The bullpen was for youngsters, oldsters and bushers. Source: The Cultural Encyclopedia of Baseball, 1997. This is a cool article. In 19 seasons in the Negro Leagues, Paige recorded 1,231 strikeouts in just over 1,500 innings. During spring training in 1964, Dalkowski was with the Major League club. The new meter, which gives an immediate reading which engineers said compared with standard laboratory meter accuracy, is built in a trailer. Thats why many pre-1893 pitching records are not recognized as official records. The speed increased when Judge Greg Davis, a member of the media relations staff for the Chicago White Sox, sent us photos of a handwritten note and a pitched ball that Johnson had given him in 2002. Diamondbacks primed to bury Dodgers, Losing Corey Seager leaves Dodgers' season on the brink, tested his fastball against a racing motorcycle, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. The AL East is setting up as a race for the ages, Albert Pujols' push for 3,000 powered by dominant decade, 'Ich-i-ro! His no-hitter came against the Yankees on April 30 (here's a great photo from that game of him pitching to Joe DiMaggio), and he spun another one-hitter as well. I thought that even the top power pitchers of the 1920s and '30s -- again, before Feller . Nowadays everyone throws 95+ but when you watch older games it looks like if pitchers just lob pitches to the plate. Perhaps I'm wrong on this, but it's just a theory of mine. Wood finished his career with just 989 strikeouts in 1,434.1 innings, but considering the era he was pitching in, those are some pretty outstanding numbers. So Feller started on Sept. 19, Sept. 22, Sept, 25, pitched five innings of relief on Sept. 27 and then started the season finale on Sept. 29, tied with Waddell at 343 strikeouts. Bench gave in to the veteran (who had recently strung together four consecutive seasons with 200+ strikeouts) and signaled for a fastball. At the height of his career (1998-2002), he was striking out more than a batter per inning, and who knows how many strikeouts he might have now if injuries hadnt derailed his promising career. They all thought he was faster than Bob Feller and Walter Johnson, though none of them probably saw Johnson pitch. The tech continued to improve. During his Cy Young season in 2003, Gagne struck out 137 batters in 82.1 innings for a SO/9 ratio of 15.0. Walter Johnson did not throw 99 mph for 370 innings in 1910. Originally Published: February 2003 on Baseball Almanac. Realistically low to mid 80s. But The Freak is a monster when it comes to pitching. Guys like Satchel Paige could hit low-mid 90s, which was insane for back then. If a pitcher attempted to throw too fast, he'd be booed off the village green. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. - Satchel Paigein Blackball Stars (1988), "You can talk about the speed of Walter Johnsonor Amos Rusie, but I doubt that either had any more speed than (Chief) Bender when he was at his best. Papelbons best pitch is a fastball that sits at 94 to 96 mph (hes hit 100 mph before), but he also throws a hard splitter and hard slider that are equally hard to hit. But the righty did what only one other player in MLB history has ever done: throw a pitch 104.8 mph. He first broke into the major leagues with the Reds in 2011 and was immediately given the title of "Fastest Pitcher in History". I never had one. For one thing, if Feller threw that hard, or something close to it, I think that would be reflected more in the numbers. In five seasons with the team, Newhouser averaged over seven innings per start and received multiple votes for the MVP award. Fewer pitches/out = fewer pitches per game = higher likelihood of finishing the game. Pitchers are throwing harder than ever before. The Meter to Record Feller's Speed article mentioned it was specifically going to examine his pitching speed. Super arms are found not created. "He's (Stu Miller) got a fastball you could catch in your teeth. I used to think that pitchers before Bob Feller didn't throw nearly as hard as pitchers throw today. His rate did decline even more the rest of that season, however. -- and his pitching motion was practically indistinguishable from the pitching motions we see today. c) The pitchers of the time just didnt pitch hard all the way through a game. These questions, and others like it, are some of the most commonly asked items here on Baseball Almanac. I had two or three different kinds of curve balls and a lot of confidence in each of them. In 1947, his K's per 9 dropped from 8.4 to 5.9 (although that still led the league). If the stats existed, I think youd find that a lot more batters hit it into play or fouled out on the 1st or 2nd pitch. Some estimates put the fastball at 101-103 mph, others as high as 107.6 mph. In any case, this was a very rare feat, as most pitchers of that era weren't even close to throwing as fast as half their current