Homeruns

I just read an article by Joe Morgan on ESPN.com where he said that hitting homeruns has become easier than in the past. Why do yall think this is? Some say because pitching has become diluted by expansion. That may be part of the reason, but i think the major reason is these bastards are a hell of a lot stronger than guys in the past. Look at Barry Bonds. He has gotten huge compared to where you used to be. Look at him during interview. His traps are pretty damn big. And Brett Boone. He gained like 20 lbs. in the off season. I get into this conversation with my friend all the time. He says how strong you are has nothing to do with homeruns. Its all about your swing. But if youve already got the skill mastered, and then you get stronger and faster it only makes sense that you will hit the ball harder and farther. Those warning track shots now start going out. What do you think?

Take a look at the old time power hitters - Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Ernie Banks, Willie McCovey. Compare them to today’s power hitters and you will see that they were not as well muscled. Even Mickey Mantle, who looked big in those days doesn’t compare.Can you imagine Hank Aaron, built like Mark Magwire? He’d probably hit 1400 homeruns!

Also I read a study that the composition of the windings in the baseballs has changed. A greater percentage of synthetic material is used in the winding material and it has resulted in a ball that comes off the bat quicker. The difference is in fractions of a percent, but it’s enought to turn warning track balls into homeruns.

Also the expansion of baseball has thinned the pitching ranks. You’ll see that almost every time baseball has added teams that offensive statistics have gone up.

The combination of the factors above leads to the current power surge. The administative powers in baseball believe the average fan likes all the added offense so it will continue. I, on the other hand, really love to see a 1-0 game. Just my opinion.