Kershaw’s pitch mix

Clayton Kershaw finished the 2020 season with an ERA of 2.16. Again, a season with an ERA below 3.00, in Kershaw’s 13 seasons with the Dodgers so far, he already finished eleven seasons with an ERA below 3.00. He’s probably not the most dominant pitcher, but he’s still one of the elite pitchers in the majors.

Kyle Lewis’ rookie card

Topps Allen & Ginter is not only about baseball, but also about pop culture. Thus, you will not only find baseball players in the Topps A&G, but also “celebrities” such as soccer players, TV Hosts, actors and so on. Meanwhile, the most entertaining thing in Topps A&G is rip cards. "To rip or not to rip" is always the most difficult decision for card collectors. Also, mini cards are available in hobby packs.

95mph pitch, can you hit it?

It’s just a random idea. I was thinking of one thing. Which MLB player is the best fastball hitter? When I was searching on the statcast website, I thought that maybe I can try to find something more. Something even faster, thus, I did some search to see which player does hit really well when a pitch is at least 95mph.

Exit Velocity

Exit Velocity is the first word I learned from the statcast glossary. According to the MLB.com, Exit Velocity measures the speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact. Since it’s related to “contact”, it is tracked for all batted balls. It’s probably the most common statcast number since we frequently watch it on screen.

This team is on Fire

We are heading into the final week of the 2020 regular season. Seven teams already clinched the playoffs. They are Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. In the final week, we are going to see several teams fight for their spots in the postseason. In particular, the National League playoff race could be really wild.

Best Changeup?

According to MLB.com, a changeup is one of the slowest pitches thrown in baseball, and it is predicated on deception. A good changeup will cause a hitter to start his swing well before the pitch arrives, resulting in either a swing and miss or very weak contact. Many pitchers use changeup as part of their pitch arsenal. Which pitcher’s changeup is the most dangerous this season?

Tim Anderson is on fire

Topps fire is a brand with very “creative” design elements. It’s indeed different from other releases. Topps fire is very colorful and gives fans a very distinct design for MLB stars and top rookies. In 2019 Topps fire, there are 2 hits in a hobby box, one of which is an autograph. This year, each hobby box has 2 autographs. A few months ago, I opened a box of Topps fire 2019. Last week, I got a few packs of Topps fire 2020.

If the 2020 MLB playoff starts tomorrow

Starters of the Gam 4 in the 2008 ALDS

The 2020 playoff is scheduled to run from September 29. There are fewer games in the regular season, but the postseason has more games. It’s going to be a 16-team postseason tournament. An expanded playoff format means that there will be 3 more teams in the playoffs each league. If the postseason tournament starts tomorrow, many fans will be thrilled to see their favorite teams start the playoff journey after long playoff droughts.

Bullpen workloads

 

It’s mid-September. The postseason is just two weeks away. The playoff race is really heating up. Bullpen has been more and more important in baseball. In this shortened schedule, MLB teams could add pitching depth in the bullpen because they are able to keep 28-player rosters through the end of the season. Do MLB teams use more relievers this season? Any changes in bullpen usage?

Catfish Hunter’s short print

Topps Archive is nostalgic and gives us several throwback designs. This year, there are three 100-card subsets, each subset has its own old design. At the same time, the checklist mixes active and retired players. There are 2 on-card autographs in every hobby box. It’s highly possible to get autographs from retired players.

DH, Love it or Hate it?

The universal Designated Hitter Rule is the new rule in the 2020 season. We have seen DHs at National League Ballparks for several weeks. After two-thirds of the season, which NL team does really enjoy having a DH in the lineup? Which team is relatively frustrated?

Hard Hit

Hard-hit rate is a product of statcast. Statcast defines a “hard-hit ball” as one hit with an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher. Hard-hit balls usually generate good outcomes.

More Sliders?

It’s just random. I was wondering which pitchers use sliders more often during the game this season. At the same time, I was also thinking whether their sliders are effective. So I went to the statcast website and did a quick search.

Outs at home

It was just a few days ago. I watched a game between the Rays and the Blue Jays. A Rays’ player was tagged out at home, a great play. Then, I was wondering how many outs at home plate every year. Which team is unfortunately to have most outs at home?