Nolan Ryan at APSE meeting talks about Clemens, steroids, Bonds-Aaron

"It probably has impacted baseball more than any other sport because the history of the game has benchmarks that are truly a mark of the type of year someone was having, or their career.”

This is the case with every record in every sport ever, foof.
Baseball triumphalism is something we can all do without.

 

I disagree. Baseball records are different because it means more to baseball fans and people in general.

Even people who aren't baseball fans know that Hank Aaron hit 755 home runs and Babe Ruth hit 714 home runs. A lot of people know anybody who has hit more than 500 home runs. ty Cobb has the highest batting average ever. Royal fans remember George Brett hit .390 one season (I think it was .390).

If you asked the typical NFL fan who holds the record for the most touchdowns in a season or a career, my guess is they couldn't tell you or if they could, they couldn't tell you the number. People can't tell you the number of points the leading career NBA scorer had without looking it up.

There is a difference. Knowing Hank Aaron hit 755 homers and Cy Young won 511 games (and to think, the guy never won a Cy Young award ] is like knowing the words to the National Anthem... only more people know baseball records. I am firmly convinced that if it weren't for baseball, fewer than 10 percent of the people would know the words to the National Anthem.

 

Exactly my point. Baseball would be better off without this kind of out-of-kilter cultural reverence. It could start making sense to itself merely as an entertainment enterprise.

 

He also threw two no-hitters that season and did NOT win the Cy Young award. It went instead to Jim Palmer, who was 22-9 with a 2.40 ERA and 158 strikeouts.

A freakin' crime.

 

There, fixed. ;D

 

Or smaller stadiums, both in terms of shorter fences and less foul territory ...

 

I disagree. Much of the fun of baseball is talking about it, moreso than other sports. That is why there is more of a fascination with all-star selections and post-season awards than in the other major sports. And also why there is more of a fascination with records. It's a slow game and lends itself more to conversation during the game than football or basketball. The history is a big part of the draw for a lot of fans.

 

I also think he led the NL in ERA in 1987 and strikeouts, but his 8-16 record and little run support from the Astros' offense hurt those chances.

 

Don't forget, the height of the pitcher's mound lowering has contributed to the countless arm injuries over the last 20 years. If they raised the mound by another 2-3 inches, you would see a whole lot more quality 1-2 run ballgames than we're seeing today.

 

Anyone read Passan's Yahoo.com column on Mike Marshall? Think anyone in MLB will listen to his take on cutting down on injuries?

 

Interesting piece, and no, I don't think anyone will listen to him.

The MLB Old Boys Network still doesn't work that way.

 

They haven't been listening to Marshall for 30 years. Ain't gonna start now, no matter how much his ideas deserve a legitimate shot. (And I think they do.)