Hypothetical Question, could Ruth hit modern pitching

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by packs

I look at a guy like Noah Syndergaard. He's huge and he throws super hard. But he can't actually pitch and that's why he's had such limited success (along with injuries from trying to throw hard).

I just don't see why throwing hard today means anything. It clearly isn't hard to hit a 100 MPH fastball. What is hard is hitting against someone who knows how to pitch, and that person can come from any era.

The bold part is easily the most ridiculous thing posted in this thread.

They have done tests for everything. From 2015-2017 they tested data from MLB hitters on this exact subject. Hitters that bat 300 against a 90mph fast ball were only hitting 200 against a 100mph fastball.

[packs]

Originally Posted by bnorth

The bold part is easily the most ridiculous thing posted in this thread.

They have done tests for everything. From 2015-2017 they tested data from MLB hitters on this exact subject. Hitters that bat 300 against a 90mph fast ball were only hitting 200 against a 100mph fastball.

Why is it ridiculous? I can rattle off dozens of pitchers in the modern era who didn't throw hard but experienced a lot of success. Guys like Jamie Moyer, Tim Wakefield, Roy Halladay, Andy Pettitte and on and on and on.

It is not hard to hit a 100 MPH fastball. There are a million guys in the minors throwing 100 and they'll never pitch in the major leagues. There are equally as many pitchers in the majors throwing 100 with unsustainable ERAs that will mean their careers are over in a few seasons.

These people can't pitch and that's their problem. They can only throw 100 MPH.

[Carter08]

Mike Trout pretty clearly seems to think the heat is making life harder as a batter. I get it that heat without skill doesn’t amount to much but heat with skill seems harder to hit than lower heat with the same skill. Not sure you can argue around that.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jv5Yo6C8ao4

[packs]

No I wouldn't argue that a pitcher who can both pitch and throw super hard isn't going to be successful. Just look at Randy Johnson.

If you wanted to say Babe Ruth would have a hard time against Randy Johnson, I would agree because I think anyone in any time would. But I don’t think Ruth would have any more trouble with a league average power pitcher just because he throws hard. Ruth was an incredible hitter. I would say the same about Gehrig, DiMaggio and any of the truly elite players.

[jayshum]

Originally Posted by packs

Why is it ridiculous? I can rattle off dozens of pitchers in the modern era who didn't throw hard but experienced a lot of success. Guys like Jamie Moyer, Tim Wakefield, Roy Halladay, Andy Pettitte and on and on and on.

It is not hard to hit a 100 MPH fastball. There are a million guys in the minors throwing 100 and they'll never pitch in the major leagues. There are equally as many pitchers in the majors throwing 100 with unsustainable ERAs that will mean their careers are over in a few seasons.

These people can't pitch and that's their problem. They can only throw 100 MPH.

While being able to throw 100+ doesn't necessarily make you a good pitcher, saying it's not hard to hit a 100 MPH pitch seems like a stretch to me.

From Baseball-reference.com, career batting average against for Jamie Moyer is .268 and for Aroldis Chapman it's .165.