speed. They wanted to control, be durable, and pitch for a long time. By 1890 overhand pitching was legal, and that is when we first hear about pitchers who were fearsomely fast, such as Amos Rusie and Cy Young. Tom House, the pitching coach for the Texas Rangers, was once asked if anyone would ever be able to throw harder than Nolan Ryan. He also finished second six other times. But maybe he did. Nolan Ryan earned his nickname "The Ryan Express.". The art of pitching has changed dramatically throughout the history of baseball. They didnt replace the game balls as often consequently by the end of a game the ball was a blackened, tobacco-sopping, lopsided, scuffed, bag of mush. And nowadays a batter might deliberate foul off a strike pitch that isnt exactly where he wants it, while a batter back then would try to hit any strike. But maybe its time to pay more attention to the guy who always played in Bob Fellers shadow. Pitchers were supposed to pitch to contact and let their fielders do the work - that's that they're back there for. He struck out at least 10 batters 12 times, which sounds even more impressive when you realize all other major league starters combined to do that just 20 times (nine of those by Hal Newhouser). Atley Donald and Van Lingle Mungo were early hard-throwers that were actually measured. An official reading is unavailable because Dalkowski pitched in the 1950s and 1960s, but some have estimated his fastball could reach 105 mph. In Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, the Dodgers sent four pitchers to the mound who touched 98 mph or harder. He didn't even have the . And no one threw sliders like they do today. Woods career didnt turn out exactly as planned, as repeated arm injuries robbed him off his explosiveness, but the right-hander is still the active leader with 10.3 SO/9 IP, a mark that is second only to Randy Johnson among starters. Today, in the late 1990s pitchers can throw over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h or 45 m/s). Who was president when the Orioles threw out the first pitch? Joe Wood 15. Theres a reason the kid had two Cy Young awards by the time he was 25. It wasn't exactly Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier, but it was a remarkable achievement. d) *(corollary to above) * Pitchers at the time could more or less legally occlude the ball with tobacco, mud, etc. Frustrated, the two met at the mound where Bench bluntly said, "Your fastball's not popping." During the 1999 baseball season, this moment was recorded. I think some of these things are a bit overblown. A lot of pitchers blew out their arms back then, tooyou just never hear of them because they had short careers. They probably couldve done a lot harder throwing if they wanted to. Once, he could throw his fastball 97-plus miles an hour. Then Stalker came out with its Pro Sports radar gun in the early 1990s. I have serious doubts about the 107 mph estimate. His career 11.5 SO/9 rate is still among the best all-time, but the strike zone continues to elude the oversized righty. There were freak arms throughout history. Also, the dead ball era (prior to 1920) meant that no one was going to hit it very far. He once threw a ball at least 450 feet on a bet. The same goes for an infielder.". Jimenez is another pitcher who, at just 27 years old, has already raised eyebrows with some of his strikeout totals and radar gun readings. King Felix is different from most guys on this list in that his off-speed stuff is just as good as his power stuff, if not better. It was common for pitchers to "coast" until a runner got into scoring position. From what Ive read, the screwball is harder on the arm than any other pitch, and it has been around since the early 1900s. To go along with his 714 home runs, Ruth ultimately retired with. A 94 mph pitch on the Stalker Pro registered as 95 on the Stalker Pro II. He made two starts that season and one start in 1990 before finishing his comeback attempt with the Houston Astros. were exceptions. The pitcher wants to keep the pitch count low because of his stamina. They are also some of the most widely debated by historians, researchers & experts alike. I had my fastest pitched timed when I was younger. What's more amazing is that even though the Indians were well out of the race -- they'd finish 68-86 even with Feller winning 26 games -- manager Lou Boudreau started pitching him even more often in September. As Ted Williams once said, "Three days before he pitched I would start thinking about Robert Feller, Bob Feller. **, Press J to jump to the feed. This is the main reason. They must really be scraping the bottom of the barrel! What was the fastest pitch ever thrown during a baseball game? Jimmy Foxx, Jim Tabor, and Roger Cramer made it a clean Boston sweep with a first-place tie in yesterday's fielders contest. 