Some math thoughts on playing outfield. The ball comes off the bat at say 90 to 100mph and as per physics and gravity force, it is actually traveling in a parabola. But, there is a lot of air resistance, ball spin, humidity, and wind changing its course in mid-flight. Due to the distance from the batter to the outfielder, the ball appears small. Sunlight and shadows and even more difficult night flood field lights futher may make seeing the ball more difficult. The fielder must make an instant body movement decision on which way to run. One wrong body direction turn could be a disaster. The outfielder must adjust their running speed so as to get to the ball just as it is dropping into a playable location. Eye and hand (glove) coordination are essential.
Conclusion: Outfielders must be smart like NASA engineers.
I was never a great baseball player. But I played an awful lot of games. There were times I found myself moving before a ball was hit, either in the field and on the bases. With the number of ABs MLB players see in the field, some of them are already reacting based on the pitch and how the batter is swinging. It's sometimes astounding how much information a human brain can process in an instant.
I thought this was a wonderful story. I had never heard of this game. I used to play APBA baseball all the time growing up.
Cool. I think I read about All-Star (and APBA) when my son and I were playing Strat-O-Matic.
The game that occupied a boyhood friend and me for two summers was produced by Sports Illustrated. We played with a 1970 set that his mother had bought at a yard sale. It was well designed and tons of fun, but SI made it for only two or three seasons.
Just so the previous photo doesn’t unfairly define this thread in the MOL menu, here’s the blast that, as Crash Davis said, ought to have had a damn stewardess on it.
You had a good run. Have to question Schwarber bunting with two outs and nobody on, but they wouldn't have gotten that far without him. That move is right near the top of my pet peeves.
You had a good run. Have to question Schwarber bunting with two outs and nobody on, but they wouldn't have gotten that far without him. That move is right near the top of my pet peeves.
That, rather than Wheeler’s removal, got me blurting, “What the heck?” On a 1-2 count with a chase pitch coming? To bring up Hoskins?
It made no sense. You're leaving it to the guys behind him to get a couple of hits to bring him in. And he was one of the few guys to hit the ball hard at least once that night. I do love those '83 uniforms they wore in Game 4 or 5.
Fond memories, of course, of that bespoke battery. Not-so-fond memories of when McCarver broke into announcing with the Phillies. He had this wheezy laugh that he couldn’t seem to control, and, boy, was it distracting. But hard work got him as far in his second career as it did in his first.
“The only thing you know about pitching is that it’s hard to hit.” — Gibby
I used to enjoy him with Kiner and Steve Zabriskie. He was also a decent catcher in my APBA game that I used to play with my brother. I'm not a Joe Buck fan so I found it difficult to watch FOX baseball for quite some time.
I'm not trying to make him out to be Yogi Berra, but his strikeout stats caught my eye. 422 total in a 20+ year career -- iow approximately 21 Ks per season.
There's a reason MLB teams never open their books. It's common sense that none of them are losing money (leaving aside creative accounting tricks of course), because every franchise appreciates substantially in value each year. Are we supposed to believe that money-losing businesses become progressively more valuable over time?
The only team currently subject to making its financials public is Atlanta, because it's owned by a publicly traded company. And they make a healthy profit without having the NY, LA or CHI TV market money.
I was watching the end of the Red Sox-Braves game live on Saturday — tie score, bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, two outs, full count — and gave a guffaw when the ump called Strike 3 because the batter wasn’t ready in time. Later, I laughed again, at this:
What I didn’t comprehend, until I saw it on Saturday, is that the eight-second cutoff means the catcher might not even be in his crouch yet. (The Boston backstop was on his way down.) That’s gotta feel weird for the batter — needing to be set and alert to the pitcher while the catcher is still upright.
You know, I can almost see that becoming a two-strike strategy, like a hard count in football: The catcher remains upright until the last possible moment, trying to disorient the batter.
I liked what Gary Sheffield, Jr. said about how they asked fans that don't watch baseball what needs to be done in order for them to watch and those same people will still be watching NetFlix. Scherzer was saying that it puts the pitcher in control.
I liked what Gary Sheffield, Jr. said about how they asked fans that don't watch baseball what needs to be done in order for them to watch and those same people will still be watching NetFlix. Scherzer was saying that it puts the pitcher in control.
he's off-base with regard to the fact that a LOT of old school baseball fans also think the game had become far too slow. I've been a fan since the 60s, I watch a lot of baseball on TV, and I'm a Mets partial season ticket holder. And I am 100% in favor of these new rules. Both the pitchers and the hitters had gotten to the point where a lot of ABs looked like staring contests.
2 hours and 20 minutes feels too fast for me. I'm fine with it when watching on TV, but when I go to a game I like to sit back and relax for 2 and a half to 3 hours. Though I suppose I'll feel differently if I can catch that 10:13 train.
I'm hoping the bigger bases leads to more stolen bases.
I'm hoping the bigger bases leads to more stolen bases.
Out of all the stolen-base attempts we’ve seen on TV in the past, how many runners were tagged out four or more inches away from the bag? Add the limit on pickoff throws and I think you’ll get your wish.
2 hours and 20 minutes feels too fast for me. I'm fine with it when watching on TV, but when I go to a game I like to sit back and relax for 2 and a half to 3 hours. Though I suppose I'll feel differently if I can catch that 10:13 train.
I'm hoping the bigger bases leads to more stolen bases.
if you want the experience to last 3 hours, get yourself to your seat a half hour before the first pitch
I'll admit it. I finally watched some of the WBC last night. It was pretty exciting. I still don't agree with having it before the season. I don't know if after the World Series would work since anybody not getting into the playoffs wouldn't have a game for close to a month, but at least if they got hurt they would have a few months to recover. Looking forward to Ohtani in a Mets uniform next year
I was never a great baseball player. But I played an awful lot of games. There were times I found myself moving before a ball was hit, either in the field and on the bases. With the number of ABs MLB players see in the field, some of them are already reacting based on the pitch and how the batter is swinging. It's sometimes astounding how much information a human brain can process in an instant.