kbee's comments on the batting average got me looking for Hall of Famers with low averages. I found an article with an amazing season stat line that will never be matched: In 1958, Nellie Fox had zero home runs and only 11 strikeouts in 698 plate appearances.
OT: Gil Hodges elected to Hall of Fame
- Thread starter colbert17
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My dad has more home runs than strikeouts 5 times.
One year 28 124 322….12Ks
That is amazing, too. I hope this doesn't come out sounding belittling that because that is not the intent. How much of that do you think was his approach with two strikes vs. pitchers having a different approach back then? Was there more "pitch to contact" because guys couldn't throw 95+ like today?
Why do you think that was? America's passtime being played a lot more.. thus by the time they are in the MLB they had more experience vs live pitching vs machines, etc?
I'm an old timer and most old timers don't like to hear this.
I don't think my dad's stats or any of the greats of the game would change if they played today.
Mays, Berra,. Musial, Williams, Joe D, Aaron etc.... would all be super stars today and adjust to the velocity.
BUT, theres no doubt in my mind they would strike out a lot more and have a far more difficult time bunting and hitting behind the runner with bat control.
The velocity and stuff these pitchers are throwing is just at a complete different level compared to when I played.
Zap the off season training by your dad and the top players of his time were far different that what's being done by today's elite players.
Also their diets probably were far different that what today's players put in their body.
If the Mantles,Mays ,Berras and other eleite playes from the 50s/60s trained and ate like the current ones do >
Do you think that would have them play better in today's baseball environment or just be the reason they played as well today as they did yesterday
The old timers also grew up bailing hay and hauling bricks.
Those guys developed natural strength.
No doubt the training of today would aid them, but would they have stayed as healthy developing muscles on top of muscles you really don’t need.
A lot abdominal, oblique and shoulder injuries that didn’t happen in my day, or my dads.
By the way, all the training in the world won’t help you bunt a 101 mph fastball
Agree on the abdominal, oblique, quad, shoulder, etc injuries. All the weight training. I drew hay, worked on the railroad repairing track, & moved furniture. As you said we developed natural strength. That's where the agreement ends. We've had this discussion before. Too tired now to get into it again. Maybe tomorrow.
I'm going to do a 180 on this. Baseball greats from the past would be HOF today, but because they are compared to others from that time. Football, no way, bigger,stronger, faster, today's teams would crush the greats from the 50-70's. You have RB's today, bigger than lineman of that time period.
Wouldn't the greats from yesteryear be bigger, stronger, faster today? Specializing on one sport and using today's nutrition and workout programs.
Imagine Jack Nicklaus working out like Tiger Woods. Mickey Mantle in the weight room instead of a bar. Dick Butkus working out year round.
Holy cow, it must be the Holiday season, I agree with you 💯. Lol
No doubt the training and money not to have side jobs in the off season would allow them to train like today's players
It's about time 🤣 I never thought comparing athletes of different generations was fair. Look at baseball. The game has dramatically changed. Hitting for average and not striking out is not important anymore. Nobody will get 300 wins pitching anymore.
All the new training techniques, pitch counts, innings management...all these things and it seems to me that more pitchers get hurt now more than ever.
My nephew has his 10 year old in a couple of clinics, and all this stuff about launch angles and different grips seem to me like they are trying to reinvent the game. Not a fan of this. I guess grabbing a bat and squeezing the sawdust out of it is way old school. Yea, I know all about the top hand loose to guide the bat, but launch angle, forget it.
Lol
Teaching ten year olds about launch angles.
The skills of defense are far more important to learn at 10 years old.
Throwing a ball against a wall for hours, fielding it as it bounces back to you. Throwing pop ups off the roof of the house,
Playing catch with your friends, getting the ball out of your glove and throwing it in half a second.
Playing burnout, throwing side arm.
The art of catching, throwing, fielding grounders and pop ups are what 10 year olds should be concentrating on.
Parents and adults shouldn’t be anywhere near you….lol
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Also, look at the medical capabilities now. Imagine if Gale Sayers had had real knee reconstructive surgery instead of the butchery they had back then.
100% on this. I'd have a sponge ball and throw it against an A&P wall for hours. To my backhand, then charge the big hop, all sorts of stuff. In Bloomfield we'd play a game called Wire ball. Throw a sponge ball up towards the powerlines at a back street corner. Paint a line a couple of feet below the collection of wires and if you hit the wire just right, it would come straight down and be uncatchable. You had to cover a whole street corner. Throwing that ball straight up for hours must have built-up great arm strength since I never had an arm issue as a catcher and pitcher. I would throw batting practice to my travel teams for hours well into my 40's, breaking off curves and fastballs.
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Gil Hodges all original 1962 Mets Road Jersey
Gil Hodges Mets Managers Contract that covered his first 3 years as the Mets Manager. It paid him 50K for each of the years 1968, 1969 and 1970. Probably a 2 year contract would have been beneficial in hindsight.
Gil Hodges Mets Managers Contract that covered his first 3 years as the Mets Manager. It paid him 50K for each of the years 1968, 1969 and 1970. Probably a 2 year contract would have been beneficial in hindsight.
Gil Hodges all original 1962 Mets Road Jersey
Gil Hodges Mets Managers Contract that covered his first 3 years as the Mets Manager. It paid him 50K for each of the years 1968, 1969 and 1970. Probably a 2 year contract would have been beneficial in hindsight
Yeah or near their kids when they are young. Let them play develop & figure it out & settle their beefs on their own.
After I finished playing, I was coaching a Legion team with my Dad. We got a 15yr old who was a really good chucker to come with us. One day as I was unloading groceries from my car, his father appeared & began telling me how good his son was & that he should be playing in the field every day that he wasn't pitching. I explained to him that he wasn't as good as the guys we were playing[and it wasn't close]. He didn't accept that & persisted. So I told him that he needed to start his own team--rake the field, chalk the lines & the batters box, conduct the practices, make the phone calls to the kids, deal with any league issues that came up, etc. & then he could play his son wherever he wanted & hit him 3rd. He took off & his son showed up for the next game & all the practices & games for the rest of the season. In a year or so, after working with, him he became our rt fielder.
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Dad-
I told this story a few years ago.
My next door neighbors son organized his friends to meet in the local park down the street from us at noon on Sundays in the fall.
They would choose up sides, argue, cuss when they wanted, and made up their own rules.
After a few Sundays of fun, parents started showing up and parking themselves in lawn chairs, moms brought food. Fathers intervened and started organizing and umpiring, changing rules the kids made up and ruined the whole experience.
I told this story a few years ago.
My next door neighbors son organized his friends to meet in the local park down the street from us at noon on Sundays in the fall.
They would choose up sides, argue, cuss when they wanted, and made up their own rules.
After a few Sundays of fun, parents started showing up and parking themselves in lawn chairs, moms brought food. Fathers intervened and started organizing and umpiring, changing rules the kids made up and ruined the whole experience.
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I knew about this because the dad next door asked me to join all the parents and give a clinic.
I told him kids need to play by themselves without you watching and without you organizing for them.
You don’t need to see your kid play a friggen pick up game.
He literally didn’t understand and thought his need to organize was being a good father.
I understand what the man was saying but told him you’re also being a good dad by letting your kid have some independence
I told him kids need to play by themselves without you watching and without you organizing for them.
You don’t need to see your kid play a friggen pick up game.
He literally didn’t understand and thought his need to organize was being a good father.
I understand what the man was saying but told him you’re also being a good dad by letting your kid have some independence
Good for you Zap. By the way the 15 yr old pitcher I referred to in the previous post was in fact 16 I believe.
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