105.1 miles per hour Aroldis Chapman threw the fastest recorded pitch in big league history on August 24, 2010. Diamondbacks primed to bury Dodgers, Losing Corey Seager leaves Dodgers' season on the brink. First Miss Cappy Ogiun, a visitor from Orlando, Fla., tried her speed yesterday. For more information, please see our Her best was 40 feet per second. Goodens 2,293 career strikeouts are just 46thall-time, but 1,875 of them came in his 11 seasons as a New York Met. The Pitch/FX system that MLB used in 2010 measured pitches at roughly 50 feet from home plate, which is where the 105.1 mph of Chapmans fastball was measured. Matt Anderson, has thrown the fastest pitched baseball which measured 103 miles per hour (166 km/h or 46.0 m/s). He walked 21 in one minor league game and struck out 21 in another. Despite over 3,000 career punchouts Gibson finished his career averaging just 7.3 SO/9 and only led the league in strikeouts once. He has been playing sports his whole life and loves to talk about them. Follow him on Twitter for all your MLB news and updates. Three digits! He was supposed to throw the ball from the outfield wall to home plate, but he threw it well above the plate into the press box. Then there is no pitcher among the top 100 until 1964. Feller once mentioned that he was clocked at 104 mph at Lincoln Park in Chicago. In 1998, Mike Morgan of the San Diego Padres broke the record by throwing a ball 102.1 miles per hour (164.7 km/h or 44.6 m/s). - Eddie Collins. At least thats what the Indians keep telling themselves. Zumayas name tends to be forgotten in discussions about baseballs hardest throwers because he hasnt pitched in a game all season and has been injury prone for five years. Sponsors recalled that back in 1917, in Bridgeport (Conn.) arms laboratory, Walter Johnson recorded 134 feet per second, Christy Mathewson 127 and "Smoky Joe" Wood 124. I dont imagine it was easy pitching back then, but its got to be more grueling today. Today's games often last three or four hours! As long as hitters kept missing it, I was going to keep throwing it. Ryan finished his career with 9.5 SO/9 IP (fourth all time) and led the AL in strikeouts 11 times. update=copyright.getFullYear(); He once threw a pitch so hard that the catcher missed the ball and it shattered an umpire's mask. This machine will tell us at once whether he has the fast ball. Obviously, if it was done on a closed off road in a. are especially hard on the arm. He held on for awhile with guile and deception but couldnt throw hard. Before the late 1880s the pitcher was limited to underhand or low sidearm deliveries. Ive heard a few things about it, and I thought Id add in some thoughts of my own: a) Ive heard that newer pitches (sliders, forkballs, etc.) You put your best pitchers in the starting rotation. He was the definition of unhittable and is still only 23 years old. Why do infielders throw the ball so fast? How fast does a pitcher usually throw? Wood is now blowing away hitters as a full-time reliever. You throw into a hole two feet square. Feller won 4-1, striking out five to get his record. Overall, Ryan went 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA in three games back from surgery on his right shoulder. I have serious doubts about the 107 mph estimate. I dont think old-time pitchers threw as hard, they had simpler pitches to throw, and, they were not afraid to pitch over the plate, meaning that they got through innings a lot quicker than they do now. If he harnesses all his pitches and learns to throw strikes consistently, theres no reason he cant one day pass the next guy on this list in career strikeouts. Over the course of the past decade, Chapmans fastest fastball had gotten faster by nearly a mile per hour. While in the minor leagues with Detroit, Ty Cobb reportedly told Hubbell to stop throwing the pitch. Fascinating accounts, stories, and even myths about how fast - or not so fast - a pitch has gone are common in the annals of the game. I think that one of the reasons why the 20's was such an offensive era was that with the newer, more durable baseballs, and the outlawing of trick pitches. 10 More answers below Mike Burch Poet, Editor and Publisher Author has 11.6K answers and 25.2M answer views Oct 28 Related He retired after that one start, but he still holds the record as the fastest pitcher in MLB history. Copyright 2020 - 2023 Sportsmanist Inc. Did Nolan Ryan throw the fastest pitch ever? His 2,453 career strikeouts are just 34th all-time, but his 8.86 SO/9 IP are ninth. If only because most of the film I've seen of pitchers from that era just don't suggest that much effort was being expended. Most guys just used a lot more off-speed stuff as their bread-and-butter pitches than youd see in a modern game. Up until that year the pitcher's position was known as the pitcher's box. Young pitchers who throw breaking balls-including sliders-report more arm pain than those who do not. That year, Amos Rusie led the National League with 482 innings. "That was my best year," he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 2006. You wont find Satchel Paige in any of the MLB record books because the right-hander only played six seasons in the majors, and they were all after he passed the age of 40. The moment a baseball leaves a pitcher's hand, it starts to slow down because of drag. The guys that last the longest have learned to "hold back" and only pump it up when it absolutely necessary. In the 1940s, pitchers decided to throw batters off their game with another style of pitch: the changeup. