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Post by aliensporebomb on Apr 19, 2011 13:16:54 GMT -5
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Post by dasein on Apr 19, 2011 14:12:09 GMT -5
Chapman just threw a fastball last night that was clocked at 106 MPH, which would be a new record. But it's tough to get a completely accurate reading, and it's well known that there are discrepancies in the radar guns between stadiums. What's terrifying to me about Chapman is that his fastball also has decent movement AND he's a lefty.  I haven't watched enough of him to know what his repertoire is, but if he can develop a change up with the same delivery that sits somewhere in the 85~ MPH range, it could be like watching Bugs Bunny strike out the Gashouse Gorillas. |
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Post by Infinite Ego on Apr 19, 2011 14:33:06 GMT -5
So he found his velocity again? Last I heard he was down to 91 or 93 mph....there was a lot of concern among the Reds that he was injured.
I think part of it is just throwing every day and using your whole body, long strides, staying closed to the mitt for as long as possible, staying behind the ball and 'on top' of it, and pitching down hill. My son was touching 60mph when he was 11 last year. He looks like poop right now (long winter) but he should be hitting 60 on a routine basis this year.
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mirth
New Member
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Post by mirth on Apr 19, 2011 14:40:17 GMT -5
Not knowing much about it, is there a speed where you actually have to swing before the pitcher lets go?
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Post by aliensporebomb on Apr 19, 2011 17:58:42 GMT -5
106 miles an hour? Amazing. Was the ball red hot with friction when they caught it?
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Post by danstearns on Apr 19, 2011 18:13:32 GMT -5
i remember way back when Ron Nenn hit 103 in the playoffs, and Bob Feller, who was doing some commentary said something like, "are you kidding?my curveball was faster than that"
Anyway, i do think pitchers are throwing harder, but that the modern measurements are not only inconsistent from on stadium to another, but also probably a lot more sensitive than the measurements of old....but 106 is pretty terrifying no matter how you slice it
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ck1
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Post by ck1 on Apr 19, 2011 22:37:00 GMT -5
Being a Phillies fan, I remember Carlos Ruiz hitting one of Chapman's pitches for a single last year, and then seeing that it registered 105. So, even that speed is possible to hit, though Tim raises an interesting point...
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Post by dasein on Apr 20, 2011 0:34:25 GMT -5
Funny you should mention Bob Feller, Dan:
Pitchers don't throw hard enough where you have to start swinging before the ball is released (except, of course, for Sidd Finch ;D) but most hitters will begin to load up right when the pitcher is releasing the ball.
Really, speed isn't as important as movement, location, and deception. I know he gets brought up as an example over and over again, but Greg Maddux was virtually unhittable in his prime, and he never really topped the high 80's/low 90's.
The funny thing about Maddux is that even though he never threw especially hard, he needed all that velocity in order to get that late-breaking movement on his fastball. As he got older, he couldn't hit that tipping point, and had to rely instead on location and his encyclopedic knowledge of the art of pitching.
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Post by Infinite Ego on Apr 20, 2011 9:28:12 GMT -5
Feller liked to brag about throwing a 107 mph fastball but I doubt the guy ever hit 100. They had no way to really measure it with much accuracy -- the only thing that matters was that he was much faster than the norms of his day. In other words, he couldn't physically throw 107 but he did throw the social equivalent of 107 -- the virtual 107. ;-)
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