Rhodes Retakes HR Lead
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Re: Rhodes Retakes HR Lead
[ Author: Guest | Posted: Aug 31, 2001 4:00 PM
]
Dynamite Dasen.
I have the past months watched Seibu on the int.net, and I see quite often that the pitchers throw nothing but junk on the out side against Cabrerra.. Occasionally the pitchers will throw in and high but for the most of the time he doesn't get many hittable pitches.. Is Rhodes getting more pitches to hit or it the same as Cabrerra..
I have the past months watched Seibu on the int.net, and I see quite often that the pitchers throw nothing but junk on the out side against Cabrerra.. Occasionally the pitchers will throw in and high but for the most of the time he doesn't get many hittable pitches.. Is Rhodes getting more pitches to hit or it the same as Cabrerra..
Re: Rhodes Retakes HR Lead
[ Author: westbaystars | Posted: Aug 31, 2001 6:03 PM
| YBS Fan
]
> [...] Is Rhodes getting more pitches to hit or it
> the same as Cabrerra..
The pitchers are pitching to both of them where they think they can get them out. Most foreign players have a weakness for breaking balls low and outside, so that's a popular spot. The thing is, though, that both Rhodes and Cabrera have been hitting that spot well. Some reporters have commented that they don't have a weak spot. And believe me, the pitchers have been looking.
I notice that several home runs are fork balls that don't drop enough. That or the batter reads fork and puts the bat in the right spot. It would be interesting to see what pitch they hit out most often. My guess is fork balls that don't break like the pitcher wanted.
On the Pro Yakyu mailing list, one person was complaining of the inevitable walking of Cabrera (or Rhodes) to save Oh-kantoku's record. Oh has been critisized for doing that to Bass since 1985. But there was an interesting article in Nikkan Sports recently about Oh walking Cabrera.
Apparently, in the top of the 9th with a tied ball game, Oh had Cabrera walked intensionally with a runner at first. The next batter made out to retire the side. Some people started screaming foul on Oh's part, siteing Bass in 1985.
But looking at the data, it made perfect sense. Cabrera was hitting something like .410 with a runner on first (I don't remember if that was overall or just against Daiei). But the next batter was batting in the .100's with runners in scoring position. So, walking Cabrera, and the go-ahead runner to second, was a much lower risk than pitching to Cabrera. Remember, there's a ball game to be won first and foremost over a personal record. Oh made the decision that would see Daiei climb back into first place.
If the pennant is at stake, I'd say that it's highly likely that Cabrera and/or Rhodes will be walked coming down the wire, especially between Daiei, Kintetsu, and Seibu, who all have a very good chance at winning it all. If it's already decided and comes down to preserving a personal record, I hope to see Oh have his pitchers pitch to the duo to hush those whiners once and for all.
> the same as Cabrerra..
The pitchers are pitching to both of them where they think they can get them out. Most foreign players have a weakness for breaking balls low and outside, so that's a popular spot. The thing is, though, that both Rhodes and Cabrera have been hitting that spot well. Some reporters have commented that they don't have a weak spot. And believe me, the pitchers have been looking.
I notice that several home runs are fork balls that don't drop enough. That or the batter reads fork and puts the bat in the right spot. It would be interesting to see what pitch they hit out most often. My guess is fork balls that don't break like the pitcher wanted.
On the Pro Yakyu mailing list, one person was complaining of the inevitable walking of Cabrera (or Rhodes) to save Oh-kantoku's record. Oh has been critisized for doing that to Bass since 1985. But there was an interesting article in Nikkan Sports recently about Oh walking Cabrera.
Apparently, in the top of the 9th with a tied ball game, Oh had Cabrera walked intensionally with a runner at first. The next batter made out to retire the side. Some people started screaming foul on Oh's part, siteing Bass in 1985.
But looking at the data, it made perfect sense. Cabrera was hitting something like .410 with a runner on first (I don't remember if that was overall or just against Daiei). But the next batter was batting in the .100's with runners in scoring position. So, walking Cabrera, and the go-ahead runner to second, was a much lower risk than pitching to Cabrera. Remember, there's a ball game to be won first and foremost over a personal record. Oh made the decision that would see Daiei climb back into first place.
If the pennant is at stake, I'd say that it's highly likely that Cabrera and/or Rhodes will be walked coming down the wire, especially between Daiei, Kintetsu, and Seibu, who all have a very good chance at winning it all. If it's already decided and comes down to preserving a personal record, I hope to see Oh have his pitchers pitch to the duo to hush those whiners once and for all.
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I never really considered Chiba Marine Stadium to be much of a home run hitters' park. The swirling winds (like Candlestick) coming in from the Bay wreck havok among outfielders and home run balls alike. Also, Chiba is a light hitting team without so much power as other teams. But Rhodes seems to have a liking for the stadium as he's hit 7 balls out of the yard in 10 games there this season.
With the second home run last night bringing his total to 46, Rhodes is now alone in 5th place for the most home runs in a single season for foreign players. The rankings are:
With 25 games remaining, he should be a shoe in for second place on this list. The big questions is, can he reach Bass at 54 and Oh at 55? Although many foreigners sometimes seem to be preoccupied with the possibility of discrimination, the announcers are all certainly routing for him as I've heard a couple on TV saying that they'd really like to him him hit the ball out. Keep it going Rhodes!
Another interesting statistic is that Rhodes and Nakamura (currently with 37 HRs) have surpassed Nankai's (now Daiei's) Nomura (52) and Hudley's (30) Pacific League record of 82 home runs for a combination, with the two now having a combined total of 83 home runs. The Japan record is 94, held by the Bass (54) and Kakefu (40) combi of 1985.