MLB 2026 Spring Training

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

If it hasn't already been mentioned... pitchers are throwing harder than they used to. Collectively speaking... they're bigger and stronger.

90mph is not fast in the modern era, yet it used to characterize a 'live' arm. Back in the Ruth era... it might have been 75mph.

I can't say with any certainty that reaction times have risen in the same proportion as pitch velocity.

A raised mound would be the shits in my opinion.

To pitch in the MLB you need at least a 90mph fastball.  Eventually the pitching arch of speed is going to level off as you can only throw so fast. Pitchers can't get any faster than what the human body can do so the batters catch up.

For what ever reason the powers that be keep pushing for the damn HR as the magic bullet of excitement.  The dunk was that in the NBA and now the once scoffed at 3 pointer is the new star in the league.

If hits increased rather than HR to K's I would think that baseball would be more entertaining to the average person.

Thoughts?

MadBum told Bochy he’s walking out of the stadium if he uses an opener in his games. I can’t say I disagree with him. What a stupid concept.

tempo_n_groove said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

If it hasn't already been mentioned... pitchers are throwing harder than they used to. Collectively speaking... they're bigger and stronger.

90mph is not fast in the modern era, yet it used to characterize a 'live' arm. Back in the Ruth era... it might have been 75mph.

I can't say with any certainty that reaction times have risen in the same proportion as pitch velocity.

A raised mound would be the shits in my opinion.

To pitch in the MLB you need at least a 90mph fastball.  Eventually the pitching arch of speed is going to level off as you can only throw so fast. Pitchers can't get any faster than what the human body can do so the batters catch up.

For what ever reason the powers that be keep pushing for the damn HR as the magic bullet of excitement.  The dunk was that in the NBA and now the once scoffed at 3 pointer is the new star in the league.

If hits increased rather than HR to K's I would think that baseball would be more entertaining to the average person.

Thoughts?

Kyle Hendricks’ fastball is about 88, but he’s an anomaly. Totally agree with everything else.

I saw something today that compared MLB to NFL as far as length of games vs ball in play/action. They’re extremely similar, yet “pace of play” is a non-issue in football. Wonder why it’s being so pushed in baseball?

And another good point:

https://twitter.com/cushmanMLB/status/1094398756504645633

HesCalledDyer said:

tempo_n_groove said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

If it hasn't already been mentioned... pitchers are throwing harder than they used to. Collectively speaking... they're bigger and stronger.

90mph is not fast in the modern era, yet it used to characterize a 'live' arm. Back in the Ruth era... it might have been 75mph.

I can't say with any certainty that reaction times have risen in the same proportion as pitch velocity.

A raised mound would be the shits in my opinion.

To pitch in the MLB you need at least a 90mph fastball.  Eventually the pitching arch of speed is going to level off as you can only throw so fast. Pitchers can't get any faster than what the human body can do so the batters catch up.

For what ever reason the powers that be keep pushing for the damn HR as the magic bullet of excitement.  The dunk was that in the NBA and now the once scoffed at 3 pointer is the new star in the league.

If hits increased rather than HR to K's I would think that baseball would be more entertaining to the average person.

Thoughts?

Kyle Hendricks’ fastball is about 88, but he’s an anomaly. Totally agree with everything else.

I saw something today that compared MLB to NFL as far as length of games vs ball in play/action. They’re extremely similar, yet “pace of play” is a non-issue in football. Wonder why it’s being so pushed in baseball?

I think Greg Maddux threw 89 mph at best too and he was one of the greatest finesse pitchers I've ever seen play.

^^^

Or the front of the merch lines at PJ concerts when Dorothy Fiddlefuddle is trying on six sizes of shirts to change her mind and start again on the 3/4 sleeves.

tempo_n_groove said:

HesCalledDyer said:

Here it is:

https://twitter.com/CaseyKulina/status/1093533074908950528

I'll disagree w the NFL" action time".

You have men in motion, a time clock that everyone is watching...  It just seems off.

Men in motion doesn’t count, that’s dead ball. Snap to down. Similarly there are men in motion constantly in baseball.

No NL DH though, you can keep your AL, just leave my league alone, ha!

Plus compare the "action" of a baseball game to a football game.
In baseball, some(much) of that action time is a pitch that gets taken...whereas in football its 22 guys going at each other. Apples to watermelons.

pjhawks said:

HesCalledDyer said:

And another good point:

https://twitter.com/cushmanMLB/status/1094398756504645633

the difference is an NFL fan only has to commit 3 hours for this team 16 times a season and almost always on a weekend.  Baseball plays 162 games over about 200 days. it can be hard to commit to mid-week baseball games for 3 hours.  i love baseball but it's a rare regular season game i will watch at home for 3 hours straight.  that being said i have very little interest in attending an NFL game. way too much standing around on the field and lots of time cold weather.  living room or a bar is a perfect place to watch the NFL.

All good points.