Re: (TFT) Suggested house rules: Tool Elementals

["maou_tsaou1@netzero.net" <maou_tsaou1@netzero.net>]

The Stance

Late in the banner season of 1927 the great Babe Ruth stood in League Park, Cleveland, just as the home team Indians were ending their batting practice. (downtime training)
He watched Joe Sewell, Cleveland shortstop, finish his batting licks.

"That's the perfect batting stance," Ruth sighed, and in surprising envy.
"If I could stand there and pop 'em like that little Sewell, I could hit a million."

"Then why don't you hit like that, Babe?" I asked.

There followed a Ruthian snort of disgust.
"Because I'm paid to hit home runs," he muttered.
"What would I say to Jake Ruppert (owned of the Yankees) next year when he asked me why I didn't hit any?"

Prodded into proving the merits of Sewell's stance, Ruth rushed into the batting cage and called for some practice pitches.
As Combs and Koenig, entitled to prior swings as first and second hitters, protested, Ruth assumed the classic Sewell stance.

"Look where he puts his feet," Ruth said, placing his own large feet in Sewell's spike-prints.
"Not too far apart."
"And look - no stride."
"He keeps both feet on the ground, and shifts his weight behind his swing without moving either foot."
"Look where his bat is - only a couple of feet from the ball!"

The Babe held his own bat at a 30-degree angle above his left shoulder, with his hands together, the right hand about two inches up the handle.
He motioned again for a few pitches.
Then came the demonstration.
In swinging, he brought his bat around sharply, but at the last instant.
He shifted his weight forward, always behind the swing.
He swung at ten hard pitches and hit each one cleanly to different parts of the outfield.
All were "base hits".
Combs and Koenig lost interest in their licks, and became absorbed in Ruth's amazing demonstration of the "perfect hitting stance."


When first informed of Ruth's flattering analysis, Joe Sewell was visibly pleased, but he quickly observed:
"While Ruth was admiring the batting stance that got me a three-sixteen average and one home run, he was hitting over three-fifty and breaking pitchers' hearts with his sixty homers that year!"

But there was infinitely more to Sewell's batting than percentage.
Slugger Ruth fanned 89 times in 1927, and Sewell only seven.
He was the hardest man to strike out in the history of baseball.
His control of the strike zone is legendary among all players.
During the seasons 1925 and 1929 he went to bat a total of 1186 times and struck out only four times each season for an average of one strikeout every 148 times at bat.

Little Joe traveled to the plate 7132 times in fifteen seasons, hit for a lifetime percentage of .312 and fanned only 114 times, for an average of once every 62.5 at bats, and a yearly average of 7.6 strikeouts per season.
How did he do it?

"Well, I was small." He shrugged as he explained.
"Still am, by the way."
"But I think the biggest factor was keeping my eye on the ball."
"I saw it leave the pitcher's hand, and I saw it leave my bat."

Did he ACTUALLY see the ball LEAVE HIS BAT?

"Yes," he repeated, "I saw it come in and go out."
"I could always tell what direction it was going... to what part of the infield or outfield."
"I made watching the ball a habit."




He then goes on to tell the story of how Ruth (1915 rookie) learned his stance from Joe Jackson.

He then has diagrams (think dance steps) for 32 .300+ hitter's stance marks, with ending stride placement, 16 right-handers and 16 lefties.



Okay Sports Science says you can't do this.
The Slythern boys at Deadliest Warrior mentioned an assumption of something like a quarter of a second reaction time.
TFT is also plagued by a belief that Joe Average is a real thing.
ST 10.6 DX 10.6 IQ 10.6
Ish.

I've not seen anything on decimal Stats.
I've got 'em, but they're for huge populations...

The computer simulation boys say no, but "Little" Joe Sewell says he did it and has some hellacious statistics to back it up.

Of course Ryan wasn't pitching then...

MY Stats give different reaction times depending on the value of DX and IQ. 
I believe I'm justified here.

Let's call Ruth and Sewell swordsmen instead.
Keeping their statistics for hits, strikeouts, home runs, etc. as wound, miss, kill, which one would you rather face in a fight?
Sure Ruth will kill you if he hits, but it's a MUCH bigger if than Sewell, who'll simply take ribbons outta ya.


breaktime...

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