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It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?

According to MLBTraderumors, the guys over at the U.S.S. Mariner noticed a pattern with Felix Hernandez's pitching strategy: establishing the fastball until he can K a guy with his sharp curve.  Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's a trend . . .anyways, they sent a letter to Rafael Chaves, the M's pitching coach, and King Felix read it.  Well, he read the letter, and credits it to his 8 scoreless innings.

The link is just www.MLBTraderumors.com.

So, I'm wondering if anyone's picked up any tendencies our pitchers have that our staff might not have noticed.  I don't know if telling them that they walk too many batters would make a difference, but hell, it's worth a shot.  Maybe it'll help us out . . .

This FanPost is reader-generated, and it does not necessarily reflect the views of McCovey Chronicles. If the author uses filler to achieve the minimum word requirement, a moderator may edit the FanPost for his or her own amusement.

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Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
Note to Timmy:  You cannot kep throwing your fastball down the dick.

Note to Barry:  Throw strikes.

Note to Morris:  Ask Rueter for advice on how to win with nothing left.

Note to Lowry:  Stop nailing those cleat chasers before your starts.

Note to Cainer:  Learn to hit so you can score your own damn runs.

If Brad Hennesy had Steve Kline's attitude you'd get Rob Nen... without the triple digit heat.

by milesntrane on Jul 7, 2007 10:30 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Note go Giants pitchers
THROW FREAKING STRIKES
Barry Bombs gear | comics | Ray - grounded for LIFE

by Natto on Jul 7, 2007 11:25 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

*to
Barry Bombs gear | comics | Ray - grounded for LIFE

by Natto on Jul 7, 2007 11:47 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Re: Note go Giants pitchers
A letter to Giants pitchers that just says "THROW STRIKES" would be awesome.
Matt Cain: He'll save children, but not the Dodger children.

by jponry on Jul 8, 2007 1:32 AM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

I was thinking about Lowry's ownage of Pujols
If I were a manager, I would enforce a clubhouse policy as follows:

If a player has particular ownage on an opposing player on a particular night, and can credit that at all to a comprehensible strategy, then that player must write said strategy on a chalkboard/whiteboard/whatever in the clubhouse for the rest of the team to see, appreciate, learn from, and if applicable, emulate.

Of course, the player may not always recognize what it is they did right (think Pedro Feliz getting a walk), so sometimes, we may need to send letters. Therefore, I propose a McCovey Chronicles addendum that, whenever we notice a particularly effective confrontation, and can decipher strategy in its effectiveness, we should send a letter, on official, gold-embossed McCovey Chronicles stationary, bearing the stamp of one Grant Brisbee, to the most accessible, relevant Giants staffer. I don't profess to know who that is.

However, I am certain that we could make this happen. It would certainly be fun to contribute our powerful-in-sum-total, already-in-use observational accumen to the possibility of the Giants improving, and it's not like complaining about failures: it's all about recognizing success. It's positive thinking. Hum baby!

***

Succumb to the Enchanted t-shirt! Adopted dad of Minor Izzy

by hairball on Jul 7, 2007 11:26 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: I was thinking about Lowry's ownage of Pujols
Congratulations...194 words of drivel and not a bit of it makes any sense.
Omar Vizquel hates Joey Barton too. He's a wanker, mate!

by PacBellBoozer on Jul 8, 2007 12:54 AM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Re: I was thinking about Lowry's ownage of Pujols
Why thank you. 'Course I was high when I wrote that. I'll stay away from the whacky tobaccy if you stay away from the booze, k?
***

Succumb to the Enchanted t-shirt! Adopted dad of Minor Izzy

by hairball on Jul 8, 2007 10:35 AM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
Oh , we'd be hauled into court and charged with harrassment in three shakes of a clubbed seal's tail...
Disturbing: How fast we sank after losing Armando.

by victor frankenstein on Jul 8, 2007 12:26 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
July 8, 2007

Dear Giants:

     Stop sucking!

