The most interesting comment on ESPN baseball was made tonight

[scuba16]

Starvin great points +k. I think the biggest advantage of steroids and other performance enhancers and the reason why players took them was to get them through the times when their bodies broke down and got tired. Steroids and other performance enhancers improved the time that MLB players could perform at the highest level without breaking down. They stayed strong throughout the season and that equaled more production! Its naive to think any player wouldn't do them when they 1)weren't illegal, 2) it improved production and the players ability to move up in their organization and 3) have the stats to earn them a bigger contract and more money.   
EVERYTHING COMES BACK TO THE MONEY!

[SmolinXIII]

It's such a cloudy situation.  You either tend to believe that barely anyone uses steriods, or that everyone uses.  I honestly don't think it's such a big epidemic like some people believe.

When I picked at Jamie Moyer's brain about pitching, steriod use just doesn't isn't an issue to me anymore.  The man is old enough to be my father, and just keeps on rolling.  He's in amazing shape, and if he took any performance enhancements, I'd eat my underwear.

[scuba16]

Moyer is one of the few exceptions. Note: Jamie Moyer didn't pick up 6-7 MPH later in his career. He's 46 and has been getting guys out for 21 yrs with 86-88 2-seamer, uncanny ability to locate his pitches, a great breaking pitch and a unreal change.
46 and pitching in the bigs, wow!

[Ralph Turner]

Moyer is one of the few exceptions. Note: Jamie Moyer didn't pick up 6-7 MPH later in his career. He's 46 and has been getting guys out for 21 yrs with 86-88 2-seamer, uncanny ability to locate his pitches, a great breaking pitch and a unreal change.
46 and pitching in the bigs, wow!

I have a Gatorade/Texas Rangers promo cap with Jamie Moyer's and Chad Kreuter's autographs from the late 1980's! 

[SmolinXIII]

Moyer is one of the few exceptions. Note: Jamie Moyer didn't pick up 6-7 MPH later in his career. He's 46 and has been getting guys out for 21 yrs with 86-88 2-seamer, uncanny ability to locate his pitches, a great breaking pitch and a unreal change.
46 and pitching in the bigs, wow!

Hahah, 86?  We watched him a month ago plow through the AA team throwing 79 mph fastballs and the most ridiculous change-up ever.  He's a freak of nation.

And Ralph,

How awesome is that?!  I wasn't even playing baseball yet when you got that cap.

[NYBB]

scuba16,

i'm agreeing with most of the things you're saying and even though you're saying some things in a little bit of a radical fashion, i totally understand.

the point of this post was to show that hey, maybe the people that announce baseball games are starting to realize that 89 MPH is a decent fastball and hey, you know what else?  95 is freaky and you don't need to be crazy huge to pitch in the majors. 

[WLCALUM83]

Moyer is one of the few exceptions. Note: Jamie Moyer didn't pick up 6-7 MPH later in his career. He's 46 and has been getting guys out for 21 yrs with 86-88 2-seamer, uncanny ability to locate his pitches, a great breaking pitch and a unreal change.
46 and pitching in the bigs, wow!

Anyone also remember Jesse Orosco?

[scuba16]

the point of this post was to show that hey, maybe the people that announce baseball games are starting to realize that 89 MPH is a decent fastball and hey, you know what else?  95 is freaky and you don't need to be crazy huge to pitch in the majors. 

NYBB when I grew up and watched MLB baseball in the 70's, 80's and 90's religiously, 89-90 was pumping it and if you ran it into the mid 90's you were a freak but the past 10 yrs if you didn't throw 94 you didn't even get a sniff. 
Can you say Performance Enhancing Drugs. That was my point from the get go. You go 100+ yrs with a handful of guys that were mid to upper 90's-100's and all of a sudden they were a dime a dozen. Mechanics my ass!

I'm glad that the announcers are finally re-realizing that its where you throw it and what you make it look like more than it is how hard you throw it. Pitching has always been about location and throwing your changeup so it resembles your fastball. Best pitch in baseball is a changeup that the hitter is clueless about!

[Blackcat00]

Moyer is more of a 82-81 guy, 86 is pushin it for him.

[old scot]

Greg Maddux has made a Hall of Fame career with a fast ball that tops out within the mid to high 80's. Tom Glavine has done the same.
Pitching is about ball movement and location. You don't have to overpower the hitter to be successful.

[frank uible]

But it sure helps.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Ran across this old thread this afternoon (slow day ).

With general drug testing now, unless hundreds of players have figured out how to beat the system, I assume the steroid era is mostly behind us, yet it seems like nearly every MLB reliever can throw in the mid to upper 90s - and then there is Aroldis Chapman (about whom I've heard no accusations).  (Joel Zumaya seems to be out of baseball [arm troubles?] and Justin Verlander only VERY rarely hits 100 anymore.)

Mid to upper 90s no longer seems the province of 'freaks' or (presumably) guys who are juiced.  Perhaps there really HAS been a 'revolution' in throwing velocity?

[Bombers798891]

Ran across this old thread this afternoon (slow day ).

With general drug testing now, unless hundreds of players have figured out how to beat the system, I assume the steroid era is mostly behind us, yet it seems like nearly every MLB reliever can throw in the mid to upper 90s - and then there is Aroldis Chapman (about whom I've heard no accusations).  (Joel Zumaya seems to be out of baseball [arm troubles?] and Justin Verlander only VERY rarely hits 100 anymore.)

Mid to upper 90s no longer seems the province of 'freaks' or (presumably) guys who are juiced.  Perhaps there really HAS been a 'revolution' in throwing velocity?

According to Pitch F/X data, 29 pitchers averaged at least 95 MPH on their fastballs in 2012
This year, that number is 13

Almost all of these pitchers are relievers, which of course, makes sense.

[Ralph Turner]

It certainly is fun when 2 of the 10 highlights on Sports Center come from the Little League Regional playoffs, one a catcher on a foul ball behind the plate and the other a diving catch by a center fielder.