batting Page 3 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
How are robo-umps faring in the minor leagues?
The Daytona Tortugas are, in many ways, as average as a minor league team gets....
Yeli and Beli both suck now
Not long ago, the game of baseball was in the hands of young superstars Cody Bellinger and Christian Yelich. “Yeli vs Belli” was a debate for two years. The Los Angeles Dodger and Milwaukee Brewer, respectively, were lighting the league on fire and ushering in what appeared to be the next generation...
This is what happens when you’re always reacting
I’ve remarked numerous times that MLB owners can only see the one dollar right in front of their face instead of the three that might be waiting down the road. Most of the decisions that were just about cashing in now are why baseball’s popularity is currently diving down in a way that DC won’t let ...
If MLB wants to fix what’s wrong, all it has to do is watch the college game
Dallas Baptist University is playing the University of Virginia in a win-or-go-home Super Regional game right now, and something I haven’t seen in a while just happened — a runner got on first, stole second, then the batter hit a fly to deep right that allowed the runner to move to third. What is th...
No, armchair Twitter goofs, you can’t hit top-tier pitching
I’m not a professional athlete. I’m not even an athlete. I used to be, back in my youth. You’ll hear a cornucopia of opinions on sports from me, from strategy to execution. When a player does something fantastic, I’ll say it. When a player does something awful, I’ll say it. What you will never hear ...
Connecticut high school phenom tosses fourth no-hitter in a row
If you think the no-hitters are getting out of control in Major League Baseball, you ought to check out the high school scene in northern Connecticut. ...
Stephen A. Smith and baseball, always an incredible combination
Just over a quarter of the way into the MLB season, it’s pretty safe to say that Shohei Ohtani has been insane. Ohtani currently leads Major League Baseball in home runs. He’s 3rd in slugging percentage, 15th in OPS, 18th in wOBA, and a partridge in a pear tree. Oh, he’s also been pretty damn good a...
Pitchers are even less afraid these days
We didn’t need Spencer Turnbull’s no-hitter last night to know that pitchers have smothered baseball these days (and that the Mariners have had all their bats replaced with Play-Doh). It’s the fifth no-hitter of the year, and we’re barely a quarter through the season....
Why won’t anyone pitch to Yasmani Grandal?
In 2004, the most feared hitter in baseball was Barry Bonds. This mammoth at the plate hit .362 that season and reached base at an incredible .609 clip. That’s a difference of .247, one of the largest ever recorded. In 2021, Yasmani Grandal is hitting .121 with an on-base percentage of .372 — a .251...
Tony La Russa doesn’t know the rules and there’s no one to save him from himself, either
Is it bad when your manager doesn’t know the rules? If we try to be fair to Tony La Russa, this is the first season this ridiculous extra-innings rule was put in place with the NL not having a DH, and La Russa doesn’t manage an NL club....
What are the Giants doing here?
The baseball world was all gaga over the seven-game rumble the Padres and Dodgers put together in the season’s opening weeks. The part of the story that got lost and ignored is that they’re currently 2nd and 3rd place teams. It seems while they were eyeballing each other, the San Francisco Giants we...
Can’t anybody here hit in this league?
In the ninth inning at Wrigley Field on Thursday night, Kris Bryant led off with a single against Mets closer Edwin Diaz. After looking at a 99 mph fastball outside for ball one, Rizzo fouled off the next three pitches, falling behind in the count, 1-2....
Ronald Acuña has transformed into Superman
The best player in baseball resides in Atlanta. This was always something of the forecast for Ronald Acuña Jr. when he came up through the Braves system. It just wasn’t believed his rise to the top would be quite so ruthlessly achieved. ...
FAU freshman hits back-to-back grand slams in one inning… in his first two at-bats
Sports fans, meet Caleb Pendleton. We already mentioned him in The Mourning After, but I think he deserves his own story....
Max Scherzer Breaks His Nose While Bunting, During Practice, For Crying Out Loud
Bunting is cool! It’s cool to surprise an infield. It’s cool to humiliate a shifted defense. It’s cool to make a noble sacrifice to advance a teammate. It’s cool to drive dipshit purists insane by bunting your way on to break up a lousy combined no-hitter. Possibly nothing in baseball is cooler than...
The Phillies Need A Lefty Pitcher Who Doesn’t Mind Getting Lit Up
Even though it’s Opening Day, the Phillies are still short one left-handed pitcher....
The Seahawks Know They Got Away With One
Now that we’ve had a night to sleep on the Seahawks’ controversial 13-10 win over the Lions, sealed by an uncalled “illegal bat,” let’s try to process what we saw—even as the NFL figures out what it can do to fix a very bad rule....
Trevor Bauer Imitates Three Teammates' Batting Stances In One At-Bat
Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer had some fun last night with his rare opportunity to make some plate appearances, and made the most of his third trip to the plate in Pittsburgh by mimicking three of his teammates’ batting stances: Mike Aviles, Jason Kipnis, and Ryan Raburn. How well did he do? We place...
Here's Bob Costas Taking Some Swings In A Batting Cage
A reader who was in Cooperstown, New York, during this year's baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony sends along this video of Bob Costas takin' some cuts in the local batting cage. ...
Francisco Liriano Gives Zero Fucks About Having To Hit
Francisco Liriano threw a four-hit complete game last night, helping the Pirates end a four-game losing streak. His performance kept scores of nervous Yinzers, panicked at the possibility of another late-season Pirates collapse, from racing to the Roberto Clemente Bridge and ending it all. Liriano t...