A BOLD SUGGESTION FOR BASEBALL: MOVE BACK THE MOUND
I love baseball but at least two things are hurting the sport at the major-league bevel: the games in general are too long and flame-throwing pitchers have too much of an advantage over overmatched hitters.
If the pioneers who invented the game in the 1800s knew then what we know now, baseball would be a different game.
In 1893, in an effort to boost offense, the pitcher’s mound was changed from a 50-foot line to 60 feet, 6 inches from home plate.
That distance hasn’t changed in 125 years.
Lowering the mound has boosted offense in the past. I have a more radical suggestion – push back the mound.
How far? I don’t know. Six inches? One foot? Two feet?
Why? To make the game more fun to play – for everyone except the power pitchers -- and to watch.
Pitchers are too dominant in modern baseball. They’re bigger, stronger and throw much harder than the pitchers did in 1893 and beyond.
It has become more difficult to hit the baseball. Strikeouts are at an all-time high and rising. Stringing singles and doubles is so difficult that most Major League Baseball teams now encourage swinging for the fences to produce instant runs.
Bullpens today feature six, seven or eight relief specialists, most of whom throw a steady diet of 95-plus mph fastballs. All of the late-inning pitching changes result in longer games. Paying customers are pouring out of stadiums before the games end.
If the mound were moved back, the power pitchers wouldn’t have such an advantage over overmatched hitters. There would be more room on rosters for pitchers with “good stuff” but not overpowering stuff. “Small ball” would make a comeback – with more hitters swinging for singles and more hit-and-run plays and more stolen bases.
I’m a big fan of home runs – always have been – but power pitchers throwing to powerful low-contact free swingers has gotten out of hand.
I’d like to see Major League Baseball experiment for at least one full season with a 62-foot pitching distance for a low-level minor league. My guess is that the results would include far fewer strikeouts and produce more balance between the pitchers and the hitters.
It must have been considered a drastic move from 50 feet to 60 feet, 6 inches 125 years ago. The change helped the game a lot back then.
Is trying something different all these years later necessarily a bad idea? Would it be worth a try?
IS MANU GINOBILI A FUTURE BASKETBALL HALL OF FAMER?
San Antonio Spurs guard Many Ginobili received a standing ovation in the waning minutes of Monday night’s 129-115 season-ending loss to visiting Golden State Warriors. Was it the final game of his 14-year NBA career? The home fans obviously thought so.
Is Ginobili a future Basketball Hall of Famer?
Ginobili was a very good NBA player. The No. 57 overall pick in the 1999 NBA draft was one of the many steals by San Antonio’s crack scouting staff. He was a polished pro by the time he reached the NBA at age 25 for the 2002-03 season.
He was an international superstar before and during his NBA career. He was the first non-American player to win an Olympic gold medal (2004 with Argentina) and an NBA championship ring (he has four of those). He won two Italian League MVP awards.
In 992 career NBA regular-season games, the vast majority willingly coming off the bench to give the Spurs an instant lift, he averaged 13.6 points on loaded San Antonio teams. He was a clever passer and dribbler, an accurate shooter, a clutch performer and one of the best at drawing charges by opponents (in other words, he was a peerless flopper).
He was a two-time All-NBA Third Team selection, played in two All-Star Games and won the “Sixth Man” award. He had only 349 starts for coach Gregg Popovich and was one Popovich’s favorite players. That’s saying a lot.
Ginobili and Tony Parker probably formed the best international backcourt in NBA history. They both might be bowing out after this season. I believe they’re both future Basketball Hall of Famers and it would be nice to see them inducted together.
TOM BRADY AND “THE ROCK” FOR PRESIDENT?
Bovada this week posted odds on winning the 2020 election for President of the United States. The list is interesting to say the least.
The sports betting site offered 2-to-1 odds on 2017 as the exit year for Donald Trump and 9-to-1 odds on Mike Pence to win the POTUS election in 2020.
The favorites to win the 2020 POTUS election: Trump 9-to-4 (bet $4 to win $9)....Elizabeth Warren 15-to-2 (bet $2 to win $15)....Michele Obama 15-to-1...Hillary Clinton 20-to-1...Bernie Sanders 20-to-1...Cory Booker 20-to-1...Paul Ryan 25-to-1...Joe Biden 25-to-1.
Other odds include: Marco Rubio 33-to-1...Andrew Cuomo 33-to-1...Ted Cruz 40-to-1...Oprah Winfrey 55-to-1...Mark Cuban 60-to-1...Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson 66-to-1...Tom Brady 125-to-1...Vince McMahon 500-to-1...Kim Kardashian 550-to-1.
Note: When wagering began on Bovada’s opening odds for the 2016 POTUS election, reality TV star Donald Trump was 150-to-1
IS TYLER LYDON’S NBA DRAFT STOCK SLIPPING?
Departed Syracuse U. power forward Tyler Lydon will be a wealthy young man very soon, but his stock in the 2017 NBA Draft appears to be slipping.
EPSN’s Brad Ford this week listed his top 35 NBA draft prospects and Lydon did not make the 35-player list.
Ford’s top 10 prospects all are freshmen: Makelle Fultz...Lonzo Ball...Josh Jackson...Jayson Tatum...De’Aaron Fox...Jonathan Isaac...Malik Monk...Dennis Smith...Zach Collins...Lauri Markkanen.
GOING FOR THREE DIFFERENT WINNERS IN THE TRIPLE CROWN RACES
No Triple Crown will be on the line in the Belmont Stakes June 10.
There is a good chance the 2017 Triple Crown races -- Kentucky Derby (Always Dreaming), the Preakness Stakes (Cloud Computing) and the Belmont Stakes will have three different winners.
Sir Barton won the first of the 12 Triple Crown in 1919. In the 97 years since, the three Triple Crown races produced:
11 Triple Crowns.
Two horses combined to win the three races 48 times.
Three different horses won 38 times...most recently, Nyquist, Exaggerator, Creator in 2016...Orb, Oxbow and Palace Malice in 2013, and Animal Kingdom, Shackleford and Ruler On Ice in 2011.
RIT TIGERS VS. SALISBURY LOOKS LIKE A SUPER MATCHUP
The RIT Tigers will take on the powerful Salisbury Seagulls in the NCAA Division III men’s lacrosse championship game Sunday, 5 p.m., at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. It should be a great game.
Second-ranked RIT, going for its first NACC Division III crown, is 20-2 and has outscored opponents 385-206 (+179). RIT’s only losses were on the road to Dickinson (10-9) and Clarkson (9-6). The Tigers have won 15 straight games since.
Salisbury, going for its 12th NCAA Division III title, is 21-1 and has outscored opponents 383-147 (+236). The only loss for the Sea Gulls was 11-10 in overtime to Cabrini University. Salisbury avenged that defeat with a 17-5 win in the NCAA quarterfinals.
It will be the first meeting between the two schools. Maybe they should face off every regular season.
TOUGH ASSIGNMENT FOR BERRIOS
Right-handed pitcher Jose Berrios Jr. was awesome in his first two starts for Minnesota since being recalled from the Red Wings: 2-0 record; 0.59 ERA; 15 1/3 innings; 4 hits allowed; 2 walks; 15 strikeouts; 0.39 WHIP; .082 BAA.
He faces a very tough test Wednesday, 12:35 p.m., at the Baltimore Orioles.
SHORT SHOTS
The Hickok Belt Athlete of the Month for April 2017 is Masters champion Sergio Garcia.
Cheers to four-time Syracuse U. All-American Casey Powell for being one of the nine members of the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame’s Class of 2017 announced Tuesday. He also starred for the National Lacrosse League Rochester Knighthawks (1999 and 2000) and the Major League Lacrosse Rochester Rattlers (2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008). He was the NLL MVP in 2010 and the MLL MVP in 2014.
The fans are unlikely to vote Minnesota’s Miguel Sano as starting third baseman for the American League in the All-Star Game, but he deserves a spot on the team if he maintains his current pace: .319 batting average (45-for-141), 31 runs, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 11 HRs, 37 RBI, 1.077 OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage). He’s been fielding surprisingly well, too.
The NBA Finals start Thursday June 1 at the Golden State Warriors. Game 7, if necessary, would be Sunday June 18....For the record, when the Rochester Royals beat the New York Knickerbockers in the 1951 NBA Finals, game 7 was April 21.
Rochester’s contribution to the WNBA, Shenise Johnson (Rush Henrietta/University of Miami). is starting her third season with the Indiana Fever and her sixth WNBA season overall.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...
Wednesday, May 24
Nelson Agholor (24)...Andrew Toles (25)...Joey Lagano (27)..Tracy McGrady (38)....Brad Penny (39)...Miguel Tejada (43)...Bartlo Colon (44)...Kris Draper (46)...Ricky Craven (51)...Pat Verbeek (53)...Joe Dumars (54)...Pete Metzelaars (57)....Mitch Kupchak (63)...Dave Machemer (66)...LPGA’s JoAnn Washam (67). John C. Reilly (52), Priscilla Presley (73), Patti LaBelle (73) and Bob Dylan (76) are invited to the birthday party.
Thursday, May 25
Neil Ramirez (28)...Pat Dean (28)...WWE’s Roman Reigns (32)...Shawne Merriman (33)...Jason Kubelo (35)...Brian Urlacher (39)...Tarik Glenn (41)..Miguel Tejada (43)...Kendall Gill (49)...Nick Fotiu (65)....K C Jones (85)...Bill Sharman (91). Anne Heche (48) and Mike Myers (54) are invited to the birthday party.