GO ROYALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[chingon]

He was facing Bumgarner.

...who he homered off of in Game 1. The only run scored against Bumgarner in the entire series. In a very similar 2-out scenario to the one in which he hit the walk-off for the wildcard win. I don't know. I think I stick with Salvy.

[mean]

It wasn't necessarily a bad decision to let Salvy swing, but with his leg questionable it may not have been a great decision either. Knowing the outcome, yeah, it's easy to question whether someone should have pinch hit, but ultimately I don't feel like the game was Yosted at all.

[bobbyhawks]

He was facing Bumgarner.

...who he homered off of in Game 1. The only run scored against Bumgarner in the entire series. In a very similar 2-out scenario to the one in which he hit the walk-off for the wildcard win. I don't know. I think I stick with Salvy.

Wildcard was a tie game. Completely different circumstances, even though both are pressure-packed. We knew that we had at least another inning and couldn't afford to pinch hit for our catcher. Down a run, you can't plan for the next inning.

His homer vs. Bumgarner came in the 7th inning of game 1 when the team was already down 7-0. I don't really count that as a very similar 2-out scenario. Salvy wasn't limping to the plate in either of the previous games either.

[aknowledgeableperson]

How were Kirk Gibson's legs when he hit his famous WS home run?

With regards to batting average I think it has more to do with athletes themselves and where they play and how they are used and not the strike zone size. Could be some of the better athletes are becoming pitchers now instead of position players. One stat that would be interesting is the number of complete games now as opposed to 2007 or 2000 or even earlier. And the 100 pitch count for starters has become quite common. Much like with the Royals combination of Holland, Davis, and Herrera many relievers only pitch one inning in game saving situations. And given the number of pitchers who can throw the heat that can have an effect also.

[phuqueue]

How were Kirk Gibson's legs when he hit his famous WS home run?

With regards to batting average I think it has more to do with athletes themselves and where they play and how they are used and not the strike zone size. Could be some of the better athletes are becoming pitchers now instead of position players. One stat that would be interesting is the number of complete games now as opposed to 2007 or 2000 or even earlier. And the 100 pitch count for starters has become quite common. Much like with the Royals combination of Holland, Davis, and Herrera many relievers only pitch one inning in game saving situations. And given the number of pitchers who can throw the heat that can have an effect also.

It seems pretty foolish to pretend that the strike zone growing by nearly 10% in only a few years wouldn't have anything to do with the decline of offense while you speculate -- without any evidence, just the fact that hey, it could happen -- that maybe it's just that the good athletes are becoming pitchers more than position players now. I'm not sure what you hope to find, but here is a list of complete games by year, since 2000:
2000: 234
2001: 199
2002: 214
2003: 209
2004: 150
2005: 189
2006: 144
2007: 112
2008: 136
2009: 152
2010: 165
2011: 173
2012: 128
2013: 124
2014: 118

Do you find anything interesting in there? They're down a lot overall since 2000, but they have fluctuated (sometimes wildly) from year to year and the numbers for 2007 and now are pretty close. The way relievers have been used has changed a lot, but probably not as much as you think over such a short time period. The one inning closer is a recent innovation if you're thinking back to the 80s, but not as much if you're only thinking back to ten or fifteen years ago. And it's true that relievers (all pitchers, really) are throwing harder now than they ever have, and that surely does also contribute to the scoring drought, but the number of super hard throwers is still pretty low. As Royals fans we might not realize this -- because the Royals led the league in pitches thrown 97+ mph, and they threw more of those pitches than the number two and three teams combined. This phenomenon is not especially widespread yet, though.

[Highlander]

One of the benefits of being in the World Series is that some visitors are actually impressed by what they experienced (from the KC Star):

Royals treatment

I am a San Franciscan and a Giants fan who attended game six of the World Series in Kansas City.

Let me just say that never in my life have I enjoyed being so terribly outnumbered and, by evening’s end, absolutely clubbed into submission.

From the moment I hit the parking lot at Kauffman Stadium in my Giants gear, folks made a point to walk over, introduce themselves, welcome us to Kansas City and wish us good luck. People offered to buy us beer and brats.

Most mind-bending was the woman who apologized for the lopsided score.

My wife and our friends spent the better part of our flight home marveling at the generosity and warmth of the Royals fans and wondering whether we’d dropped into a parallel universe.

At some point, I recall announcing to my wife that I was prepared to move to Kansas City as soon as possible.

They refer to your part of the country as “flyover states.” Folks should make a point to actually drop in to Kansas City for a heaping helping of an America most people only dream about.

