What's with the low pitch counts this year?

[Make Angels Great Again]

I feel like this deserves its own thread.

Not sure how to look up the numbers without it taking me 2 hours, so I won't bother. It seems like all of our starters are getting yanked before even reaching 100 pitches. Just a couple years ago 110 to 120 was the norm, now I feel like those days are long gone. Obviously it doesn't seem to have much effect on durability, so whats the deal? Are their arms so fragile because theyre being babied?

@Jeff Fletcher have you touched on this and i missed it?

[Blarg]

Most of our pitchers are coming off of limited innings pitched due to injury. Others are guys from triple A that never did go deep into games.

As the season progresses and pitchers are more stretched out and haven't blown their pitch count in four innings, then they probably will get longer leashes. 

[Lou]

https://tinyurl.com/y8q7bm4l

[eaterfan]

Pitch count have been going down around the league.

Why do you say it's having no effect? Pitchers are throwing harder than ever. Maybe there would be even more injuries without the lower pitch counts. Beyond that, the ten day DL had probably added to pitchers being placed on the DL who wouldn't have been in years past.

[Second Base]

It isn't so much about the pitch count as many as it's the amount of times through the order starting pitchers are getting.  Teams seem to be catching onto the idea that starting pitchers simply do not fare as well their third time through the order.  So coaches will send them through the order twice, and then gauge where they are from there.  If the pitcher is absolutely shoving, they'll keep him in.  If the pitcher is allowing and stranding a lot of base runners, they'll take them out. 

The fact that the pitch counts are hovering in the 90 range is really coincidental. 

[eaterfan]

Pitch count have been going down around the league.

Why do you say it's having no effect? Pitchers are throwing harder than ever. Maybe there would be even more injuries without the lower pitch counts. Beyond that, the ten day DL had probably added to pitchers being placed on the DL who wouldn't have been in years past.

[Jeff Fletcher]

Welcome to 2018.

Its how all of baseball works. The Angels may be a little more extreme because of the injury histories.

[greginpsca]

I guess Hector Santiago was ahead of the times.

[Lou]

But Nolan Ryan said . . . 

[stormngt]

We have had some fascinating conversations in the game day thread on this topic

[Warfarin]

Look around the big leagues.  Look at the preponderance of starters needing TJ surgery, having biceps tendonitis, etc etc.

The "gold standard" of 100 pitches per start is a relic of the past.  Pitchers are throwing harder with more torque, which is in turn likely leading to more injuries.  Salaries have been going up (except this year I guess), which means teams have more money invested in pitching, which means it's all the more imperative to keep their investment healthy.

You are seeing teams utilize the 10 day DL to give pitchers "breathers," so to speak.  Look at Nick Tropeano.  In the "olden" days (i.e. like a few years ago, haha), I'm sure he's not DL'd and just keeps starting.  Now though, he's put on the 10-day DL to get a little breathe, ensure his health, and he'll pick right back where he left off starting this weekend.

This is the new age of baseball.  

[Taylor]

2 hours ago, Lou said:

But Nolan Ryan said . . . 

These pitchers are pussies. Some guy in 1937 threw 4,000 innings in a season before dying in WW2.

[Lou]

18 minutes ago, Taylor said:

These pitchers are pussies. Some guy in 1937 threw 4,000 innings in a season before dying in WW2.

twice 

[Stradling]

24 minutes ago, Taylor said:

These pitchers are pussies. Some guy in 1937 threw 4,000 innings in a season before dying in WW2.

And then in death, he would have pitched both ends of a double header.

[Lou]

45 minutes ago, SuperTroopers said:

And then in death, he would have pitched both ends of a double header.

One with each arm . . . 

like a man! 

Edited May 10, 2018 by Lou

[failos]

The inverse of this question would be you asking why so many pitchers have TJ. I’m OK with limiting the number of pitches.

[ukyah]

3 hours ago, Taylor said:

These pitchers are pussies. Some guy in 1937 threw 4,000 innings in a season before dying in WW2.

 

2 hours ago, Lou said:

twice 

world war twice?

that doesn't sound right, but it sure seems right.