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(Passan) Verlander: MLB juicing balls for more offense

Discussion in 'Houston Astros' started by SemisolidSnake, Jul 8, 2019.

  1. SemisolidSnake

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    c1utchfan925 likes this.
  2. CometsWin

    CometsWin Breaker Breaker One Nine

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    It's obvious to anyone paying attention.
     
    c1utchfan925, BigM and gatsby like this.
  3. juicystream

    juicystream Contributing Member

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    Just saying what everyone knows. So many balls that seen routine outs end up carrying into the stands like it's the early days of Coors or the wind blowing out at Wrigley.
     
    Buck Turgidson likes this.
  4. Joe Joe

    Joe Joe Go Stros!
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    The only question is whether it is an MLB conspiracy or a random change in manufacturing process.
     
  5. AstrosRockets1818

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    Could you imagine what would happen if somebody said this in the Adam Silver trash NBA?

    Love the MLB sooooo much ****ing more.
     
  6. Houstunna

    Houstunna The Most Unbiased Fan
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    Heyyyyy... This explains Verlander setting his career-high HRs allowed this season (by a lot).

    Smh... If you ratio'd his previous most allowed with what the league allowed same season, I bet this year's ratio is noticeably worse.

    Do better, Justin. We're still homies, but do better.
     
  7. RKREBORN

    RKREBORN Member

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    Disappointed for Verlander for whining. Giving off Rockets vibes now
     
    MVP4THREE likes this.
  8. Htown Stros

    Htown Stros Member

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    Imagine if someone in the NFL said this...
     
  9. BigM

    BigM Contributing Member

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    There’s no question it’s juiced. Whatever that means. Something is different though. But if it leads to 60 home runs from Yordan next year, I’ll take it.
     
  10. No Worries

    No Worries Contributing Member

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    Where is Tom Brady's deflated balls when you need them?
     
    Htown Stros likes this.
  11. Nick

    Nick Contributing Member

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    Back when the NBA switched to a different surface of the balls, there was many vocal complaints from the players... and they switched back.

    In the NFL, as more and more evidence piled up that playing on traditional astro-turf led to more non-contact injuries, players voiced concerns and teams eventually switched... despite astroturf giving fast receivers a huge advantage.
     
    #11 Nick, Jul 8, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 8, 2019
  12. Htown Stros

    Htown Stros Member

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    The fact that MLB acquired Rawlings last year makes me believe this isn't some "random manufacturing change" and is an attempt by the MLB to inject more offense into a league where offenses have been hurt by philosophical/analytical changes made by teams in the way they attack hitters. I think everyone here knows what those are but for conversational purposes IMO the main changes have been:
    1. The evolution of relievers (seems like everyone throws 100 these days) and the decline of starting pitchers like JV who are workhorses (don't have the advantage of seeing a pitcher for a 3rd time anymore unless they are someone like JV who you don't want to see 3 times anyway)
    2. The use of data heavily favors pitchers as it is behind the use of shifts and pinpoints hitters weaknesses which are much tougher to adjust/change to than it is for a pitcher (i.e. Morton just dropping his cutter and going with the high FB/curve combo). Coming from someone who played baseball 14+ years, it's not easy to just "start hitting it the other way" contrary to popular opinion.
    Let's face it, the steroids era was exciting to watch and MLB was extremely popular - I'm too lazy to look it up but if I recall it was more popular than the NBA which has passed the MLB up and then some in the past ~5 years. I still remember watching the Sosa vs. McGwire home run race, it was great for the game. Everyone has been harping on the "length of the game" but I'd bet anything casual fans would rather watch a 15-13 slug fest that takes 3+ hours than a 2-0 pitching duel that takes 2.5 hours (I mean we're talking about 30 minutes here) with a third of the ABs are ending in strikeouts. Ju

    In conclusion, if I'm Manfred, I'd absolutely juice the baseballs (moving the mound back IMO isn't a good idea, pitchers are used to the current distance and could lead to more injuries). And quite frankly, while I love JV, I find it annoying that he keeps complaining about this...any decision the MLB is making I can guarantee is based on studies/initiatives with the primary goal of making the game more popular/increasing revenue which in return puts more money in the players pockets (you just got 33M a year JV, quit crying).
     
    Kim likes this.
  13. Rileydog

    Rileydog Contributing Member

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    Verlander is calling out two things. First the ball being juiced. Second the league not admitting to it. I think he is totally justified in complaining about both points and the fact that has the red ass about it is part of what makes him great. If you see the interview, you can see it’s the second point that really chaps his ass.
     
    Kim likes this.
  14. rockbox

    rockbox Around before clutchcity.com

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    When you've been making balls for over 100 years, there are no random changes in manufacturing processes.
     
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  15. Nick

    Nick Contributing Member

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    Its getting harder for Manfred to claim ignorance... he's now going on interviews stating that the balls are different and impacting numbers (based on their "scientists data").

    They should admit it. Saying they have no control over it, or saying they don't know why the ball is behaving difficulty is really hard to believe when they own the company that makes the balls.
     
  16. Joe Joe

    Joe Joe Go Stros!
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    Every thing I've heard about the ball manufacturing is that there is absolutely no QC regarding drag coefficient. Without QC, things tend to drift over time. For all intents and purposes, the manufacturers are just getting better at making the ball evenly round inside and out. The more perfect the balls are, the farther they fly.
     
  17. Rileydog

    Rileydog Contributing Member

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    It’s not just hard to believe, it’s insulting our intelligence...which is Verlanders point. There was a great article in the Athletic that studied the seam height, thread tightness, and smoothness/aerodynamics of the leather. The seam height and leather are clearly significantly different.
     
  18. Nick

    Nick Contributing Member

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    Its a multi-billion dollar industry... maybe there should be more oversight.

    Every other league polices (or in some cases, makes a 3-year saga) over the handling of their balls.
     
  19. rockbox

    rockbox Around before clutchcity.com

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    But somehow the balls performed mostly the same for 100 years, and all of the sudden they performed differently after they enacted quality control? This was no accident. I don't blame them. I find alvarez and trout hitting homeruns all over the place exciting, but we should note it. Hitting 50 home runs in this era isn't the same as 30 years ago or during the steroid era.
     
  20. AstrosRockets1818

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    I just meant if a player singled out the NBA and specifically the comish. Would be a huge ass fine and probably a suspension.
     
    Jake Tower likes this.

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