Questions tagged [pitching]
Questions about the act of pitching in baseball/softball.
35 questions
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Can a pitcher get a blown save, save and win in the same game?
If a pitcher blows a save in the bottom of 9th inning, then pitches 10th after his team regains lead and proceeds to shut down the opponent, would he get both a blown save, save and win?
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Three-batter minimum and rain delays
There seems to be a longstanding belief that, if a pitcher has warmed up and/or begun to pitch, but then there is a long rain delay, that he should be replaced after the delay instead of continuing to ...
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Does a manager ever warm up two pitchers with the same handedness?
When a manager comes out to the mound to signal to the bullpen, he will simply motion with his left or right hand, indicating the throwing hand of the pitcher he wants.
Have there ever been two of the ...
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Pitcher with limited arsenal gets figured out too quickly, how can they become less predictable and effective?
Suppose as a pitcher I have a three-pitch arsenal (e.g. fastball, curveball, slider) and I play the position of relieving pitcher. I've noticed that my pitching style becomes repetitive due to my ...
user25172
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Winning pitcher when tied
I have read the rules and threads but I am still unclear about this situation
The home team starting pitcher leaves the game after 6 innings leading 3-2. The relief pitcher comes in at the 7th. The ...
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How would a position player warm up to be a "reliever?"
About ten years ago, there were a series of experiments (since gone nowhere), of allowing position players to pitch, say, one inning as a "reliever," particularly if the team were losing ...
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Does a relief pitcher who loses the lead then regains it get a win?
Starting pitcher ends inning with a 3-1 lead. New inning, relief pitcher gives up two runs for a 3-3 tie. Bottom of that inning we go ahead and finish with a win. Which pitcher gets the W? Seems ...
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Injuries in the 3 batter rule
As part of the pandemic season in Major League Baseball, a 3 batter rule was implemented to speed up the game. It states that each pitcher must face at least 3 batters (or finish an inning) before he ...
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Can stalling your delivery be cause for a balk?
Watching the 2016 AL Wild Card game between Toronto and Baltimore (that Edwin Encarnacion won with a walk-off), and I'm seeing what might be considered a balk, but I'm not sure why it's not.
Roberto ...
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Why do few teams use "hybrid" starters other than the Tampa Bay Rays?
The Tampa Bay Rays traded Chris Archer for pitcher Tyler Glasnow (and two other prospects).
The Rays have then "started" Glasnow in four games, for 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, and 6.2 innings, respectively. He is ...
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How many times has a starting pitcher stuck out all starting hitters?
How many times in the history of the MLB, a starting pitcher stuck out all 9 starting hitters of the opposing team at least once in a game?
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MLB Pitch Types "Back in the Day"
I was thinking how hard it would be to approach DiMaggio's 56 game hit streak these days.
Not only are there defensive shifts, specialized pitchers to get certain guys out, faster overall pitch speeds,...
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What were the major transformations in pitching strategy in MLB history?
The more I get into baseball the more I'm realizing that it's a pitchers game. If a pitcher is unhittable, the opposing team cannot win. I've also read some material on early pitchers in the deadball ...
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Can a pitcher switch throwing arms at any time during an inning, or in between pitches? [duplicate]
I have been playing baseball my entire life and I just thought of this question... if a pitcher is ambidextrous (can throw with both arms), is he/she able to switch throwing arms in the middle of an ...
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Why is the stretch preferred over the wind-up?
I just recently started coaching a little kid (8 years old) and this youngster is part of a travel team. The coaches for that travel team (according to the kid and his father) have instructed all ...
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80 as opposed to 100 pitches in training as a starting pitcher
I was listening to Tom Verducci describe The Mets' Steven Matz and he said he usually only throws about 80 pitches. He then said he shouldn't throw a usual 100 or 110 like Harvey or deGrom. He said he ...
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Why don't pitchers throw a combination of overhand and sidearm?
If I was going to teach someone to pitch I would want to teach them to pitch both sidearm and overhand.
