DC Fat New Era Baseball Hat

Thin may be in, but fat is where it's at. Peep the DC Fat New Era Baseball Hat, with its all-over collage print and offset DC logo. With a genuine New Era fitted chassis and DC steeze on top, you can't go wrong.

Product Features

• Material: Screen printed cotton
• Adjustability: Fitted
• Recommended Use: Rolling large and in charge
• Manufacturer Warranty: 30 Days

A fair comparison can be made to the retail auto sales and service industry: It's the numbers, stupid.

For most of his career, Bill James ideas were either been ignored or rejected by major league baseball teams. Most teams preferred to follow the maxims that were created decades ago, as well as their gut instincts.

In these challenging times, it requires different thinking along with different processes, to become a world champion.

It's the Numbers, Stupid

On CBS 60 Minutes, Morley Safer interviewed Bill James, a baseball writer and historian who has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball statistics, highlighting his unique approach - known as Sabermetrics: the science of why teams win or lose games.

It's the Numbers, Stupid

Think about it.

Bill James helps the Boston Red Sox decide which players to keep, who and whey they play and who gets traded-away in the off-season, in order to improve the team's statistical chances of having a winning year. He also helps them grow champions. But it wasn't always that way.

The 2008 Major League Baseball season is officially underway, and it is ironic that an obscure statistician from Kansas is making the news, one who was ridiculed for many years. Today he is a chief decision-maker for the world champion Boston Red Sox, having gaining notoriety throughout professional sports - and acceptance to his metrics continues to grow.

Working as a night security guard in Kansas during the late 1970's, James began studying box scores (arguably similar to an RO Analysis). He soon published "The Bill James Baseball Abstract" in 1977, by challenging baseball's typical metrics of what determined a great player. He argued that it was not wins or losses (for a pitcher), nor hits, home runs nor batting average.

Instead, he created statistical innovations (the new metrics) such as:

• Runs Created: Put simply, hits and walks divided by plate appearances.
• Range Factor: The defensive contribution of a player, assists and putouts divided by games played.
• Defensive Efficiency Record: The percentage of balls in play that a defense turns into an out.
• Win Shares: A comparison of players at different positions.
• Pythagorean Winning Percentage: The relationship of wins and losses to runs scored and allowed.
• Major League Equivalency - A metric that uses minor league statistics to determine how a player is likely to perform in the majors.

MacGregor #79P Leather Practice Baseball (DZN)

Youth - High School practice quality  Compressed cork core  Full grain leather cover (unlike most practice balls)  
Customer Review: McGregor #79P - just what we needed
The 79P has proven to be just what we needed for "real game" practice in the batting cage - very durable.
Customer Review: Great value
These baseballs are a great value for practice balls. You won't find leather baseballs at prices close the under $20.00 a dozen that these were priced at. Overall, a good practice ball.

Baseball Pitching Mechanics - How Long is Your Stride?

Why is a long stride important? There are two reasons why you need a good stride. One is to gather enough momentum to foot strike so your fastball has pop. The most exciting reason is that 1-foot = 3 mph perceived pitching velocity. The closer you are to home plate when you release the ball the better. To the batter's eye the ball appears to be going faster than it really is. So, you are working with distance. Furthermore, when you throw inside, the batter has to react that much quicker to the pitch as well. In order for him to hit the ball on the fat part of the bat, he has to react much quicker to get the bat around. Again, distance helps you as a pitcher.

How do you get a longer stride? Maintaining a proper strength and flexibility pitching workout is important. For example, if your hip flexors aren't conditioned to handle the demands of the workload pitching places on them, it will affect your distance and you will be more prone to injury. To add distance, try a delayed shoulder rotation. Some pitchers gain an extra 6 inches to a foot delaying their shoulder properly. Work on releasing the baseball later; this will also help you gain some pitching velocity.