Power outage in baseball

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by MikeThierry

HGH use would not explain a huge power increase in the case of Bautista. HGH and anabolic steroids are two completely different animals. The main concern with HGH use is players using it as an unfair advantage coming back from injuries or maintaining a certain level of health while dealing with nagging injuries. While HGH use does show a slight increase in muscle mass, the increase from that gain is insignificant enough to make a regular hitter into a home run hitter. You are right that there is no HGH testing so he could be taking that but HGH would not explain his power increase.

Absolutely it would.

HGH promotes bone density, muscle mass, energy, healing, etc. It's nicknamed the 'fountain of youth' for a reason. Part of the aging process has to do with the decrease in naturally occurring HGH. So supplemented HGH, especially for players who would otherwise begin experiencing deterioration in their playing skills, will find themselves stronger, leaner, faster, more energetic and able to heal much more quickly than their peers or they otherwise would at their age. That seems to me like it absolutely could result in more home runs.

The drug doesn't do any one thing but rather aids a ton of various bodily functions. That's why it can be argued it's as good or better than steroids, because it has more effects without being as noticeable.

HGH contributes a ton. Its overall impact could make a player much, much better. Healing quicker is a part of it, but it goes well beyond that.

[jojo]

Originally Posted by MikeThierry

HGH use would not explain a huge power increase in the case of Bautista.

Correct.

[MikeThierry]

Brutus, you are right about your analysis of HGH. However when we talk about "promoting muscle mass" it isn't to the level you would see if someone was taking anabolic steroids. The muscle mass issue for HGH would be to maintain and repair muscle tissue. Lets just say this, if a player is using HGH his helmet size won't increase from 7 1/8 to 7 3/4

Also, if HGH did increase muscle mass significantly and it is rampant in baseball, wouldn't we be back to the time of the steroid area where everyone seemed to be hitting 40 hrs instead of the lack of power we are seeing now?

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by MikeThierry

Brutus, you are right about your analysis of HGH. However when we talk about "promoting muscle mass" it isn't to the level you would see if someone was taking anabolic steroids. The muscle mass issue for HGH would be to maintain and repair muscle tissue. Lets just say this, if a player is using HGH his helmet size won't increase from 7 1/8 to 7 3/4

Also, if HGH did increase muscle mass significantly and it is rampant in baseball, wouldn't we be back to the time of the steroid area where everyone seemed to be hitting 40 hrs instead of the lack of power we are seeing now?

That can be a good thing, though. Too much muscle can actually be a detriment to players because it slows down their bat speed if the muscles are constricted too tightly. They can be more energetic, more sharp, less aloof and still gain a little bit of muscle. The power aspect of a hitter, in my opinion, is a culmination of many things more than just muscle. Heck, that you had guys hitting a lot of home runs back in the day who were rail thin against pitchers barely pitching 90 shows that power is generated from a lot more than just muscle.

Quadrupling one's power post-prime just isn't practical on its own merits. Not without help IMHO. I think we have a good test case for that: Brady Anderson.

[traderumor]

Originally Posted by MikeThierry

HGH use would not explain a huge power increase in the case of Bautista. HGH and anabolic steroids are two completely different animals. The main concern with HGH use is players using it as an unfair advantage coming back from injuries or maintaining a certain level of health while dealing with nagging injuries. While HGH use does show a slight increase in muscle mass, the increase from that gain is insignificant enough to make a regular hitter into a home run hitter. You are right that there is no HGH testing so he could be taking that but HGH would not explain his power increase.

I can think of a recent example, not to name names, but his first name starts with Albert.

[traderumor]

Originally Posted by AtomicDumpling

There are several reasons that scoring is down, but the biggest one is that pitchers are better than ever. Pitchers are bigger and throw harder than they used to. The number of guys throwing 95+ MPH is out of this world. It used to be a guy that could throw that hard stood out in a crowd, now every team has several. Pitchers now are bigger and stronger than the hitters in many cases. Most of the biggest and tallest players in baseball are pitchers. Improved surgical and rehab techniques are keeping the best pitchers performing at their peak level. Many/most of the best pitchers in baseball have recovered from injuries that would have ended their careers or reduced their effectiveness in previous years.

Despite what we have heard about pitching being diluted by expansion, the truth is the size of the population and hence the pool of young pitchers has grown at a greater rate than the number of teams in MLB. Teams have scouts and academies searching all over North America, the Caribbean, Central and South America and even in Asia. Baseball is a worldwide sport now more than ever. If you can pitch you can bet a team will find you no matter your race and homeland, and that was not the case in years gone by.

The increasingly specialized use of situational relievers has had a huge effect. The availability of video from every game and the speed and ease of editing video has made scouting reports much more accurate in terms of identifying hitters's weaknesses.

I think the biggest reason is one that RedsManRick mentioned earlier -- the cut fastball. The cutter is all the rage amongst pitchers this year and is very effective. Fastballs are not straight anymore. Almost every pitch a hitter sees has more movement and higher velocity than what hitters faced even a few years ago. It is a lot more difficult to square up a ball these days.

Just like cops and robbers, this too shall pass as hitters make their adjustments. Won't happen overnight, but they'll start sharing notes. Then it will cycle back and we'll be looking for another boogeyman to explain it, real or not. Vanity, vanity, all is vanity says the baseball fan.

[MikeThierry]

Originally Posted by traderumor

I can think of a recent example, not to name names, but his first name starts with Albert.

Please man, I know we are jaded as fans but that was a completely overblown injury by the Cardinals organization. It was reported a day after the injury happened, Pujols was doing push ups and lifting 70 pound weights on the injury. It was a hairline fracture to the forearm.

[Tony Cloninger]

Originally Posted by MikeThierry

I guess the issue of the lack in power in baseball leads into another question. Is it actually good for baseball? I think most of us agree that it is great to get back to the day where a 30 home run guy is an elite power hitter and pitching is start to dominate. However, does anyone think that the lack of power has led to the decline in popularity in the game? I want it to where we can get back to that old school style of play but I'm kind of alarmed how baseball has taken sort of a back seat to other sports that have that instant gratification feeling to it such as the NFL and the NBA.

This has been said since 1969........how many times are we going to hear how baseball is not as popular while attendances, for the most part.....stay at the same levels they have been.

[oneupper]

Originally Posted by Tony Cloninger

This has been said since 1969........how many times are we going to hear how baseball is not as popular while attendances, for the most part.....stay at the same levels they have been.

MLB's answer to the 60's power outage was to

1. Lower the mound/change the strike zone
2. Implement the DH.
3. Expand the leagues.

Not sure 1 and 3 would work today, and I sure hope 2 doesn't make it's way to the NL as a result.