Home Runs: Back with a vengeance

[whitesoxfan101]

Ok as we all know by now, the current home run per game ratio is 2nd highest in the history of baseball (just behind 2000). But the question I ask is, why? Why is it that home runs are out of control again all of a sudden with the new tough steroid policy? I'd like to hear everybodies thoughts, but here are mine.

 

1. Juiced Baseball. I think the baseball is juiced and it's very obvious. Now how much of an effect this is having can be debated, but there have been more a few home runs that looked like the ball was on a "magic carpet" as it carried out as DJ would say. Also, by doing this and seeing home run rates go to levels seen in 2000 and 2001, baseball could be thinking they can subconsiously make people discount how much steroids helped the home runs leave the park.

 

2. Underestimation of how many pitchers used steroids. I think as much as steroids helped the batters, they may have helped pitchers just as much, ESPECIALLY power pitchers who work out of the pen. Has anybody noticed how many bullpens and relief pitchers have struggled early on? I think A LOT of these guys were on the juice (here's looking at you Juan Rincon and Rafael Betancourt), and without the extra boost on the fastball, that 96 heater is all of a sudden 91 or 92 and a lot more hittable.

 

3. No HGH testing. As much as we'd like to think the game is clean, there is still no test for HGH and there are still plenty of people using it *cough Bonds and Giambi /cough*. Also, HGH at least based on everything I am aware of and have read (which is a lot) is something that would help the hitters much more than it would pitchers, another advantage.

 

Other theories I have heard are the new parks helping the hitters (but remember, the only new park this year is Busch), steroids effects are overblown (which I'm sure some of the Bonds defenders and such will say, even if it's wrong), and that weather is warmer than normal this month (very vague and hard to prove in terms of the whole league). What do you think?

Edited April 28, 2006 by whitesoxfan101

[Phuck the Cubs]

Wind Patterns and the World Baseball Classic might have something to do with it as well.

[Balta1701]

You know another thing I've been wondering about? The ban on amphetimines ("greenies").

 

A lot of people speculated that one of the big groups that might have popped those things would have been the pitchers, and relief pitchers in particular, since they wind up exerting a lot more during each game than the position players, who only have to react quickly.

 

I've been wondering for a while if some of the power surge could come from pitchers losign a little bit of that upper that they had. Especially with some of the relievers we've seen struggling (Izzy, Lidge, etc.)

[whitesoxfan101]

You know another thing I've been wondering about?  The ban on amphetimines ("greenies").

 

A lot of people speculated that one of the big groups that might have popped those things would have been the pitchers, and relief pitchers in particular, since they wind up exerting a lot more during each game than the position players, who only have to react quickly.

 

I've been wondering for a while if some of the power surge could come from pitchers losign a little bit of that upper that they had.  Especially with some of the relievers we've seen struggling (Izzy, Lidge, etc.)

 

Ahh well done!! That's a point I completely forgot to think about. You know you'd think the greenies being gone would affect the hitters negatively a lot more since they play all 9 innings almost every day, but the pitchers are going balls out every pitch, so they'd be the ones that need the greenies. So no greenies AND no steroids could really be messing with pitchers velocity and recovery time (especially pen guys), quite a combo indeed.

[Phuck the Cubs]

I completly forgot about that, that's another good point.