Then & Now: Home Runs

This season has been going great so far. Having said that, I should also say that last season also went well and that I don't have many complaints on how the events of last season worked out. However, I would like to look at one stark difference that I've noticed so far between the two seasons: the amount of home runs hit this year is unbelievably more than the amount his last season. The difference really is astronomical! So far this season there have been 133 home runs. That's a lot in just 4 weeks, even by most league standards. Now compare that to the total home runs hit by the league last year: 16. Crazy, isn't it? The league has hit almost 10 times the amount of home runs as last year. The Maroon $quad alone has hit 46 home runs and almost every team has hit at least 16 home runs. What could have caused such a spike?

First, it bears mentioning that we've changed bats. Last year players could use either the skinny yellow bat or the Sanlot Stick. Both bats were harder to hit with and did not carry the ball as well as the Louisville Slugger or Easton Pro Stix. Also, it was harder to hit home runs down the line last season since the fence-line was deeper in the corners than in straight center field. Also pitching was more fierce last year since nearly all the players in the league had played in the old league from Hurricane. We had all faced each other hundreds of times and knew each others strengths and weaknesses. The newness of the injection of so many new players has ignited a home run frenzy as pitchers are now trying to figure out all the batters. Then there's the quality of players now in the league who are legitimate athletes who can hit very well - which naturally means more home runs.

We are a better league than we were last year and pitching has not quite caught up to the quality hitting that is currently taking place. The amount of home runs is believed to decrease a little as fences are moving back about 10 feet overall and pitching improves throughout the season. But there is little doubt that we've gotten off to an explosive offensive start this year and we will have a couple hitters who might become nationally recognized if they keep up the good work...but more on that later. Here's one last tid-bit: Greg Sowards was our Home Run King last year with 4 home runs. This year so far we have 15 hitters who have hit more than 4 home runs. The age of the long ball has arrived.