Yours Truly,

--Rev. Cleophus James

by Cleophus on Jul 8, 2007 2:29 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
All this tells you is that King Felix knows how to flatter the fans.

by NearestNorwich on Jul 8, 2007 5:28 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Note to Barry Zito
Dear Barry,

I'm not a pitcher or a pitching coach.  I'm just  a fan who watches way too much baseball way too intently, so take it for what it's worth.   I'm not sure what was going on in Spring Training between you and Rags, but I think you should have stuck to your guns on the reworked delivery.  What you are working with now, which I assume is similar to the last several years, just isn't getting it done.  IMO, you just have way too much going on in that windup and delivery that doesn't add anything to effectiveness and introduces multple opportunities for things to go wrong:

  1.  Tone down the leg kick just a bit.  The leg kick may add a bit of distraction and deception to the batter's eye, but doesn't appear to be doing anything in terms of increasing momentum to the plate.  Most of it is superfluous motion.  it also gets you in a position where you are leaning way back on your back foot and any little thing that's off gets you very unbalanced.
  2.  I'm not sure what's going on with exaggerated wrist twisting at the beginning of your delivery.  Maybe it helps get more torque on the curveball, but it seems more exaggerated than I see even from other good curveball pitchers.  Is that possibly a bad habit you have fallen into?  I seems to me that is another place for introcduction of variation in delivery and release point.
  3.  You have a great curveball, but you are throwing it way too much.  If you throw enough curveballs, you are eventually going to hang one.  You can get away with that if the hitters is looking for something else, but if he knows the curve is coming, a hanger is going to get hammered.
  4.  That brings us to the fastball.  Yours is not great, but even a mediocre fastball, used properly, is still the best pitch in  baseball and it sets up everything else.  Kirk Reuter made a whole career out of throwing nothing but fastballs that were no better than yours.  You have to keep it down and you have to keep it on the corners, especially the outside corner, but a few more of those would set up the curveball and changeup better.
  5.  Which brings us back to that thing in Spring Training, whatever it was.  You definitely could use a bit more velocity on the ol' heater.  It sounded like one of the benefits of the longer stride you were trying out was that it would add a bit more velocity to the fastball.  Makes sense.  That upright delivery may add a bit more downward movement to the curve, but it scrubs all the momentum off the delivery and sort of brings everything to a stop right at the moment you should be exploding toward the plate.  The short stride also makes it look like you are about to fall to either side which can't be good for repeating your delivery and maintaining control.
Again, I may be way off base here.  I'm just a fan, so take it for what it's worth.  Hope it helps.

Sincerely,

Dr. B

by DrBGiantsfan on Jul 8, 2007 11:00 AM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
I've noticed a tendency of Zito to give up 30 runs in 4 innings pitched. Lets put that in a letter. Should we end it with "love" or does that come across as too strong?
Southern California: Water thieves and Dodgers fans. Randy Messenger: Better lucky than Benitez.

by jasomack on Jul 8, 2007 1:24 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
The Mariners have Jason Ellison who was about to throw down on big Joe Blanton. I would have loved to see someone lay out an A's pitcher.
Jack Mustachner

by The Thrill on Jul 8, 2007 9:51 PM PDT reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?

I don't remember Ellison ever showing this much energy while on the Giants.

Barry Bombs gear | comics | Ray - grounded for LIFE

by Natto on Jul 8, 2007 10:17 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
Because he never had someone like Sexson (who's like 7' 8" or something) getting his back.  Who wants to go to war when your secret weapon is Ryan Klesko breaking a hip to serve as a distraction?

by Gorgoroth on Jul 8, 2007 10:46 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

Re: It worked for the Mariners, maybe us too?
There was always Mando threatening to eat the opponent.
Barry Bombs gear | comics | Ray - grounded for LIFE

by Natto on Jul 8, 2007 11:29 PM PDT up reply actions   0 recs

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