5 Issues I Liked (Or Didn’t Like) This Week, August 11

Another week, one other likelihood to go searching baseball and see one thing that amazes you. That’s a part of what I like in regards to the sport: bizarre issues are all the time taking place. As all the time, I famous a couple of that notably tickled my fancy, and now I’m going to jot down a bunch of phrases about them within the hope that you just like them too. Shout out, per normal, to Zach Lowe, who got here up with this concept for a column years in the past and have become my favourite basketball author in consequence. Let’s get going.

1. Cavan Biggio’s Instinctual Brilliance
When the Jays’ trio of legacy-admission prospects had been breaking into the majors, I used to be highest on Cavan Biggio relative to trade consensus. I’ve undoubtedly been improper in that evaluation. Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. became stars, however Biggio is extra of a luxurious backup. He can play loads of defensive positions, however none of them notably properly, and he’s a league-average hitter. That’s a superbly serviceable addition to your crew, however it’s hardly going to set the league on hearth, and he’s been worse than that in 2023.

But my Biggio crush remains to be round, and also you higher imagine that I’m going to focus on his enjoyable performs. Let’s set the scene: Monday evening in Cleveland, a scoreless sport within the high of the eighth. Biggio drew a begin at second base, and with Daulton Varsho on first, he clubbed a no-doubter to useless heart to provide the Jays a 2–0 lead. Hey! Biggio heads, unite, he’s again in enterprise.

But the Jays couldn’t preserve that momentum going. The Guardians got here out swinging within the backside of the inning. With one out, they hit three straight singles to chop the result in 2–1. The state of affairs was precarious for Toronto: first and third, one out, and maybe the perfect batter coming to the plate in Steven Kwan.

Kwan doesn’t strike out. He’s arduous to double up. If you need to rating a run from third with lower than one out, these are the precise expertise you want. The Jays had been going to wish one thing particular to carry onto the lead Biggio had given them. And what are you aware, they acquired one thing particular:

Off the bat, I assumed there was little likelihood of that ball turning right into a double play. It wasn’t hit arduous sufficient for a throw to second to get again to first base in time. Kwan was reserving it down the road. The previous customary — throw to first, then get Bo Naylor in a rundown — wouldn’t work, as a result of it might permit the run to attain. You must report the third out on a power play to cease the run from counting.

Biggio knew all that earlier than the play; years of follow and expertise make main leaguers fairly good at these sorts of issues. But he in all probability hadn’t turned a double play fairly like this one earlier than. Luckily, the trail he took to the ball pointed him in the correct course. Look at poor Naylor, frozen like a deer in headlights due to the conflicting calls for of avoiding a tag and avoiding a forceout:

Only one play might stop the tying run from scoring, and Biggio didn’t hesitate. He ran a direct line to first base, adjusted to tag Naylor out, and beat Kwan by half a step to show a virtuoso double play and protect the lead. Ninety-nine occasions out of 100, that play seems in another way; the Guardians nearly all the time get a run in, in some way. But Biggio’s second of brilliance stymied them. He knew it, too:

2. The Greatest Showman
Baseball is leisure, and Julio Rodríguez is aware of it. This merchandise isn’t much more advanced than that. Tuesday evening, Fernando Tatis Jr. laced a ball to deep heart. Rodriguez went again. The ball was in that good grey space the place solely a spectacular catch might stop a house run, however a spectacular catch was at the least potential. And then:

Did he catch it? Julio wasn’t saying. He got here down and took a couple of nonchalant steps, the frustration beginning to creep into his gait:

We’ve all seen that response earlier than. Oh properly, he missed it. Tough play, them’s the breaks. Logan Gilbert, who had surrendered the blast, stalked across the mound trying upset. Tatis broke into a house run trot. But wait! Rodríguez had one thing so as to add:

What a delight — at the least, in the event you’re not a Padres fan. That cheeky grin, that sly reveal; the play was spectacular sufficient, however the presence to play up the drama afterwards is spectacular. I need my baseball to be enjoyable, and it’s arduous to think about it being rather more enjoyable than that. More sleight of hand, please. More Julio doing just about something, please.

3. Announcers Discussing No-Hitters
As you might need heard, Michael Lorenzen threw a no-hitter on Wednesday evening. Since time immemorial, a no-hitter has include a superstition: don’t speak about it. That’s extra of a gamers within the dugout factor, however announcers are sometimes former gamers, which implies they stick with it the custom all the identical. It results in loads of amusing moments the place one announcer obeys the unwritten rule whereas the opposite doesn’t.

The first instance: John Kruk, naturally. In the eighth inning, play-by-play man Tom McCarthy famous that this was the deepest Lorenzen had gotten right into a begin with out permitting a success. Kruk, usually loquacious, went silent for fifteen seconds. After a pause, McCarthy in the reduction of in. “Hey, why are you looking at me like that?” he prodded Kruk.

“You know, I try to help you and educate you, and it just falls on deaf ears,” Kruk lastly responded. He didn’t even say what he meant; the which means was implied. You can’t say something about the truth that there aren’t any hits. It’s a rule! You might really feel Kruk’s indignation in his supply. He rigorously prevented saying anything, McCarthy let the matter drop, and the remainder is historical past.

