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Thursday, June 03, 2004

Are Pitch Counts Just A Bunch Of Schmidt?

Baseball Primer has a good discussion going about a USA Today article decrying the use of pitch counts as crutches. First let me say that Bauman's thesis is absurd -- the difference between marathon training and pitching is night and day, pitching being immensely violent to the body -- but the more interesting point to come out of the discussion is Ranger R. A. Dickey's pursuit of a complete game shutout against the Red Sox in which he threw 131 pitches. Over his next six starts he earned a 7.59 ERA. Tell us again, Bauman -- how long will Jason hold it together?

Comments:
There has been for some time a general theory that pitchers are wimps when put up against tennis players. In an average five set tennis match, each player SERVES ABOUT TWO HUNDRED TIMES. Of course they receive as well.

The tennis serving motion is just as violent, if not more so, than throwing. Additionally tennis players do it full speed for two weeks running in big tournaments.

Draw your own conclusions, but I have never heard such nonsense as comparing a pitcher to a marathon runner.

Steve
 
I might buy into that except that tennis players aren't trying to get a deceptive spin on the racquet. Sure, they're taxing their shoulder, but they're not torquing their elbow the way a pitcher does. I'll put it this way: Tommy John surgery happened on a pitcher, not a tennis player, first for a reason.
 

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