LOS ANGELES, CA — The Dodgers have 16 players on the Injured List, 14 are pitchers. What does that say about the evolution of pitching in today’s baseball-thinking world? Basing everything on the pitch count is not working. It is not how many pitches a guy throws as much as what he is throwing. Throw more fastballs instead of sweepers and other pitches that put tremendous stress on the elbow, and learn how to sequence and properly pitch to a batter rather than trying to break the sound barrier.
When Mariners All-Star pitcher George Kirby criticized his manager, Scott Servais, for not taking him out of the game after 90 pitches, it sent a message to us all that we are watching a generation of big-league pitchers who have been groomed (better word, brainwashed) into thinking that 88-90 pitches are the physical limit for an arm.
“I wish I wasn’t out there for the 7th to be honest.”
George Kirby was visibly upset after giving up a game-tying HR on his 102nd pitch last night 😬
(h/t @Jake_M_Garcia)pic.twitter.com/netehtlyAN
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) September 9, 2023
His job was to help his team, which is in a race for a playoff berth, to win a game, not satisfy his ego. How about helping your team win a crucial game against an outstanding team like the Tampa Bay Rays? He was, in essence, throwing his manager, a former catcher, under the bus for doing his job in trying to win a game. The fact that he gave up a home run that led to the Rays winning the game is on him alone.
Shame on the organizations in baseball that have made a mess of the game of baseball. I will always wonder why they would think that young people with less knowledge of the game are more important than seasoned baseball lifers who have seen and been successful for years.
Mariners right-hander George Kirby in outing against the Mets at Citi Field – Image Credit: Simon Lindenblatt/Latino Sports
Letting the knowledgeable, successful people go and promoting the young college nerds who run the game today is just plain stupid. Would you let your teenage kid drive the car with their younger brothers and sisters in it from New York to Florida and let them make all the decisions needed to travel and be responsible for the safety of your children? But that is precisely what we have here in the newly invented game of baseball.
Today’s players are soft, and fewer are determined to win a game for the team. There are too many who worked hard to live the dream of being rich and famous, and not enough who have a true passion for the game as there were in the past. The insanity of it all is mind-boggling!
Feared flamethrower Bob Gibson dominating on the mound – Image Credit: Getty Images
What would Bob Gibson be saying today about George Kirby and the rest of the MLB pitchers in diapers?
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Techylist
October 15, 2023 at 10:03 am
I’m really disappointed with the state of our game. It seems like we’re going backwards instead of forwards.