Weekend Rumblings - News for July 7, 2018

Weekend Rumblings - News for July 7, 2018

Jason Hammel discusses his struggles.

“It’s something mechanical, and then just effort-wise. I’m throwing more angry balls right now than actual pitches,” Hammel said. “I’ve become a thrower instead of a pitcher due to just frustration.”

Lee Judge writes about the flyball revolution and launch angles.

A recent look at the 50 hardest-hit balls of 2018 showed only five were hit with a launch angle of 25 degrees or greater, and that’s no mystery: It’s easier to hit the ball hard when you hit the middle of the ball with the middle of the bat.

That’s why Grifol thinks a launch angle of 18 degrees is perfect. Seitzer advocates a launch angle of 12 to 28 degrees — low enough to hit the ball hard, high enough to drive the gaps and, when everything is just right, hit the ball out of the park.

But even with a less-than-perfect launch angle, good things tend to happen when a batter hits the ball hard.

David Lesky at Baseball Prospectus Kansas City questions the work of pitching coach Cal Eldred.

I know this has been on Twitter, so it’s not a new thought, but at what point do we question if Eldred has any idea what he’s doing? I’ll leave Bradshaw alone for now because I think a hitting coach does far less than a pitching coach. But Eldred makes me wonder about the Office Space line of wondering what it is he does. Junis is the perfect example, and if you want to read too deep into Ned Yost’s comments, you might wonder if Yost has the same question. After his last start, Yost said it was a simple adjustment. Now I know there’s way more to it, but if it’s that simple, why hasn’t it been made? And I could be way off here. Maybe it was brought up and Junis is having trouble implementing it. But outside of Brad Keller, who has been nothing short of a revelation to this point, what pitcher hasn’t regressed?

Steve Physioc talks about the inspiration for his new novel.

Bradford Doolittle at ESPN talks to Negro League Baseball Museum head Bob Kendrick.

Could Bryce Harper be traded this summer?

Jeff Passan gives his opinion on who should be at the All-Star Game.

Is the left-handed relief specialist going extinct?

Four first-round draft picks failed to sign by yesterday’s deadline.

The Orioles have an important trade deadline coming up, but who is in charge?

Did Cardinals head John Mozeliak err in his public comments on Dexter Fowler?

Jenrry Mejia’s lifetime ban for PEDs has been lifted.

Carlos Gomez publicly apologizes to Gatorade coolers after destroying them earlier this week.

How to improve the College World Series.

Why MoviePass is the future, even if it doesn’t survive.

Netflix is getting rid of user reviews.

The best video games of 2018.

Your song of the day is Antonio Carlos “Tom” Jobim with So Danço Samba.