Comments on: A Paean To Pitchers

By: Donal

Donal — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:31:43 +0000

And this is why Hall of Famers usually make bad coaches. You can’t hold everyone to that same standard.

Also, you make it sound like Koufax, Ryan and Gibson were the median for their time. They are Hall of Famers because they were head an shoulders above their contemporaries. It’s completely unfair to look at a pitcher now and tell him he sucks if he isn’t exactly like a Hall of Famer.

Also, back in the imaginary Good Old Days, pitchers didn’t go year round. They played for the summer and went home. Then, they would show up for Spring Training and work off those winter bodies.

These days, guys, even the superstars, are working year round in the Dominican Winter League, Arizona instructional leagues, and all over the world. Plus a lot of them have workouts they do on their “off days” during the season. Pitchers are actually putting more wear and tear on their arms.

By: Annie Savoy

Annie Savoy — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:11:44 +0000

William – When you mentioned Nolan Ryan I knew I had to tell you this story – when he was working with pitchers he really was working – they were not – as you say they complained. Nolan decided that no matter what, when these complainers were in a real game they were going to pitch eight innings. Nolan is a big man with a stellar record and a no-nonsense personality – all those no- hitters etc. he’s an example of a real guy pitcher. Interesting what happened to those kids under his instructions – after a couple tried to get away with laziness, most of the young pitchers turned the apprehension into admiration and did very well. Never mess with the Big Guy

By: William H.

William H. — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:03:20 +0000

You can tell the pitchers that want to come out by the way they keep looking into the dugout sometime after the sixth inning. Few warriors are left, Halladay is one. Starting pitchers used to be laughed at by teammates, teased and called soft if they came out before the ninth inning. Nowadays, a complete game is rarer than a grand slam. Athletes today are soft and pampered. They spend 3 days a week getting massaged, heaven forbid they pitch on three days rest like they did only 2 decades ago. And yet all they do is complain and have record numbers of injuries. Nolan Ryan talks about that often.

By: Satish Ram

Satish Ram — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 13:44:49 +0000

Woah there, hold on. I think there’s a huge difference between wanting to pitch a complete game and being able to. I’d be willing to put down money that there are a ton of pitchers who would pitch into the 9th everytime out there if they could.

Santana is a better pitcher than most, and I idolize his work ethic, but I don’t think you can assume that most pitchers have checkered careers and “most just want to be on the mound for a while” by comparison.

By: alex68

alex68 — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 12:53:06 +0000

annie, GREAT ARTICLE.. is a shame with johan santana, he’s a horse and a stud, but injuries happen, and they derail your career, few pitchers last long nowadays, they breakdown easier than before, let’s hope he can come back and provide the mets with the kinda year we expect from him

By: martin

martin — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 11:05:55 +0000

“most just want to be on the mound for a while and then leave it all to the 7th inning pitcher,”

zero truth in that statement.