I think the combination of the two styles would help to confuse batters because they would not ...
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Term or Stat for when a baseball pitcher is responsible for the team's win, both offensively and defensively?
Is there a term or a recorded statistic for when a baseball pitcher is
responsible for winning the game both defensively and offensively?
i.e...
1. The pitcher batted and had an RBI/Run, which was ...
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Relief/Closing pitcher statistics
I was wondering about some of the stats that you regularly see in baseball, and what criteria must be met to achieve such a stat, primarily with the relief and closing pitchers.
I understand that a ...
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Aroldis Chapman's Speed
I know that he has the record for the fastest pitch ever, but there is an hilarious stat that I found (but now cannot find again) once showing the 20 or so fastest pitches since 2000. I think Chapman ...
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How to break in a pitchers glove?
When I look at mlb pitchers their gloves seem to have a specific breakpoint compared to infielders/outfielders.
Any ideas on their breakpoints?
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What do managers do when a closer blows the save?
Would they pull him for the tenth inning in most cases? I know that they're generally one-inning specialists but would they go to a setup man or something after?
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Are pitches that are put into play counted as strikes or balls?
I have often seen a pitcher's pitch count displayed on the screen with it broken up into strikes, balls and total pitches. So something like
Strikes : 25
Balls : 15
Total : 40
My ...
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What's the chance of 6 swings and misses in a row using only your SO pitch?
I was watching a Masahiro Tanaka game last year and he got out of a men on 2nd and 3rd with no outs jam by striking out the first two batters. He just kept throwing his "out pitch" and they just kept ...
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Is Carter Capps's pitching style legal?
Here is a video of Miami reliever Carter Capps pitching. As you can see, he basically jumps off the rubber, and delivers from the front of the mound.
Apparently, MLB gave their approval to Capps's ...
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Pitchers as MVP
Many argued, especially after Clayton Kershaw's amazing run this year that got him the NL MVP award, that pitchers should not be eligible for the MVP award as they don't even play most of the games. ...
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Why can't modern starting pitchers consistently pitch on 2-3 days rest?
I've been browsing through some historical pitching stats at Baseball-Reference.com.
It seems that in the 1910s and 1920s, starting pitchers frequently pitched on 3 days rest, sometimes pitched on ...
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Why do pitchers sometimes pitch "out of the stretch?"
My understanding is that this is done in critical situations, as when there are opposing men on base, usually more than one.
Is this true and if so, why is that? Is it to increase the chances of ...
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Why is it called a "payoff pitch"?
A pitch on a full count (3-2) is also known as a "payoff pitch". I assume it's because the at-bat usually ends there (pays off), but it seems to preclude a foul ball.
In fact, i just heard "the ...
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How could pitchers once pitch both games of a doubleheader?
It was once not unheard for pitchers to pitch both games of a doubleheader, even to throw back-to-back complete games:
The most distinguished doubleheader pitching achievement was that of
“Big Ed”...
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In baseball, what is the "inside corner"?
When I listen to baseball games, announcers will mention that pitches are on the inside corner. Presumably, the inside corner of the strike zone.
What I don't understand is that the strike zone, to ...
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Why does the catcher decide what sort pitch the pitcher has to throw?
I have been reading few baseball related comics and, in all the comics what I have observed is that,the catchers always signal what the pitcher has to throw. It is as if the catchers are the brain ...
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Pitching loss in baseball
Pitcher A allows the potential lead runner to reach base in a tie game. Pitcher B comes in to relieve and gives up a hit, then gets the lead runner out on a fielder's choice. Now, pitcher A has nobody ...
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Do left-handed pitchers have a physiological advantage in baseball?
I've seen documentaries about pitching, especially going back into the old days where people state that left handed pitchers have an advantage on batters. These reasons span from batter position, ...
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How to recognize baseball pitches when watching television games?
When I watch Baseball games on TV, I have trouble to identify the pitch that the pitchers are throwing. I know the pitch types but can't tell the difference of a fastball to a slider when watching ...
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