Trout v. Legendary cards

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by 100backstroke

Comparing fastest pitches of today vs. way back - be careful as the measuring has changed. I have heard a pitch loses up to 8 mph from release to plate. I do not know how/where Feller was timed, but Nolan Ryan was timed when pitch went over the plate. Today, pitches are clocked when released. Big Difference. Todays 100mph is Ryans 92 mph.

Ryan's was measured 10 feet in front of the plate.

And that point is immaterial - they've been measuring the same way for at least a couple decades now. And the average fastball has gone up significantly in that time (2.5mph from 2008 to 2019 alone). Regardless of any adjustments you make, guys are throwing harder now than they did 12 years ago. And harder than 70 years ago.

The "dilution" of talent was mentioned earlier because of expansion. That's an argument that holds no water. The US has roughly 220% of the population (150m - 328m) now that it had in 1950. Meanwhile, MLB has 188% of the teams. AND MLB now draws players from around the world, which it did not do in 1950. In other words, not only has the talent not been diluted by expansion, it's actually been concentrated. Expansion hasn't kept up with population growth.