I acquired a giggle out of that, however I wouldn’t be writing about this if it weren’t for one more instance. Tuesday evening, Mets minor leaguer Mark Vasil took a no-hit bid into the ninth inning. Now, I received’t misinform you: I watch loads of baseball, however I’m not watching the Syracuse Mets on a random Tuesday evening in August. But you recognize who does preserve tabs on what’s happening in Syracuse? The huge league broadcast.

When Vasil completed the eighth inning, area stage reporter Steve Gelbs hopped onto the printed to ship an replace. “I’m back for something that people will get very angry with me if it changes,” he famous, and you may inform instantly what was coming subsequent. “Through eight innings in Triple-A, Mike Vasil… let’s just say, he has not allowed something.”

Gary Cohen took the bait instantly. “Like a hit?” Gelbs toed the occasion line, although. “I didn’t say it!” he exclaimed, and refused to debate it any additional. The huge league Mets inning ended shortly after that, which minimize the dialogue off there, however you may inform the entire sales space was able to pile on Cohen, and perhaps needle Gelbs a bit within the cut price.

Vasil didn’t full his no-hitter, and Cohen famous it within the subsequent inning. Gelbs had a retort prepared. “Hey, you said the no hits thing, I didn’t,” he cracked. The Mets sales space being what it’s, they managed to stretch the bit out into an extended back-and-forth between Gelbs and Keith Hernandez, however that’s only a common Tuesday evening for them. The no-hitter whispering is much less a Mets particular and extra one thing woven into the material of the sport.

I fully perceive not mentioning a no-hitter within the dugout. The man throwing the no-hitter wants to focus on pitching, not fascinated by historical past. It’s all the time humorous to me when announcers get in on it, although. Clearly, they aren’t affecting the end result. Baseball is only a sport of superstition, I suppose. This one particularly all the time offers me chuckle.

4. Sneak Attack Fastballs
You hear rather a lot about ambush hitters. I guess you recognize precisely what I imply after I say these two phrases collectively: a hitter sits on a selected pitch in an advantageous rely, and when it comes, they assault. Maybe it’s a first-pitch fastball, or a 3–0 fastball — okay, it’s in all probability a fastball. But both approach, it’s a preferred concept, and a enjoyable one: you get some superior highlights that begin with fastballs with hit-me indicators on them.

I like watching strikeouts, so my pursuits additionally run in the wrong way. I like when pitchers weaponize that crushable fastball by throwing it in sudden counts. It’s a visible spectacle; right here comes the right pitch to hit, and the batter pins the bat to their shoulder and watches it fly by. It’s even higher if it’s a strikeout.

Watch Zach Eflin prepare dinner:

Phil Bickford can do it, too:

Poor Christopher Morel was giving Mets pitchers goal follow:

I might preserve going with these all day. Everything on this phase occurred within the final week. Here’s a lollipop that Robert Stephenson lobbed previous Jake Rogers:

Logan Allen threw a 91-mph fastball previous the Home Run Derby champion prefer it was nothing:

Look, perhaps you’re not a baseball weirdo like me. Maybe you need to see colossal dwelling runs and nasty curveballs that scrape the clouds earlier than bouncing within the filth. There’s simply one thing about seeing a pitch in probably the most hittable location in baseball and watching skilled hitters freeze of their tracks despite the fact that they know there are two strikes. I’m not saying this can be a good technique, however it’s one I’m all the time pleased to see.

5. Just Throw Strikes
You’ve heard it. A reliever comes out of the bullpen wild, falling behind the primary batter 3–0 and finally strolling him. He will get behind 2–0 on the subsequent man. “Hey, throw strikes!” Some smart man within the crowd will inevitably yell it. Obviously! The pitcher isn’t on the market attempting to overlook the strike zone. They simply can’t get a really feel for his or her pitches.

It’s absolutely a depressing for that reliever. You know you’re going to listen to it from the group. You know your crew is pondering it, too. But in some way, you may’t execute. Maybe you slept poorly the evening earlier than, or acquired a foot cramp jogging out to the mound. Whatever it’s, your command is gone, and the sport exhibits no mercy.

The Brewers had one of many worst variations of this nightmare I’ve ever seen on Tuesday evening. The Rockies loaded the bases in opposition to Andrew Chafin with no person out due to a stroll and a bunt single. Then, the dangerous occasions began:

Two walks in three batters, together with 4 straight balls with the bases loaded? Gross. It was time to go to the bullpen and let Chafin hit the showers. No huge deal, occurs to everybody every now and then. One run isn’t a catastrophe with the zombie runner in impact. Even two runs isn’t disqualifying. The reinforcements might hopefully decide Chafin up.

Only, uh, Abner Uribe got here in and racked up a pitch timer violation earlier than throwing his first pitch. That’s not precisely the way you’d draw it up at dwelling. He adopted that up in a approach that you just in all probability predicted based mostly on the identify of this merchandise:

Oof. Just, oof. It’s merciless to convey a reliever into the sport with the bases loaded, and notably merciless to do it to somebody with Uribe’s questionable command. This sport was getting out of hand rapidly, and there have been nonetheless three outs to scrounge up. Surely, Uribe might flip issues round in opposition to Ryan McMahon:

Whoops. Three runs dwelling on 12 pitches just isn’t the way you draw it up within the clubhouse. The Milwaukee crowd was shellshocked; a couple of boos rained down, however principally there was simply shocked silence. Uribe recovered to throw a strike on the very subsequent pitch, to an enormous roar from the followers, however it was too late. Milwaukee misplaced, 7–3. Just throw strikes, certainly.