The knuckleball was the last resort. The last pitch that pitchers who were at a dead end tried was the knuckleball. Since his debut, the pitchers who have used the knuckleball at the forefront are Hoyt Wilhem and Phil Nikro. Both pitchers were inducted into the Hall of Fame.온라인카지노
Knuckleball is a mutation. That’s why there are a handful of pitchers in each era. Led by Wilhem and Niekro, Charlie Huff, Tom Candiotti, Tim Wakefield, and RA Dickey are representative pitchers who succeeded the knuckleballers. Because they are comprised of a small number of elites, their ties are strong. Wakefield received help from Niekro, and Dickey learned the knuckleball from Huff. Dickey, who won the Cy Young Award in 2012 with his own high-speed knuckleball, is the last player to lead the golden age of the knuckleball.
After that, the knuckleball gradually faded away. I couldn’t even see a pitcher who wanted to throw, let alone a pitcher who was throwing. In 2021, the LA Times reported that the knuckleball “has become a relic like a paper ticket.”
In fact, the decline of the knuckleball was predicted. Even the ‘godfather of the knuckleball’, Niekro, did not expect the knuckleball to become prevalent. Niekro pointed out the key reason why there cannot be more knuckleballers.
“Who teaches?”
There were 11 knuckleballers who played in the major leagues for 30 years since 1990. Wakefield and Dickey are well known, but most pitchers are unfamiliar with their names. Charlie Zink, Charlie Hager, and Eddie Gamboa failed to pitch even 20 games in the major leagues. The knuckleball is a ball that guarantees long runs if you get it, but it is a ball that is difficult to get. Even Niekro, who had only studied knuckleballs his entire life, was not sure if he had thrown a proper knuckleball.
The player who reminded us of the forgotten knuckleball was Mickey Janis in 2021. Janis, who was selected in the 44th round of the 2010 draft, played in the minor league and independent league for over 10 years. His talent was not up to the major league level. However, after persevering with passion, he made his major league debut.
Janice, a 33-year-old late pitcher, received more attention for throwing a knuckleball. As the second pitcher of the game on June 24, 2021, he faced the Houston Astros, the best team in the league. Janice struck out the first batter, Jordan Alvarez, with four knuckleballs. With this momentum, they ended the top of the 5th inning with no runs. But this joy was short-lived. Janis, who gave up the first run in the next inning, allowed a home run to Alvarez, who appeared as the leadoff hitter in the top of the 7th inning. And then, as they gave up two more home runs, they collapsed out of control. Janice’s debut performance was 8 hits, 4 walks, and 7 runs in 3⅓ innings.
Janice no longer received a chance in the major leagues. Although he spent 11 years in the minor leagues, he only spent four days in the major leagues. Contrary to the ideal, reality was cold.
Janice failed to achieve results and retired from the major leagues. Just as knuckleball skepticism was rising again, this year’s next challenger appeared. It was San Diego Padres Matt Waldron. Waldron, who used to throw knuckleballs as a joke during training, began practicing his knuckleballs seriously at the urging of his teammates. And on June 25, he made his name as another knuckleballer when he debuted against the Washington Nationals.
Waldron was a little different from existing knuckleballers. Until now, knuckleballers had an overwhelmingly high proportion of knuckleballs. It accounted for more than 70% of the total repertoire. Janice, the previous knuckleballer, also had 57 out of 71 pitches being knuckleballs (knuckleball 80.3%, four-seam 12.7%, and curve 7%). However, although Waldron used knuckleballs as his main weapon, the proportion of knuckleballs was around 20%. He was not a pitcher who only threw knuckleballs.