Drew Pierce is a junior journalism news major and is a columnist for The Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. Write to Drew atdlpierce2@bsu.edu.
On March 18, Robinson Cano went to the plate for the first time in a Mets uniform. Cano took Max Scherzer deep to hit the first home run of the 2019 MLB season.
On September 11, Baltimore’s Johnathon Villar hit a towering home run to left field off of Caleb Ferguson. This is not just any ordinary home run. This would be the 6106 home run of the 2019 season, which is the most in any season in history.
This Oriole is a part of MLB history by breaking the 2017 record for the most home runs in a season by all teams at 6105.
“I feel excited because that is very important, not only for me but for the team,” Villar told ESPN. “My bat is going to the Hall of Fame. That’s unbelievable.”
That home run to give the Orioles a 5-2 lead against the Dodgers, which would end up being one of the very few wins for the Orioles this season. However, this home run was more than a step to a win for Baltimore.
This home run proved that 2019 is the year of the home run. And there is nothing wrong with that.
To the baseball purist, good pitching is awesome. But for the casual fan, that is not very exciting. What is more exciting than watching your favorite player hitting a bomb? Nothing.
In a sport that is constantly being labeled “boring” and “too long,” home runs and constant offensive action changes that. When an entire stadium of over 40,000 people are standing and cheering, it is electric. What can be boring about that?
Having more home runs hit is good for the sport and great for the fans.
In this new era of power hitting, I believe that we will start to see more casual fans attending games and truly enjoying the sport.
Although some people like myself enjoy the fact that the MLB is averaging 2.8 home runs per game, according to ESPN, there are people who think that this ruins the game.
Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander is very outspoken on how this phenomenon is ruining the sport. He even goes to suggest that the MLB and Rawlings are purposely altering balls to make them fly further. MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred has denied these claims.
“Major League Baseball is turning this game into a joke,” Verlander said in a press conference. “Manfred the first time he came in, what’d he say? He said we want more offense. All of a sudden, he comes in, the balls are juiced? It’s not coincidence.”
Well, Justin, you sure weren’t complaining when you recorded your third career no-hitter at the beginning of September. I know that you are a well-respected All-Star but come on. Just because more hitters are taking you yard, doesn’t mean it’s some conspiracy theory about the manufacturing of the baseballs themselves. The game is changing, and if you don’t change with it, you will be the one that suffers.
Congratulations to all of the teams that have shattered their own franchise home run records and other various accomplishments. Congrats to the Minnesota Twins who became the first team in MLB history to have five different players hit 30 or more home runs in a season on Tuesday. Congrats to the seven players who have more than 40 home runs this season as of Sept. 18.
Baseball is evolving. It is evolving the same way that it has over the past 150 years. It is becoming a hitter’s game and there is not a thing wrong with it.
Contact Drew Pierce with any comments at dlpierce2@bsu.edu or on Twitter at @dpierce3cc.
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