Lance McCullers Jr. realized he would have been a pitching god 100 years ago
It's become clear in recent years than Major League pitchers are throwing harder than ever. But while the velocity increase over the last few decades is notable, it still pales in comparison to the enormous difference in how hard pitchers are throwing now versus a full century ago, when only a select few elite arms were even regularly touching 90 mph, let alone triple-digits. Lance McCullers Jr., whose fastball has averaged 94.2 mph for his career, saw a parody bar graph charting pitches of 90+ mph in 1917, and joked that he would have been one of the all-time greats back then with his otherworldly fastball:
Here are some other highlights from baseballers on social media over the last week ...
Tommy Pham hasn't been on the Rays very long, but he knows who he'd pick for the AL Cy Young.
Whit Merrifield was just as nervous as we all were during Jorge López's perfect game bid against the Twins:
Jake Bauers loved Ji-Man Choi's walk-off celebration:
The Fort Myers Miracle, the Twins' High-A affiliate, won the Florida State League championship. Phil Hughes made two rehab starts with them during the regular season and knows he was a key part to their championship run:
The Athletics' 2018 first-round pick, Kyler Murray, made his first start at quarterback for the University of Oklahoma, where he will likely compete for a Heisman Trophy before focusing on baseball in 2019. The A's are watching with caution:
The Minor League season is coming to an end, and Indians prospect Triston McKenzie is ready to nap:
A couple Rays pitching prospects disagreed over a certain snack:
Long-time AL pitcher Chris Archer is enjoying his new life in the National League, where he can get more chances in the batter's box:
The Giants' stop in Milwaukee may have included some encounters with the supernatural: