Nolan Ryan: "Tall & Fall" method... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cTv-LrzIPw Sandy Koufax: "Drop & Drive" method... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDgMXFBHLP0 Randy Johnson: Tall & Fall http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbaKWvLFKjc Roy Oswalt: Drop & Drive http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnehldvI04Y
Thanks Jim for the perspective. Five innings is now considered a "quality" start. 40 years ago it would be your ticket back to AA. Pitch counts, skipping starts etc. All tactics that todays micro-managers use to protect their young pitchers. The Yankees started messing with Phil Hughes around the All-Star break becuase they "didn't want him to get a dead arm". He was 12-2 at that point. So they tightened his count, threw in extra days rest and even gave him a week off. Since then I think he's 3-3 or 3-4. Nice work. I blame all the high tech conditioning. Jim's right. In the old days you pitched every fourth day and if at all possible, you finished what you started. Gibson, Lolich, Maloney, Tiant, Jenskins,on and on, Now those were pitchers. 15-20 complete games per pitcher per year were not uncommon. Now they won't get that in a career.
Thanks JO'Co. Doyel writes a lot of things I think are off the wall, but this sounded to me like he has a good point. I hope that Strasburg recovers. He captivated all baseball fans this year and I know all of us are pulling for him to make a complete recovery.