Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports Even in an era brimming with colorful characters and exceptional hurlers, Luis Tiant stood out. The barrel-chested, mustachioed Cuban righty combined an assortment of exaggerated deliveries with a variety of arm angles and speeds that baffled hitters — and tantalized writers — over the course of a 19-year major league career (1964–82) and…
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports Martijn Verhoeven wears many hats. As the research lead for the Twins sports science department, he is in conversation with all sorts of people, including baseball operations staffers, coaches, hitters, pitchers, and the medical staff. Verhoeven is armed with biomechanical data from KinaTrax, and the insights from the data help all…
The chances of Bailey Ober’s start on Sunday sending the Minnesota Twins to the postseason have taken quite a hit in the last 24 hours. A 13-inning loss to the Miami Marlins dropped the club to three games out in the Wild Card race with just three left to play. Still, whatever his team’s recent…
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports This all started because I hate losing. Especially to Ben Lindbergh. Just before the season started, I took part in the annual Effectively Wild preseason predictions game, in which Meg Rowley, the Bens (Lindbergh and Clemens), and I each made 10 bold predictions about the 2024 campaign. The listeners voted on…
Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports In the pre-PitchCom era, major league teams had more rigorous protocols for protecting their signs than your bank has for securing your account. It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that some teams’ custom PitchCom audio clips are read in a modified pig latin created by a pitching strategy staffer. That the…
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) The Washington Nationals revealed devastating news on Friday when the team revealed that All-Star right-hander Josiah Gray is set for season-ending surgery. Gray suffered a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow, though the extent of the damage will not be fully known until he goes…
(Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) The MLB universe reacted with shock and delight as it was announced that Pittsburgh Pirates rookie phenom Paul Skenes will start next week’s All-Star Game. So often, professional sports leagues misguidedly forego opportunities to market themselves and their biggest stars to a much larger audience. But this time, the Midsummer…
Gavin Williams to Start as Pitcher for the Cleveland Guardians Despite Rough Outing What Happened in Williams’ First Game Against the White Sox? Gavin Williams, who had been sidelined since March due to an elbow injury, made his return to the field against the Chicago White Sox. The Cleveland Guardians were in need of pitching…
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) The New York Mets’ latest win came at a steep price. Carlos Mendoza could be without his closer for the foreseeable future. According to a report by ESPN’s Jeff Passan, Edwin Diaz is now looking at a 10-game suspension after being ejected during his team’s 5-2 win over the Chicago…
(Photo by Rebecca Noble/Getty Images) Former Cy Young winner and World Series champion CC Sabathia knows a thing or two about being an ace, and it’s great to see that he’s still following the game closely while enjoying his retirement. In a recent media appearance, Sabathia shared his admiration for one of the game’s…
