YESTERDAY IN POSTSEASON PLAY:
The
Royals and Mets spent yesterday traveling to the east coast while the rest of
the baseball world spent the day in eager anticipation of the match-up of two
young, hard throwing, pitchers that are set to take the mound in game 3. This
could either mean a contest dominated from the mound or we could be seeing some
really long homeruns. Maybe both. These duels don’t happen too often in the
World Series so sit back and enjoy a potential glimpse at future dominance.
Game 3 Preview:
These guys throw fastballs that buckle knees and test
nerves and shatter bats. They challenge the body for sure, but they challenge
the mind, too. Are you willing to crowd the plate when the guy out there is
throwing 100 mph? OK, just checking. Take all the time you need to answer. Welcome
to Game 3 of the 2015 World Series on Friday at Citi Field. This is power
pitching versus power pitching -- Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard and Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura. At a time when 95-mph fastballs have
become almost commonplace in baseball, these guys have power that's special
even by the new normal. Syndergaard's fastball averaged 97.4 mph this season,
tying him with Yankees right-hander Nathan Eovaldi for tops among Major League starting
pitchers, according to Statcast™.
Ventura is a tick behind, with a fastball that has averaged 96.8 mph this
season, which is third among big league starters. Syndergaard's fastest pitch
was clocked at 101.4 mph this season and touched 99 mph three times in the
first inning of his last start. Ventura has cranked it up as high as 100.6 mph
this season. They generate all that power from different body types.
Syndergaard is 6-foot-6, 240 pounds and 23 years old. He's the physically
imposing textbook definition of a power pitcher, with a release that looks
absolutely effortless. No team in baseball has handled 95-mph (and up)
fastballs better than the Royals this season. They're also quick to point out
that the Mets' kid pitchers are more than hard throwers. "It should be
fun," Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer said. "I'm sure there'll be three
digits up there a lot of times. Those guys over there, they don't just throw
hard. In looking at Syndergaard's last start, he mixed up his stuff against the
Cubs a lot. It wasn't just going out there and trying to pump heaters. I don't
think you're going to see either guy doing that." Yordano is a year older
than Syndergaard at 24. He's listed as 6 feet, 180 pounds and generates all
that velocity with a whiplike delivery in which he drives smoothly off the
mound to home plate. Part of the game inside the game on Friday will be the
radar-gun readings at Citi Field. Hitters will use them to gauge how hard the
pitcher is throwing in the early innings and if the velocity diminishes as the
game wears on. And in a game like this, might both pitchers be glancing at
their own velocity -- and also that of the other guy? Mets manager Terry
Collins said it's far broader than that. "Both sides do [look at the
radar-gun readings], believe me," he said. "You go to any park
nowadays, and every team is looking to see how hard the guy is throwing.
Because nowadays there are so many hard throwers that you kind of have to
gauge. "I think it's become a huge part of the game to know how hard
somebody is throwing. Because you've got to make adjustments at the plate. And
all the film that you have on all these guys, you can't get a true feel until
you get in the batter's box." Royals manager Ned Yost said:
"Everybody looks at it. That's the first question they ask in a new
stadium. Everybody up and down the dugout is asking, 'Where is the radar-gun
reading?'" For his part, Ventura said there are more important things than
simply throwing hard. "Right now I'm not focused on velocity," he
said. "I'm simply focused on pitching deep into the game, keeping the game
close and giving my team a chance to score runs. I just want to do my
job." Likewise, Syndergaard said his game is to locate his pitches, mix
them up and change speeds. If he does those things, he'll be effective at both
93 mph and 99 mph. Both pitchers have taken different paths to get to Game 3 of
the World Series. Ventura was Kansas City's Opening Day starter, but spent a
month on the disabled list at mid-season with an irritated nerve in his
pitching elbow. He had some very good starts and some very bad ones after his
return. He hasn't finished six innings in any of his four postseason starts,
but is fresh off his best outing -- one earned run in 5 1/3 innings in the
clinching Game 6 of the American League Championship Series against Toronto. Syndergaard
made his Major League debut on May 12 as the latest in a string of heralded
Mets prospects. He has been as good as advertised, especially in the
postseason, during which he has a 2.77 ERA after two starts and a one-inning
relief appearance. Collins said Syndergaard was in the conversation to start
Game 1 of the World Series. "When he first got here, we saw 96
[mph]," Collins said. "What he's doing now, I have never seen that.
I've never seen 98, 99 and 100. I've seen good, good power stuff. But I've seen
a guy grow and learn how to pitch here, where he will go to his secondary stuff
in certain counts." One of the best parts of all this is that Syndergaard
and Ventura are so good and so young that they could rank among baseball's
elite pitchers for years to come. But they may never pitch on a bigger stage
than this one. They're both capable of delivering a World Series memory. Here's
hoping.
CURRENT
POSTSEASON PICTURE:
World Series
Kansas City leads Series 2-0
Kansas City at New York
Game
3: Friday, October 30, at 8:00 PM
PHILS PHACTS:
Crawford Goes Down In AFL – J.P. Crawford's time in the Arizona Fall League has come to
an end after just five games. The Phillies'
top prospect, ranked No. 5 on MLBPipeline.com's
Top 100 Prospects list, was the highest-ranked
prospect in the Fall League this season. Crawford went 3-for-20 (.150) with
three singles, two walks and six strikeouts for the Glendale Desert Dogs. Crawford
sustained a mild left thumb sprain while making a tag in a Fall League game. An
MRI exam revealed a partial tear of the UCL ligament, but it will not require
surgery. Crawford's thumb will be in a splint for the next three to four weeks,
but he is expected to be 100 percent healthy by Spring Training. The
20-year-old Crawford is a two-time Futures Gamer who spent most of the year in
the Double-A Eastern League in 2015. He hit a combined .288/.380/.414 over 430
at-bats between Clearwater in the Florida State League and Reading in the
Eastern League. To replace Crawford, the Phillies have sent infielder Drew
Stankiewicz to Glendale. Stankiewicz was an 11th-round pick of the Phillies inn
2014 out of Arizona State who split the year between Lakewood in the South
Atlantic League and Clearwater.
We Have A Dubee Sighting – Roy Halladay once said he respects few pitching coaches
more than Rich Dubee. Dubee served as the Phillies' pitching coach from
2005-13, when the organization won one World Series, two National League
pennants and five NL East championships. Dubee, who spent the past two seasons
working in Atlanta's Minor League system, will return to the big leagues next
year as
the Tigers' pitching coach. Detroit announced
the hiring Thursday afternoon. It is not a stretch to say Dubee has some
supporters in Detroit. He is close with Tigers bench coach Gene Lamont. He
worked for years in Philadelphia with bullpen coach Mick Billmeyer. He spent
one season in Philly with hitting coach Wally Joyner. Dubee also served as Jim
Leyland's pitching coach with the Marlins in 1998. Leyland is the Tigers'
special assistant to the general manager.
THE BEGINNING:
The
Phillies finally put an end to the season finishing in last place in the NL
East with a record of 63-99. Given the departures, aging stars, injuries, and
bipolar performances, this has ended up being one of the worst seasons in
franchise history! However, there are some former Phillies still making
headlines in the playoffs this year.
