing that the man on the hill is on a pitch count is a tantalizing prospect: they realize that if they can force the starter to throw a lot of pitches in a short time, there is a better chance that they will have more at-bats against a relief pitcher who is not as skilled at getting them out. So, they watch, and they judge, and they swing if forced by the count or if lured into doing so by a floating meatball. But the ultimate goal is to wear down the opposition, just like a football team pounding run after up-the-middle run to keep the defense on the field. The difference between the two is that batters have no game clock and can therefore hold out for as long as they are able, and with many games now played under artificial lighting, they can mark time all day and all night if that's what it takes to win. A good bullpen, then, becomes the great equalizer for managers whose pitchers are lacking in stamina, having an off night, or limited by the pitch count.
To attack the practice of working the count ignores the evolution of baseball itself. The Klapisch article mentions that the Yankees saw more pitches than any other team in the American League last season, and sticking to that strategy earned them some valuable dividends, namely a world championship. If you want to fault the Yankees and Red Sox for lollygagging in the batter's box, that's alright, because according to The Hardball Times, they do. However, it should be said that the growing length of a baseball game is not a deal-breaker in terms of whether or not a baseball fan will watch a game, especially a die-hard Boston or New York fan who will fawn over their team and soak in all the ridiculous instances in which their favorite players take obscene license with the time allowed by the umpires. Admonishing the umpires and MLB officials to enforce time limits between pitches, in warm-ups and within at-bats is one thing, but blaming teams for using a strategy that has proven itself to be successful is wrong.
You're right in saying that baseball enjoys a sense of intellectual suspense that just isn't possible with timed sporting events. Your irritation, however, is misdirected - rather than wag a finger at teams for taking too long because of their strategy, be upset with players who dawdle in their at-bats. In this case, it's OK to hate the player rather than the game.
Sincerely and respectfully,
Tyler Springs
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)