The Yankees have been in the playoffs every year since 1995, with the exception of 2008, and the Phillies have been there every year since 2007. Their excellent pitching staff is what took them there. A baseball team without a capable pitching staff, physically and mentally, is destined to end up on the losing side when the season comes to a close. The defensive and offensive sides of the ball are close to an equal amount of importance. The pitcher, however, is arguably the most important position on the field.
These are known as slumps. Everyone thinks that slumps are a thing that happens unexpectedly. But really one of the most common used sayings in the game is, “a great hitter does not believe in slumps, he finds a way and gets back on track”. Slumps is a baseball term used when a player is not getting hits or pitching badly. Many players, baseball player unparticular can hold on to a lot of frustration.
How to Hit a Curveball The game is in the bottom of the 9th inning, and the stadium lights are on. Your team is losing by one run on your home field, and you are up to bat with a teammate on 1st base. You know that the opposing pitcher has a wicked curveball that he throws as his go-to pitch. You are also aware that a home run will win the game, and the stadium will erupt with all the fans cheering your name. Well, if you follow the steps in this essay, you will be able to hit a curveball and win the game for your team!
The runner slides as the catcher reaches out and tags home plate just ahead of the runners’ cleats!! “Safe!” yells the umpire. The catcher argues but to no avail. The game is over. There is a very controversial thing happing in baseball today: should Major League Baseball (MLB) use instant replay to review close calls made by umpires?
They showed up an hour early to warm up and take batting practice as if it is needed for middle aged slow pitch softball. They are the type that after they get a hit or home run, they jog slowly around the bases with their head held high acting like somebody cares about them. After the games they are the ones that are talking like they are a few good games away from getting that big call from the Yankees. The soon to be pro irritates me the most. Also wandering around the fields is the forty year old teenager.
The Cubs were always positive, even when they blew a seven run lead in the 2003 national league division series, even when they lost the 1946 World Series in heartbreaking fashion on Jack Spinner’s walk off home run in game 7 against the Brewers, even when the team’s slugger Sammy Sosa was found guilty of steroid usage and was suspended, the Cubs and their fans still remained contended, even optimistic about their team’s chances to win the Central and go to the playoffs. How do they stand it? They must have some serious grit to watch the Cubs, who play like little leaguers every day of the long, exhausting season. Maybe the optimism that they had made them not just the lovable losers, but the likable losers. Yes, they’re likable, but fans, they’re still losers.
In 1977 a Los Angeles scout discovered Valenzuela in a Mexican baseball league. In 1981 Fernando Valenzuela pitched his first ever Major League game. His outstanding pitching led the Dodgers to the “World Series” the Dodgers won against the Yankees that year, and Valenzuela won the “CY Young award,” and the “Rookie Of The Year.” He soon burst on the scene, fans increased by 9,000 every time to see Valenzuela pitch. This was known as “Fernando mania” at Dodger Stadium. He was also given the nickname “El Torro,” but that reign would soon end in 1991, when he was released by the Dodgers.
In both sports, a game is divided into periods called innings. In baseball, one batter goes up to home plate wielding a bat with a more cylindrical tip. Hitting is a more difficult exercise in baseball due to a smaller-sized bat. Even the best batters fail to make a hit two out of three times. Baseball is a low-scoring game with each team normally averaging four to five home runs per game.
The Yankees are ahead of The Giants by one point. Batter up – Thomas Andrews. My heart starts to race as I hear my name being called out. I can’t help but feel that the chance at winning this game is on my shoulders. I pick up my bat and walk outside the dugout, only to see thousands of fans who have come to support the game.
But they’re wrong. You have a bat, a ball, and you are hoping for a home run, but what is the difference? Until now, you do not know because these two sports are similar, but they are not the same. A few major differences that separate baseball from softball is pitching, bats and balls, the strategy of the game, and lastly lead offs. Even with the mixed opinions about the similarities and differences of the sports, one thing is for sure, people play the sport not just for the personal satisfaction, but because they love it.