We must remain vigilant! or....That seems like at least one article too many
That will happen!Why not just keep hopping toward home plate?
Was that from the Padres public file or private?
To be fair, Capps plays in San Diego. There's a fair chance no one at MLB has seen his new delivery yet.Meanwhile, David Price has been notified that he is on the "Watch List"
Probably got it from the CardinalsWas that from the Padres public file or private?
The video in my article (Tweeted by the Padres) clearly shows a hop, so it's not just a drag.mlbtr:
And, the league made an addition to Rule 5.07, which seems to carry a direct correlation to Carter Capps’ unorthodox and controversial delivery.
Per the league’s announcement, the rule now “stipulates that a player may not take a second step toward home plate with either foot or otherwise reset his pivot foot in his delivery of the pitch.” Doing so with the bases empty will result in an illegal pitch, while doing so with runners aboard will result in a balk.
As Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports (Twitter links), Capps’ “hop-drag” delivery has been interpreted consistently by the league in recent years. Today’s rule change was a formalization of that interpretation. MLB.com’s A.J. Cassavell tweetsthat the team (and, based on Lin’s tweets, the league) interpret this to mean that Capps can legally drag his foot during his delivery so long as he does not pick the foot up and reset it.
One article per hop.That seems like at least one article too many
Wow that is total bullshitFron his spring training outing yesterday, this is absolutely ridiculous if they allow it:
You are correct about eliminating the second hop, but he clearly hops once before dragging his foot. (He'll, it's how he gets the momentum for the drag.).This is his old motion that they determined is legal. He "drags" his foot the entire time, and there is no second hop
That's crazy. Robertson is like 5'11; he must be insanely flexible to outstride guys 6'6 and up.A huge deal, I'm sure it's been studied somewhere but David Robertson has a longer stride than anyone and that effectively adds about 2 MPH to his velocity (shorter reaction time), so I'd think this would add 5-6 MPH at least to Capps.
http://www.sbnation.com/2012/5/4/2999268/david-robertson-mariano-rivera-injury-yankees-closerThat's crazy. Robertson is like 5'11; he must be insanely flexible to outstride guys 6'6 and up.
According to Trackman's measurements taken in one American League park last season, Robertson, with his exceptionally long stride and reach, released his fastball seven feet from in front of the pitching rubber -- the largest average extension Trackman measured in that park. The average MLB fastball extension was five feet, 10 inches.
This.That's crazy. Robertson is like 5'11; he must be insanely flexible to outstride guys 6'6 and up.
This is what I don't get. Why doesn't he just keep "dragging" until he's even closer?Why not just keep hopping toward home plate?
His foot isn't staying on the ground, though. It hasn't for a couple of years now.He can't drag it an infinite distance. He is pushing off the rubber and jumping as far as he can with his back foot just barely touching the ground. At the point where it comes down he pushes a 2nd time, much closer to home plate.
Because pro sports leagues in the US always treat everything fairly.I honestly don't see how MLB is going to continue to let this go unregulated. He's clearly cheating.
This rule seems to be necessary, otherwise once a switch hitter comes up against someone like Venditte, both will keep switching and switching, like this in the minors:the dumb rule requiring an ambidextrous pitcher to declare which hand he'll throw the ball with.
The problem is he is getting outlier results because his perceived velocity is way up compared to most, because he's releasing closer to the plate than everyone else.I like Capps' idiosyncratic hop step because it's an interesting example of gaming the rules. (I'm referring to the earlier rule and the legal version of his delivery.) It's like Belichick taking maximum advantage of NFL rules, but on an individual level. And the MLB changing the rule to rein in Capps is a No Fun League response. If Capps was obtaining outlier results or a lot of other pitchers started doing the same thing, I could understand a rule change, but this seems to me like banning side arm deliveries or the dumb rule requiring an ambidextrous pitcher to declare which hand he'll throw the ball with.
As usual?The problem is he is getting outlier results because his perceived velocity is way up compared to most, because he's releasing closer to the plate than everyone else.
As usual, you show us that you don't read the thread (discussion about perceived velocity above!) and make statements with no common sense, like the ambidextrous pitcher rule.
Okay. I'll play along. What's the outlier? His "perceived" velocity? That's not an outlier either.Did I say 98mph was the outlier?
Reading comprehension is awesome
I have no bones in this internet dog-fight... but if left handed pitcher A comes in to face Switch Hitting batter X. Pitcher A 'comes up lame' after throwing 1 pitch. The A team brings in right handed specialist Brad Chadford. X cannot switch sides because they entered the right handed box to start the at bat.Okay. I'll play along. What's the outlier? His "perceived" velocity? That's not an outlier either.
While you're at it, why is changing pitching rules to require a pitcher to declare handedness so obviously superior to simply requiring batters to stay in the batters box they enter during an at bat?
It points out that Capps' hop-and-drag delivery cut down on the time HIS pitches take to reach the batter. As I tried to point out before, a pitcher with a natural long stride and long arms could get this with a normal delivery.Tangenital, and something we all already know, but nice article (and graphics) by the Seattle times laying out just how little time you have to decide whether to swing given a 100mph fastball. A delivery like Capps' reduces that time even further.
It's a cross between a tangerine and... oh, never mind.What's a tangenital? I want one!
the opposite of a palegenital?What's a tangenital? I want one!
I basically agree with this ideaCapps's "velo margin" is an outlier? Is that your point? If so, okay, conceded. I'd have thought that goes without saying considering his unusual delivery.
My point is Capp's fastball velocity, actual and perceived, is high, but not an outlier. He has developed a unique motion to that makes his fastball seem even faster. The legal version of his delivery -- the one where he slides his foot but it never leaves the ground -- is clever. It's also fun to watch and discuss. As I mentioned before, I like players and coaches (Belichick is a great example of this) who think "outside the box" to obtain a LEGAL advantage. It makes games more interesting. Conversely, I don't like it when opposing teams whine for rule changes or leagues "clamp down" on innovators. If Capps's "unfair advantage" were easy to obtain, more pitchers would do it. I like idiosyncrasy. You don't. You're entitled to your opinion.
I know he claimed that (and similar claims were made about Ty Stoffler), but I'd love to see any evidence of it. I suspect that with these old softball claims, they're conflating measured speed with "adjusted for MLB distance" speeds.I don't know how many here remember Eddie Feigner...The King and His Court (pitcher, catcher, first baseman, and shortstop), who played exhibition fast-pitch softball games against local teams. He was clocked at 104-mph at a pitching distance about two-thirds that of baseball.
What I saw said his speed was clocked at 104 mph but assuming for the sake of this discussion that it was "adjusted" we are still left with a fast pitch thrown at a much shorter distance than in baseball. From what I found, common distances for fast-pitch softball were 60' base paths and a 46' distance from the front of the rubber to the apex (rear) of home plate (which extends 17" towards the mound). A fast-pitch pitcher releases the ball when it brushes against his leg as he strides towards home plate. Since it is on the same side as his pitching hand, he would only gain about one foot. To simplify things. let's call it 30" from release to the front of the plate, or a pitch of 43.5'. An 80-mph pitch would take ~371 msecs to reach the front of the plate (assuming no friction, etc.). Taking the traditional 55' for baseball, that amount of time would be equivalent to a 101-mph fastball.I know he claimed that (and similar claims were made about Ty Stoffler), but I'd love to see any evidence of it. I suspect that with these old softball claims, they're conflating measured speed with "adjusted for MLB distance" speeds.