Here's something I didn't realize was happening:
Thoughts? The article briefly mentions juiced balls, but that wouldn't just help out the "middle class", everyone would benefit.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/why-2016-is-the-year-of-the-home-run-031510268.htmlBefore explaining how, take a look at the raw numbers first, because they are that staggering. Absent a home run collapse in the final week, major leaguers in 2016 are going to have finished their plate appearances with a home run rate higher than any season in baseball history. The heart of the steroid era? They homered less often. The bonanza 1987 season? Nope. How about 1961, with Maris and Mantle? Not even close. In 176,371 plate appearances this season coming into Sunday, major league hitters had homered 5,392 times, or 3.06 percent of their plate appearances. Never before have they cracked the 3 percent mark.
Thoughts? The article briefly mentions juiced balls, but that wouldn't just help out the "middle class", everyone would benefit.
It’s certainly not because of the league leaders. Nor is it an unparalleled bevy of 30-homer sluggers. There are barely two-thirds as many of those as there were in 2000. Mostly, it’s an onslaught of guys who aren’t home run hitters turning into home run hitters. On Sunday, Jung-ho Kang became the 103rd player to hit at least 20 home runs this season (in 297 at-bats), tying the record from 2000. It will be smashed this week. The record for 10-plus-homer hitters should fall, too.