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Pitchers were required to throw underhand until 1883. His less-touted teammate, pitcher Johnny Humphreys, recorded 127 feet. Dalkowski was not physically imposing, standing only 5'8" and wearing thick glasses. It all comes down to where the pitch is measured. ** Actual picture of speed taken from the field at bottom of the chart.^ Due to the large number of MLB.com Gameday additions this symbol means it was verified there. No, pitchers didn't throw 150 miles an hour. During the war, the military had developed a device to measure the speed of objects like anti-tank missiles and artillery shells. Could Mike Trout outproduce a tanking team's entire lineup? Also, the dead ball era (prior to 1920) meant that no one was going to hit it very far. Back then, no one could touch 100 mph. Both Chapman and Hicks are relievers. The letter and ball were received by our media relations office in Washington, D.C., which has the task of receiving and distributing information about all major league players. and our Wagner is the left-handed National League compliment to Mariano Rivera and was as dominant of a closer as you can find. Its believed he could throw upwards of 100 mph. Both were mentioned in the Meter to Record Feller's Speed article above and the unit of measure was feet per second. Hes already among the all-time leaders with 215 saves and has nearly 500 strikeouts in just seven short seasons. Because 1) they weren't asked to max out, and 2) everyone in every sport is stronger and faster, more dynamic today than yesterday; why would pitchers be any different? Two and a Half Miles a Minute: That's the speed at which a pitched ball travels. Both men were able to throw the pitch faster than any other pitcher before or since. The best workhorses of that time approached 700 innings - and they weren't even playing 154 games in a season yet. The Baby Braves might be ready ahead of schedule, Real or Not? A rookie catcher named Johnny Bench was behind the plate and eight-year veteran Jim Maloney was on the mound. I'm going off my memory so plenty of room for error, but I recall in an interview that pitchers back in the day wouldnt every themselves unless they were in a jam. The most incredible part of Wagners story? The top speed is 90 miles per hour. Williams swore he never saw the ball and claimed that Dalkowski probably was the fastest pitcher who ever lived. House replied, "Others will throw harder, but no one will throw harder for longer.". Feller's numbers from that season are mind-boggling from a modern perspective. He even saved four games for good measure. After having it their way for the first two decades of the 20th Century, pitchers entered a dark age in which they were no longer allowed to use a ball that was dead, scuffed and (with few exceptions) wet. Freddy Peralta thrills family with dazzling debut, Real or Not? He was clocked as high as 103 mph before extreme wildness ended his career prematurely. One more factor: the hitters. 100-mph fastballs have been attributed to many pitchers. Stephen Louis Dalkowski Jr. (June 3, 1939 - April 19, 2020), nicknamed Dalko, was an American left-handed pitcher . Strikeouts are only a part of his dominance, but in just 1,260 career innings, the 65 righty already has 1,161 strikeouts and is pitching no-hitters like hes Nolan Ryan. The next year, Andy Pettitte of the New York Yankees broke this record again with a ball that traveled at 103.3 miles per hour (167.4 km/h or 45.5 m/s). What is Mitchell Starc's fastest ball speed? Real or Not? A "radar gun" is used to measure the speed of a baseball. That's 2,118 more than the 3,730 that MLB leader David Price threw in 2014. A modern radar gun measures the pitch either out of the hand or ten feet away from the pitcher, depending on the gunmost measurements all the way up to the 1980's would measure a pitcher about 60 feet from his hand (although I believe Walter Johnson was clocked 25 or 30 feet away from his hand). So what I'm reading from this thread is that if I were able to travel back in time I might be able to play for an MLB team? The true speed of Fellers fastball is a subject of great debate. Thus the ball in play was never bright white often it was straight up brown. Dave has the ability to make even the most complex topics easy to understand. His arm was pretty much toast