[aknowledgeableperson]

It seems pretty foolish to pretend that the strike zone growing by nearly 10% in only a few years wouldn't have anything to do with the decline of offense while you speculate

In 1969 MLB lowered the pitching mound in an effort to help the offensive game. Anyway, here is a take on that change. There is some data on the strike zone change.

www.hardballtimes.com/the-height-of-the-hill/

In 1969, the height of the mound changed. A higher mound is supposed to help the pitcher because it lets him throw downhill, but the advantage of throwing from a higher mound is not well understood. If only Major League Baseball had gone about changing the pitching mound height in a more scientific manner instead of lumping it together with a smaller strike zone. Analyzing the effect of a lower pitching mound is difficult, both because of the smaller strike zone and because we don’t have data from the 1960s like we have today.

Baseball in 1968 will forever be known as the year of the pitcher. Run scoring was the lowest it had ever been in modern baseball. There were concerns the game was so far stacked in the pitcher’s advantage that it was no longer enjoyable to watch. To help the hitters, the pitching mound was lowered from 15 inches to 10, and the strike zone was returned to its 1961 size.

The run-scoring environment in 1969 was much greater than it was in 1968, with teams averaging 0.65 more runs per game (going from 3.42 to 4.07), an increase of greater than 19 percent. This change in run scoring often is attributed to the lowering of the pitching mound, but in reality the problem is much more complex.

The run-scoring environment is always changing in baseball, but there’s more to the offensive environment than how many runs are scored per game. The 1912 and 1961 campaigns look very similar in terms of runs per game, but the ways in which those runs were scored were very different. The offensive environment of 1961 was driven by home runs, while 1912 baseball barely featured any long ball. Using linear weights to break down run scoring into its components (strikeouts, walks, home runs, and balls in play) gives a better picture.

[bobbyhawks]

How were Kirk Gibson's legs when he hit his famous WS home run?

Sure. If you would like to cite the one time in MLB history when something like that worked in a World Series, have at it. I'm not sure even Gibson's hit was a homer at Kauffman Stadium, but the odds are what they are for a reason. Gibson's manager was so confident in that move, that game 1 at bat was the only time he played in the entire world series.

[KCMax]

How were Kirk Gibson's legs when he hit his famous WS home run?

Sure. If you would like to cite the one time in MLB history when something like that worked in a World Series, have at it. I'm not sure even Gibson's hit was a homer at Kauffman Stadium, but the odds are what they are for a reason. Gibson's manager was so confident in that move, that game 1 at bat was the only time he played in the entire world series.

Yea, there's a reason Vin Scully says when Gibson hits that: "In a year that has been so improbable ... the impossible has happened!"

[aknowledgeableperson]

Not sure who of you were actually at the game. I wasn't but talked to others that were. They say Gordon wouldn't have had a chance, catcher would have had the ball in plenty of time before he reached home, and other similar comments.

[KCMax]

Not sure who of you were actually at the game. I wasn't but talked to others that were. They say Gordon wouldn't have had a chance, catcher would have had the ball in plenty of time before he reached home, and other similar comments.

FWIW, I agree with you and I was at the game. Gordon woulda been smoked at home.

[brewcrew1000]

Not sure who of you were actually at the game. I wasn't but talked to others that were. They say Gordon wouldn't have had a chance, catcher would have had the ball in plenty of time before he reached home, and other similar comments.

FWIW, I agree with you and I was at the game. Gordon woulda been smoked at home.

I would have rather seen someone smoked at home then a crappy pop up to short, plays at the plate are always really exciting even if he was gunned out at home, maybe he calls him safe and is under the tag

[phuqueue]

I think you are envisioning a much closer play than it would have been.

[KCMax]

Not sure who of you were actually at the game. I wasn't but talked to others that were. They say Gordon wouldn't have had a chance, catcher would have had the ball in plenty of time before he reached home, and other similar comments.

FWIW, I agree with you and I was at the game. Gordon woulda been smoked at home.

I would have rather seen someone smoked at home then a crappy pop up to short, plays at the plate are always really exciting even if he was gunned out at home, maybe he calls him safe and is under the tag

And maybe Salvy hits a home run off Bumgarner like he did in Game 5. Who knows.

[brewcrew1000]

If the Royals do not sign Butler, i think we should try to land Marlon Byrd, the Royals are actually on his no trade list but I don't think it is anymore since they are actually good now.
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/11/m ... erest.html

[aknowledgeableperson]

I think you are envisioning a much closer play than it would have been.

The catcher might have had enough time to smoke a cigarette waiting with the ball before Gordon got to home.

[chaglang]

I think you are envisioning a much closer play than it would have been.

The catcher might have had enough time to smoke a cigarette waiting with the ball before Gordon got to home.

That's just unrealistic. First, there's a smoking ban at the K, so the ushers would have made him put the cigarette out. Second, those uniforms are pretty tight. Where would you carry a pack of cigarettes? In the back pocket? They'd get crushed from all the squatting that catchers do.

[pash]

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[pash]

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[brewcrew1000]

This clearly shows that Gordon would have made it
http://lockerdome.com/mlbmemes/61700455 ... 8325612052