NEW YORK (AP) — Last season, dwindling batting averages put baseball in a panic and prompted a midseason change in the enforcement of rules banning sticky stuff by pitchers.
The crackdown was awkward — remember Gerrit Cole stumbling over a question on Spider Tack? Or Max Scherzer defiantly beginning to disrobe during an in-game check by umpires? Funny enough, it also worked, with batting average rising from .232 through April 30 to .244 by season’s end.
In 2022, even with the designated hitter added to the National League, the hits are missing again — and suddenly, the power has gone out, too. This time, the culprit doesn’t look so straightforward.
The batting average across the majors this April was a lousy .231, once again on pace to fall under the record low of .237 set in The Year of the Pitcher in 1968. After several years of surging home run totals, batters are slugging a measly .369 and averaging 4.03 runs per game, both lows for baseball since the strike-altered 1981 season.
Ripple effects from labor strife are a suspect in this year’s offensive downturn. So, too, is the baseball, of course, along with caveats about cold weather and small samples.
“It’s hard to say anything is a trend yet,” Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly said.
There’s one area, at least, of universal agreement.
“Pitching is really good,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone offered. “Really good.”
Despite the New York Mets’ consternation over a spate of hit-by-pitches, checks for sticky stuff seem to be limiting pitchers’ ability to blow batters away, and their control hasn’t been compromised. Strikeouts are down significantly, from 9.30 per nine innings through April 30 last year to 8.69 this season. Walks are down slightly, to 3.35 per nine, and hit by pitches are also down, from 0.5 per nine…
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