Nice post and point worth making! We lived in Paris many years ago, and there was a general consensus (not in any way based on science) that European kids matured earlier than American kids, the point being that a lot of that is cultural. Having said that, though, 23 year old guys are obviously immature relative to their older counterparts, so the basic point, that Juan Soto’s reaction might have been in part due to immaturity, probably still holds.
"Opposing pitchers now have to travel a swampy gauntlet with both alligators and snakes each time that lineup turns over" is such a delightful sentence for so many reasons. I've spent the last few minutes thinking about it over and over. I love it so much.
"Should Soto lead the Yankees to their first championship in 15 years, I don’t see how there’s any world in which Steinbrenner lets him go."
Curious about your reasoning here. My sense is winning a championship gives you a multi-year grace period with fans and lessens the need to resign Soto.
Note that Mason Miller allowed 5 baserunners to reach and eventually score. However, only three of them were earned because - wait for it - he threw a wild pitch. So they’re TOTALLY not his fault, right? Right? Hey where are you going?
Miller pitched the 10th inning and started the 11th inning. The Manfred Man(n) runner scored in both innings and those are unearned runs regardless of how they score.
Shohei Ohtani - Babe Ruth comps are so easy, it's comical. I totally understand why people want him to "just focus on hitting," but the truth is, we don't know what it would be like if he were pitching. We don't know that he'd be hitting worse; sure, he did last year. But he was worse in 2022 than 2021, and that had nothing to do with pitching one year and not pitching the next. I hope he continues doing both as long as possible, because it's a heckuva lot more fun as a fan to have him doing both. You have to at least give him the CHANCE next year, and if the hitting takes a dive, maybe see how things go.
I wonder if Hal Steinbrenner thought, "I'm much less hated than my father. What can I do to catch up to him?"
Is George Steinbrenner hated?
I believe you are required by law to point out that the Guardians traded Junior Caminero for a bag of magic beans.
Just FYI, the thing about your brain not developing until you're 25 is a myth:
https://slate.com/technology/2022/11/brain-development-25-year-old-mature-myth.html
Ha, I was coming to say that, too! I'll just have to say something else, instead...
Nice post and point worth making! We lived in Paris many years ago, and there was a general consensus (not in any way based on science) that European kids matured earlier than American kids, the point being that a lot of that is cultural. Having said that, though, 23 year old guys are obviously immature relative to their older counterparts, so the basic point, that Juan Soto’s reaction might have been in part due to immaturity, probably still holds.
I should have said that “all else being equal,” 23 year olds are less mature.
"Opposing pitchers now have to travel a swampy gauntlet with both alligators and snakes each time that lineup turns over" is such a delightful sentence for so many reasons. I've spent the last few minutes thinking about it over and over. I love it so much.
"Should Soto lead the Yankees to their first championship in 15 years, I don’t see how there’s any world in which Steinbrenner lets him go."
Curious about your reasoning here. My sense is winning a championship gives you a multi-year grace period with fans and lessens the need to resign Soto.
For the Yankees’ fans?
I’m very happy that Aaron Judge is no longer bothered by the Dodger Toe syndrome picked up at Chavez Ravine.
Note that Mason Miller allowed 5 baserunners to reach and eventually score. However, only three of them were earned because - wait for it - he threw a wild pitch. So they’re TOTALLY not his fault, right? Right? Hey where are you going?
I have no idea what Miller did in that game, but I’m sure you’re aware that runs resulting from a wild pitch (as opposed to a passed ball) are earned.
Miller pitched the 10th inning and started the 11th inning. The Manfred Man(n) runner scored in both innings and those are unearned runs regardless of how they score.
I had a brain cramp and forgot about the ghost runner. Still, as you imply, the runs weren’t unearned BECAUSE he threw a wild pitch.
Shohei Ohtani - Babe Ruth comps are so easy, it's comical. I totally understand why people want him to "just focus on hitting," but the truth is, we don't know what it would be like if he were pitching. We don't know that he'd be hitting worse; sure, he did last year. But he was worse in 2022 than 2021, and that had nothing to do with pitching one year and not pitching the next. I hope he continues doing both as long as possible, because it's a heckuva lot more fun as a fan to have him doing both. You have to at least give him the CHANCE next year, and if the hitting takes a dive, maybe see how things go.
As a Yankees fan, this isn’t what I want to hear.
As a Yankees fan, I am relatively sure that, if Soto winds up on the Mets next year, Yankees fans will burn Yankee Stadium to the ground in protest.