in his mid-30s. The Detroit times. Where what happened yesterday is being preserved today. Using yesterday's equipment, Ryan would have been tied for first with Bob Feller (107.4 mph). Hes a lock to reach 3,000 if he stays healthy, and at 28 years old, he may just be getting better. Who was the first pitcher to throw 100 mph? Pitchers dont usually return from Tommy John surgery with the same velocity, so we may never see the flame-throwing Strasburg ever again. Often a starting pitcher will be removed from the . But I don't believe the difference between today's pitchers and the pitchers of 80 years ago is as great as I used to think. However, he is still just 23 years old. Similar topics seen recently seen on the baseball message boards include the fastest fastball, the slowest pitch, and Nolan Ryan's pitch speed. He won it over Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants. He topped 100 Ks in his first full season as the Los Angeles closer and regularly reached triple-digits. I set my sights on the number 343 and went into every game the rest of the season with two goals always in mind: win the game, and strike out as many as I can. 14. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Bob slept well that night. In 1893 the pitcher's rear foot was moved farther from home plate to its current distance of 60 feet, 6 inches. Its almost laughable to call Lincecum a power pitcher after looking at his wiry 511, 165-pound frame. He was never as dominant after that. Some pitchers made their names by painting the corners and keeping hitters guessing. Copyright 1999- 16 falloutranger San Francisco Giants 8 yr. ago Johnsons 3,509 career strikeouts (ninth all time) dont look too impressive when you consider just how many innings he threw (nearly 6,000), but theres no doubt about his arm. The Speedgun, developed by Decatur Technologies (a long-time maker of police radar guns) measured closer to the plate than the JUGS gun. His 10.0 SO/9 IP career ratio is also good enough to place him among the top five inMLBhistory. The top fastallers might have topped out at 85 mph or so, anyway. His 105.1 mph fastball breached the 105 mph mark for the first time. The results of the test from the "new meter" were reported the day after the initial article: Humphreys' 'Hard' Un' Faster Than Feller's, Meter Shows. Here's a photo of Feller throwing into the machine. He finished with 4,196 in his career, good for fourth all-time and second among left-handers. "You should see the scouts, " said Braves speed gun handler Jim Guadagno, "They're like kids with new toys when they see that 100 light up on their guns. Its not often you find a starter who can throw up to 102 mph in any inning in any count on any day. Originally Published: February 2003 on Baseball Almanac. Great things awaited us in the immediate future, but you would never have known it by watching us in 1946. Whoops! Feller's second pitch was the fastest one, clocked at 98.6 mph. The best the Indians could do was a tie at 119 feet by Ben Chapman, Julius Solters and Jim Shilling. Gerrit Cole's approach bringing Cy Young results, Mookie Betts vs. Bryce Harper -- and other pressing baseball debates, Real or not? His career 10.6 SO/9 IP is evidence of that, although hes up to 11.8 this season. Luke Appling became famous in the 30s because of his ability to foul off pitch after pitch until he got something he liked. Mike Trout For the Mets in 1985, Sidd Finch threw 168 mph. Less games meant more time to recuperate between starts. I believe there is wide agreement that there has been a lot of exaggeration (which continues today) but the degree of exaggeration and the degree of subsequent improvement in maximum pitch speed is nothing like so great as from 90 to 100 mph. He has also appeared in several television commercials, most notably for Old Milwaukee beer. Weintraub writes: However, since the machine measured the speed of the ball as it passed through its sensors, unlike modern radar guns that clock the ball as it leaves the pitcher's hand, it actually flew much harder. They each pitched at least one inning at 100 mph or faster. However, Major League Baseball officially considers that pitch to be a 105.8 mph fastball. His dominance only lasted about three seasons (2002-2004), but during that time, Gagne was simply overpowering. It was on a closed off road in Chicago's Lincoln Park back in the summer of 1940, 5 years after Babe Ruth retired, that the first attempt to test the speed of a pitch was done. - Coach Jim Murray. Just imagine where Dr. K would rank if it wasnt for injuries. According to University of Illinois physicist Dr. Alan Nathan, a pitch that leaves a pitchers hand at 100 mph will (at sea level) slow down by 9 to 10% by the time it crosses the plate some 55-58 feet later. Plus, it's hard to know, 70 years later, how precise the Lumiline Chronograph was.
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