pitching Page 2 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
Padres Catcher Christian Bethancourt Made The Most Of His Chance To Pitch
The Padres got walloped 16-4 this afternoon by the Mariners, and they lost the first two games of a weird home and away pair of two-game series on opposite ends of the (American) Pacific coast by an aggregate score of 25-7. It only took Seattle five innings to accrue all their runs, which ushered in...
Clayton Kershaw Is An Apex Predator
Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw is on one of those runs that has baseball writers banging down the door of Elias Sports and plumbing the depths of Baseball Reference, all in an attempt to put whatever the hell it is he’s doing in context. Kershaw struck out 11 Angels in eight innings last ni...
Rays Hero Dan Johnson Is Reportedly Returning To The Team As A Knuckleball Pitcher
Remember back in 2011 when Dan Johnson hit one of the most dramatic home runs of the century against the Yankees, to send the Tampa Bay Rays to the playoffs on the last day of the season? Here’s a refresher....
Johnny Cueto Was Tremendous Tonight
Johnny Cueto’s postseason form has oscillated between extremes. He shut down the Astros to take the Royals into the ALCS, giving up two runs in eight innings, then reversed those stats and gave up eight in two to the Blue Jays in his next start. The key difference was that Cueto’s dominant start, wh...
Here Is What "Stuff" Means in Baseball
What is “stuff”? The New York Times devoted part of its Sunday front page to the question of what, exactly, the term means in baseball. It is, John Branch of the Times reported, an underexamined mystery of the game. ...
Some Thoughts On Chris Sale's Historically Dominant Run
Last night, White Sox ace Chris Sale struck out 12 Cardinals in eight innings, becoming just the second pitcher in baseball history to strike out 10 or more batters in eight consecutive starts. Here are some thoughts about that....
Down & Away With Leo Mazzone
Nice piece on Leo Mazzone by Tom Rehagen over at SB Nation Longform:...
Dice-K To Return To Japan, Take His Mythical Gyroball With Him
After six seasons with the Red Sox and two with the Mets, Daisuke Matsuzaka is apparently returning to Japan, considering a contract with the defending champion Fukuoka Softbank Hawks. He'll always be remembered for the hype, and for his unhittable pitch that in reality is all but unthrowable....
Chart: MLB Strike Zone Keeps Expanding
This chart from Jon Roegele of The Hardball Times shows the MLB strike zone for right-handed hitters has expanded 46 square inches since 2009. And this season had the largest single-year increase of the PITCHf/x era as the zone grew 16 square inches expanding from 459 square inches to 475....
How Corey Kluber Started Kicking So Much Ass
Cleveland Indians starter Corey Kluber shredded the Seattle Mariners last night, shutting them out over nine innings and striking out eight, and taking just 85 pitches to do it. It wasn't an aberration, either: Kluber has been spectacular all year, which is hard to believe considering that he was a ...
Cubs Catcher Is Winning Pitcher, Scores Winning Run In 16-Inning Game
I do not envy the hardy fans who watched all 6:27 of the game between the 43-63 Rockies and the 44-61 Cubs, including 12 straight scoreless innings. But those who did stick it out saw something rare: Chicago catcher John Baker pitched a scoreless top of the 16th, and became the winning pitcher whe...
Justin Masterson Pitched An Immaculate Inning
During the fourth inning of last night's game between the Red Sox and Indians, Justin Masterson did something that is pretty damn incredible: he struck out the side on just nine pitches. It was as perfect an inning as a pitcher can possibly have....
Pedro Martinez Says Pitching Is All About Properly Sexing The Baseball
Our pals at Fangraphs got Pedro Martinez to sit down with them and wax on about his thoughts on pitching, and the results are fantastic. You should read the entire interview—Martinez is one of the smartest pitchers to ever play and he says a lot of wise and illuminating things—but we felt compelled ...
A Major League Pitcher's Guide To Doctoring A Baseball
The old saying says that it's not illegal if you don't get caught. In baseball, sometimes it isn't illegal even if you do....
Unspinning The Mythical Gyroball, The Demon Miracle Pitch That Wasn't
Once feared, now largely forgotten, the gyroball retains a stubborn hold on the baseball imagination. Perhaps Red Sox closer Koji Uehara can put the pitch to rest:...
Don't Be Terrible, Be Good, And Win: How To Pitch, According To Fox Game Of The Week Scouting Reports
Originally published in Baseball Prospectus....
MLB Speeds Up Games By Sending Strongly Worded Letters To Slow Pitchers
Over at Baseball Prospectus, Adam Sobsey got hold of a letter from MLB disciplinarian Joe Garagiola Jr. to Colorado Rockies pitcher Mike Ekstrom. (Click to enlarge.) In two consecutive appearances against the Phillies, Ekstrom took more than his allotted 2:25 to warm up—going over by nearly a full m...
The Rockies Go To A Four-Man Rotation
Coors Field is being Coors Field again, with balls flying and batters partying like it's 1999. Despite the best efforts of the magic humidor, numbers are cartoonish and the only proffered explanation is that it's been extra dry in Denver this spring. Whatever the cause, the Rockies can't pitch. They...
Bartolo Colon Is Getting People Out
Have you seen Bartolo Colon pitch? He is worth seeing. Last year, it was amusing to watch the portly ex-Cy Young winner's return to adequacy, in his late 30s, after missing an entire season. It was a funny little joke about the vagaries of sports, or of life....
Michael "Cy" Cuddyer Was The Twins' Best Pitcher Last Night
I think it's safe and hyperbole-free to say there's nothing we enjoy more in professional sports than when a position player has to come on to pitch. There's always a mix of emotions - the game's already a blowout, so most players just want to get it over with and go home. But for the spot relieve...