I have been mulling for a long time what to do about the epidemic of pitching injuries in baseball. The plague has affected every organization, the highly successful ones like the Braves and Dodgers, the improved ones like the Orioles, and the weaker teams, too.
Tonight after the Orioles salvaged a split with the young and improved Washington Nationals with a well-pitched 4-1 game without too many strikeouts on either side, a lightbulb went on in my baseball-obsessed brain.
WHY NOT LIMIT THE NUMBER OF STRIKEOUTS ALLOWED IN EVERY PROFESSIONAL GAME, MINORS AND MAJORS?
My rule would force pitchers to better learn their craft, the Art of Pitching as Tom Seaver called it in the book I wrote with him over 40 years ago.
It certainly would cut down on the number of injuries caused by throwing harder and harder and excessively spinning the ball. These dangerous processes start in the early teenaged years and ultimately wreck too many arms.
I had thought about rewarding major league organizations with more draft choices if their pitchers go through seasons uninjured. Or conversely, taking draft choices away from teams that have too many injuries. But I don't see how those changes could be easily enforced.
CUTTING DOWN ON THE NUMBER OF STRIKEOUTS COULD BE AND SHOULD BE ENFORCED.
Maybe I have been subconsciously influenced by the huge success of Banana Baseball, started by Jesse Cole's Savannah Bananas that now has several teams playing a game that it is part circus, part vaudeville, and always part some recognizable form of baseball. Except that there are rewards for quick innings. And Banana Baseball assures customers that a game will never take more than two hours.
Last month, ESPN and ESPN2 aired in prime time a three-game series of Banana Baseball before sold-out crowds at the Louisville Bats minor league ballpark. It is a fun kind of entertainment and only slightly comparable to the Harlem Globetrotters. One big difference is the opposition teams often win the games unlike the Washington Generals that almost always lose to the Globies.
Speaking of enjoyable fast-moving sports, I think a big reason that the Paris Olympics proved such a success, artistically and TV ratings-wise, is that the action was quick and compelling. Track and field always has that element going for it and swimming too.
I must admit that I have never been a big fan of the Olympics because of the enormous costs to host cities and the history of political violence. Fortunately, Paris 2024 was not plagued by discord. In fact, one possible volleyball argument was defused when the loud speaker played John Lennon singing "Imagine".
The two basketball finals pitting USA against France were positively gripping. And each game was completed in under two hours because of 10-minute quarters and the absence of endless commercials.
Men's head coach Steve Kerr had revealing comments after Team USA beat France, 98-87 in a game far closer than the final score indicated. He was used to the dramatics of Steph Curry, 36, who he coaches on the Golden State Warriors - Curry's 4 threes in the last 3 minutes sealed the American win in the final and were instrumental in the big semi-final comeback against Serbia.
The tournament MVP went to 39-year-old Lebron James who Kerr never had coached. He said he has become a lifelong fan of James for his ability to know when to assist and when to take charge. Kerr praised the whole Team USA for embracing the pressure of knowing that winning only a silver medal would mark them forever as huge disappointments.
The USA women on Saturday were dealing with even greater pressure having the goal of winning an unprecedented 8 gold medals in a row.
They were led by A'ja Wilson, a college champion at South Carolina and winning a ring with the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces. A huge surprise contribution came from Kahleah Copper, a 2021 champion with the Chicago Sky.
The women's team had to come back from a 10-point deficit in the second half to beat France, 67-66, in about as dramatic a game as
one could hope to see. Gabby Williams' final shot for France at the buzzer was only inches from being a three that would have forced overtime.
Women's coach Cheryl Reeve, also with championship pedigree as longtime leader of the Minnesota Lynx, echoed Kerr afterwards about dealing with the pressure of expectation. "I told the team that we are trying for one gold medal," she said to NBC's Zora Stephenson after the victory. She stressed that the other seven victories were really no concern for this group.
Reeve also used an expression about knowing where your feet are. I find the concept elemental and spiritual. Most of us don't realize that our feelings begin in our feet. The mind should never forget that, the good coaches advise.
Though I promised last blog not to get too involved in the political campaign until after Labor Day, Tim Walz, the newly-minted Democratic V-P
candidate, used to coach high school football in Nebraska and Minnesota. He exhorted his defense: "11 on the ball."
Next time more on the pennant races heating up all over MLB's 6 divisions. For now always remember: Take it easy but take it; Stay Positive Test
Negative; and 11 ON THE BALL!