Thank You Letter to Matt Garza

Dear Matt Garza,

Thank you for throwing the fifth no hitter in the 2010 Major League Baseball Season. Thank you also for making it the first no-hitter thrown in Tampa Bay history. Thank you thirdly for demonstrating one of the finest displays of dominance with a fastball in recent memory.

Your feat further solidifies my 2010 thesis that the balance of power has now begun to swing back in the hitters favor. You have proven yet again this really is the "year of the no-hitter." While the record is eight no-nos in season (1984), that was in the dead ball era. No, in the live, post-steroid era, you have achieved near perfection for the first time in your career.

There will no doubt be more no-hitters thrown by Tampa Bay pitchers. My bet is that David Price will have atleast one in a Rays uniform before its all said and done. However, someone needed to step up to the challenge for the Rays and you have done this. Your dominance had been brought into question after a few of your previous starts didn't go as well. Your own father acknowledge how you've been off your game, but you answered in the best fashion possible.

Most importantly, you utilized your fastball in 80% of your pitches to no-hit the Tigers. Literally, in 120 pitches, you threw 100 fastballs. I know you throw 95 mphs, and I am sure that helps some. But pitchers everywhere can learn from how you established your fastball in every count to every hitter. It requires a lot of confidence to throw that many fastballs, but it is necessary to make your other pitches more effective. In addition, there is no reason to veer away from the fastball if the hitters never prove they can hit it. Too often, I see pitchers switch up pitches just for the sake of it. If the hitters can't put a good swing on the fastball, you proved that you can keep throwing it. Thank you for proving once again that the philosophies of Less is More are sound and based in Big League success stories like your self.

May your efforts land you in the hall of fame some day.

Thanks again,


Forrest Cory
Founder, Less Is More Pitching

Major League Power Swing

I know this blog's title might sound like it is about hitters. It is actually about the balance of power between pitchers and hitters. It is safe to say that from the mid 90's to the mid/late 2000's, there was NO balance. What is now referred to as the "Steroid Era," was undboutedly the most prolific decade for hitters ever seen. Just from the broken records alone one can see how hitters flourished. The formerly unbreakable single season home record was shattered three different times in the span of a couple years (Sosa, McGuire, and Bonds). The second most hallowed record in all of baseball (behind perhaps Dimaggio's hit 52 game hit streak) was broken a few short years later with Bonds surpassing Hank Aaron for the ultimate home run record. All the while, these records were considered tarnish by the terrible, steroid-induced asterisk.

However, Major League Baseball finally got its act together and implemented a much stricter drug testing policy and the over-arching the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program was adopted in 2006. Since then, the balance of power has begun to shift. It is my opinion that MLB has actually achieved what it set out to do. That is, they have shifted the power back closer to even between pitchers and hitters. It is my opinion, of course, that this is a positive change. As a self-proclaimed baseball purist, I think a 3-2 pitcher's duel is baseball at its best. I agree that home runs are wonderful and a lot of fun to watch, but when baseball scores began to look as though they were achieved with 50 yard bombs to the end zone, I think everyone knew something was wrong. Thankfully, that aforementioned changed did occur, and the steroid era appears to be over. Case and point, from '95 to '07, the average number of homeruns hit by the league leaders was well above 50. In fact, 15 times in that span, a home run leader broke the 50 home run mark. Of course, there was a handful of years where the number crested 60 with others in the 50 range and culminating with Bonds' 73. However, in 2008 and 2009, the leaders hit only 37, 38, 48, and 47 respectively. Now I realize that two years is hardly a trend, but it is my belief that 2010 will show similarly lower numbers. Of course, this is good news for baseball purists near and far. For, if those numbers did not decrease, there would be little reason to believe steroids had anything to do with the power surge.

So, heres to the conclusion of the steroid age, and the dawning of a new age of balance. I look forward to the next few 20 game winners. Perhaps now, there will be more than just one or two in each league. 2009 had none and 2008 only had Webb and Lee, Mussina, Halladay and Beckett. I suspect these numbers will increase as well over the years.

Stay tuned and let's see if I'm right.

Until Next time!!