Kyle Parker / theScore
The menu options were laid out before me, like stepping up to the counter of a Chipotle for cheaters.
Inside the netting surrounding the indoor bullpen at Performance Velocity Systems, a baseball training center in the southern hills of Pittsburgh, was an assortment of grip-enhancing substances.
On the plywood pitching mound was a container of pine tar; aerosol cans of BullFrog sunscreen and Cramer Firm Grip; and in a shallow, circular container of something called Spider Tack, a super-sticky paste developed to help grip Atlas Stones in strongman competitions. There was also a bag of rosin, a ubiquitous sight on major-league mounds.
The inspiration for this study came from this blurb in a recent Mining the News.
In the past, the general rule is that a higher fastball velocity leads to more strikeouts. Once spin data became available, the link between more spin and strikeouts was quickly found.
And they can go in separate directions. After going way too deep down this rabbit hole, I came out with a simple formula.
Before diving in, a few items need to be cleared up. First, other factors besides velocity and spin can affect a fastball’s effectiveness such as pitch location, deceptiveness out of the hand, and how often the batter has seen the pitch. The key with this study is to have a simple formula to start evaluating fastball changes for the accessible stats.
December 10, 2020
The 2020 Rule 5 Draft was conducted via conference call on Thursday, with 18 players selected during the Major League phase. Pre-draft chatter was focused on whether more young, inexperienced players would be picked this year due to an anticipation of expanded rosters, and a few picks appeared to be made with that in mind. Here are my thoughts on all those selected, as well as some on thlaose picked during the Minor League phase. Remember you can venture over to The Board for more info on several of these players.
But first, my annual refresher on the Rule 5 Draft’s complex rules. Players who signed their first pro contract at age 18 or younger are eligible for selection after five years of minor-league service if their parent club has not yet added them to the team’s 40-man roster. For players who signed at age 19 or older, the timeline is four years. Teams with the worst win/loss record from the previous season pick first, and those that select a player must