Dick Vitale is best known for his colorful basketball analysis, but he offered some scathing commentary on another sport Wednesday that left fans buzzing.
The 85-year-old Vitale, who is recovering from cancer surgery earlier this week, spent Wednesday looking at some baseball lineups and stats, and was baffled.
“Wow I just looked at various lineups in @MLB and I can’t ever recall in all the years as a baseball lover that so many starters playing r hitting .195 & lower,” Vitale posted on X. “Usually guys with those embarrassing stats r shipped out to get back their stroke . Please baseball experts explain y.”
Wow I just looked at various lineups in @MLB and I can’t ever recall in all the years as a baseball lover that so many starters playing r hitting .195 & lower . Usually guys with those embarrassing stats r shipped out to get back their stroke . Please baseball experts explain y.
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) July 3, 2024
That is an excellent observation, and many longtime MLB fans can sympathize with Vitale’s thoughts. The numbers bear it out. MLB hitters were batting .242 entering Wednesday. According to Baseball Reference, that is on pace to be the lowest figure since 1967 (.237).
When did it become the norm for some teams to field lineups full of hitters hitting below .230? When did it become acceptable for even non-power hitters to strike out 125 times a season?
Baseball insiders and fans have offered a number of explanations for plummeting averages. MLB has wrestled with the problem for several years; one of the reasons behind the rule change banning odd defensive shifts was to promote more hits.
Whether fans were frustrated with.195 hitters clogging lineups, or they love Dickie V — or a combination of both — it was heartening to see so many fans respond to Vitale’s post and share their thoughts.
Manfred ruined it. Too much emphasis on launch angle, exit velo and nonsensical sabermetrics stats. Basically the analytics people figure the easiest way to scores to hit a home run. It’s pretty much just the way to cheat the system.
— Mike Sgroi (@MikeSgroi21) July 3, 2024
I’m a long way from an expert, but some of it is related to teams using 4-6 pitchers a game.
— Mark Champion (@nbamark) July 3, 2024
They decided for whatever reason to de-value Batting Average. And suddenly launch angle became a big deal, and they became okay with players striking out over 150 times in a season. Fans like me aren’t allowed to challenged this thinking.
— Paul Wells (@wellsp174407) July 3, 2024
Ironically, the pitch clock, which was theorized by some to hurt pitchers, may actually have worked against batters
— Snarky Commenter (@GreatUSTreasure) July 3, 2024
Players going for homeruns instead of hits
Makes the sport very boring imo
— Investor Bettor (@InvestorBettor) July 3, 2024
Strikeouts don’t matter anymore…BA doesn’t matter anymore…it’s HRs that matter…kinda like how the emphasis on the 3pt shot has ruined basketball.
— REDSOX 🇨🇦🇺🇲🇮🇪🇮🇹 (@FiskFoulPole) July 3, 2024
A lot of younger hitters coming up to the MLB now are not used to the high velo and spin rates that most major league pitchers have. Reason is; those pitchers are expedited to the MLB quickly and don’t spent much time in the minors. Pitchers’ stuff have also greatly improved
— bhhalleck13 (@ronniemullins53) July 4, 2024
