Baseball today vs decades ago
 

Seeing plays like this on a fairly regular basis, I don't know how anyone can seriously argue that level of play in the 1940s, 50s, or even 60s was anything remotely close to what we see today. The speed of the batter. The throw by Elly. I mean some of this stuff looks like computer game craziness. Yes, the guys today can't bunt, can't hit and run, and are not steeped in strategy, but the level of speed, strength, sheer explosive athleticism to me seems off the charts.


https://www.mlb.com/news/elly-de-la-...infield-assist

Completely agree. I (somewhat wistfully) recall when a 93 mph fastball was considered fast, and the hitter in the 2 spot was a guy like Wally Backman. Starting pitchers tried to get to the 7th inning. But yes, it's obvious that the athleticism is a step change better. I suppose it's not so different from football, track and field, tennis (especially the women's game), and swimming.

In many ways, I think this is a reason why the Hall of Fame selection criteria should be even more based on a player's performance relative to his career peers, as opposed to across eras. There's no point comparing Babe Ruth or the guys who used to play in the fat pants to the physical specimens / anomalies that dominate today's game. I mean, during the Babe's time, Tour de France cyclists (forgive me for bringing up a sport popular in France on a baseball forum), used to smoke cigarettes while racing.

No argument about the level of play. Carroll's stutter step approaching third, likely cost him from making that a closer play. He might have gotten under the tag.