OT: Home Run Derby

[Husky25]

Dude all I can do is respond to what you've said. For the fifth time proper training, preparation, technological advances, nutrition, and rehab haven't more than filled the void for drugs. As I keep telling you, you can have all the best of that with no drugs and the guy who is on drugs eats a lot and hits the weights hard and he will gain way more strength than the other guy.

I actually do know a lot about this stuff.

No, you haven't. I was talking about how all facets baseball has evolved and gotten better as whole. You latched on to weight training and steroids.

 

[superjohn]

No, you haven't. I was talking about how all facets baseball has evolved and gotten better as whole. You latched on to weight training and steroids.

Come on, follow along. I said players aren't stronger then when the majority of the league was juiced.

The players aren't any stronger, they want the homer so coaches everywhere teach the homer swing like they do the three in basketball and they have manipulated the hell out of the ball. MLB has always bet on the long ball.

Right. Strength and conditioning hasn't improved . . .

if you saw the reds with the sleeveless uniforms ovee the weekend it’s fairly absurd. they look like a national championship crossfit team

You think the players are stronger than they were in 90's early 2000's when the majority of the league was juicing? There is still a good chunk of the league juicing but like 60%-70% or so of the league was back then.

Explain to me how strength and conditioning has improved since then? You get stronger by lifting heavy weights, eating, and taking drugs. Weights and weight lifting haven't changed, the food hasn't changed, the drugs have changed some but I think they're cycling most of the same stuff. I may be naive but I don't think as many MLB players are using as they were in the 90's and early 2000's.

Weight training was not as prevalent as it is now and the training is better. The food might be the same, but the diets and dietitians are better. Therapy/rehab and medical science have all improved and video review technology is so far more efficient and readily available. Guys used to use spring training to get into shape. Players may take October off, but are back training by Thanksgiving.

Another thing, the rosters and positional prototypes have evolved and there is far more specialization now. Dan Quisenberry broke the 10 year single season save mark in 1983. 22 others have a combined 72 seasons with 45 saves or more since then. The 3-true outcomes hitter was rare and strikeouts were to be avoided. Now batters are less protecting the plate and swinging for the fences, sitting on the fastball, with two strikes. A baserunner is worse for the pitcher. Pitchers akin to Greg Maddox and Jamie Moyer were far more the norm than the fireballers like Roger Clemens, who would only top out around 93. A LOOGYs split-finger is 93 nowadays.

Weight training wasn't as prevalent in the 90's early 2000's as it is now? What???

The majority of the league was on steroids.

And I keep telling you over and over, you can have all the sports "science" trainers , dietitians, fancy feedback equipment, recovery etc. and it won't come anywhere close to the person who is taking the drugs and training. Don't know why this is so hard for you to understand. I latched onto it because you said all of that stuff has more than filled the void for drugs which is complete nonsense.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

How is there only reliable data since 2008?

TBH I don't have a good answer as to why, though every single source I could find starts at 2008. My guess is that the data just wasn't being tracked consistently and/or in an available database.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Super balls flying all over the place with 5'5 200 lb guys hitting the ball out to the opposite field? And guys who hardly can slide or run the bases? I agree there are some things that make it exciting because we tend to like offense as fans, but the days of the .320/15/110 guys are gone. There's more .210/28/75 guys now and that's kind of pathetic. But it makes them money because that's what they like now. Always loved baseball still watch it I admit it, but I do laugh at the players who suddenly look like the Hulk and think we don't know.

More guys who can't slide or run the bases as opposed to when? Players are bigger now but generally more athletic I'd argue as baseball teams can more objectively evaluate defense. You're much less likely to find a guy like Ryan Klesko stuck out in the outfield these days. And btw, of the 33 players currently with 20 or more HRs this season, one has a batting average below .220 and six are below .250. For comparison, nine are currently hitting higher than .300. You’re overstating where the game has gone as in the last 50 years, the highest season average for MLB was .267 and last year it was .248.

 

[BLUEDOGHOUSE]

Baseball has a fundamental problem.

The batters are too strong for the stadiums to contain them.

Pitcher velocity + the athletes on defense make home runs the only way to score runs consistently.

Guys pump gas looking to avoid contact and the batters sell out looking to hit bombs.

The result is a boring product. Combine that with expensive and the empty seats are jarring.

For this fan baseball is very exciting:

Beat the Streak leader ties all-time record of 51

For just the second time ever, Beat the Streak presented by MGM Resorts has a player with a 51-game hit streak. That is just six shy of winning $5.6 million for successfully selecting a Major League player to get a hit on a given day 57 consecutive times, which would

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