6 ms·

What it feels like to get hit by a pitch

22 points by DiabloD3 9y ago

erik_landerholm 9y ago
As someone that has been hit by a baseball hundreds of times...it's always scary, rarely hurts that much, but when it does...it sucks!
sharkweek 9y ago
Someone more familiar with baseball than me - could you explain the "rules" behind retributive "hitting the batter" with pitches? I've heard rumblings that pitchers will intentionally return the favor when their own teammates get hit. Anyone have any insight into this?
- Erik816 9y ago
  I'm sure entire books have been written on this, but yes, it happens all the time. There's all kinds of unwritten rules about how you should do it, when, and to whom.
- boogiewoogie 9y ago
  If the umpire thinks it's intentional then the pitcher will be ejected. Or if only the batter thinks it was intentional then you might have a brawl https://youtu.be/4APOqlpyseM https://youtu.be/4APOqlpyseM
  - blackbagboys 9y ago
    A recent example of this is Bryce Harper being nailed by Hunter Strickland and taking it personally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY
  - blackbagboys 9y ago
    A recent example of this is Bryce Harper being nailed by Hunter Strickland and taking it personally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY
- blackflame7000 9y ago
  The likelihood of retaliation is more or less proportional to talent level of the player you hit. Retaliation is much more likely if you hit the cleanup hitter vs 8th or 9th man in the lineup. The reason for this is to protect good hitters from constantly being pitched inside with reckless abandon.
- trowawee 9y ago
  It broadly falls into two categories. The first, rarer case is trading beanballs (pitches that hit the batter). Pitchers routinely pitch inside, or close to the batter, to get him to back away from the plate (making it harder to hit pitches that are on the side of the plate opposite the batter). Sometimes, though, the pitcher's command isn't as good as he thinks it is, and he hits the batter when he tries this. If this happens a few times (once or twice can be an accident; more is seen as reckless/intentional), the other team's pitcher might throw near or at a batter on the first pitcher's team. Sometimes, in this case or the second version, the pitcher who throws at someone is the person targeted for retaliation, but this is complicated by the fact that, in one of the two divisions that compose Major League Baseball, pitchers do not have to hit, which means you can't directly target the person who is targeting your teammates. The second, and more common, is a perceived violation of baseball's unwritten rules. There are a lot of these, but they mostly boil down to "don't have too much fun" and are exceedingly stupid. Things that are seen as violations of these unwritten rules include: - Hitting a home run and watching it go over the wall - Taking too long to run around the bases after hitting a home run - Taking too long to go to first base after drawing a walk - Flipping your bat after a hit - Stealing a base while you're up by a lot or down by a lot - Bunting for a hit (trying to tap the ball with your bat rather than really hit it) to break up a no-hitter (a game where a pitcher has not surrendered any hits, a very rare occurrence) Basically, pitchers are sensitive babies and they will throw a 95 MPH projectile at you if you hurt their feelings by being better than them. Sometimes breaking these rules will result in an exchange of hit-by-pitch events (you hit my guy, whether arbitrarily "justified" or not, so I hit you/your guy). Bizarrely, this is tolerated, but if the hitter decides he wants retaliation in an equally violent way (say, by walking up to the pitcher and punching him), this is considered completely unacceptable. I love baseball, but it's a really dumb sport in some ways.
  - fiatpandas 9y ago
    >Stealing a base while you're up by a lot or down by a lot Never heard this one before. Up by a lot I can understand, but what's the rational for not stealing when you're down by a lot?
    - 9y ago
- imperialdrive 9y ago
  you can be creative about it... good pitchers remember every batter... I took my time about it to keep just about everyone on edge to this day i likely hold the league record hitting, and getting hit haha (always body shots, no aiming high of course)
eximius 9y ago
The only major pitch hit I've experienced was in the side of the head, so I was spared the immediate jolt and pain by simply having my next conscious moment on the ground. Also, it was probably going 50mph or something relatively low compared to what this talks about.
- specializeded 9y ago
  You were knocked unconscious? That’s quite scary, I’ve always imagined the helmets and low velocity prevent that :(
  - eximius 9y ago
    Eh, this was a pickup game - no helmets, just kids playing. I was actually walking away from the box because I had to leave so I'm not really sure why it was thrown at me. Didn't find out either, just scowled and left. And it was only a few seconds of being unaware. I wasn't completely limp, just was walking out and then I was suddenly on my hands and knees.
  - Doxin 9y ago
    There's a difference between a lapse in memory and being knocked unconscious. It's not at all uncommon to simply not remember the moment of impact and a second or so after, whatever it is that's doing the impacting.
hourislate 9y ago
Could the guy at bat who gets hit charge the pitcher and wack him with the bat? If the pitcher can use the ball to try and kill you why would the league punish you for trying to use the bat to hit the pitcher?
- gameshot911 9y ago
  Not using a bat as a weapon seems to be some unwritten rule of baseball. And rightfully so IMO, a bat could end someone's career, and falls squarely into 'criminal assault' territory. Consider it a MAD strategy if you will - if YOU use a bat, then that opens the doors to someone using it against you(r team) someday.
analog31 9y ago
Completely as an aside, I thought it was going to be about a sales pitch. Something I'd note is that the major league pitchers are pretty amazing, but I've gone to a few minor league games. In the minors (perhaps depending on the league), a pitcher rarely lasts for an entire game, and their accuracy goes to hell as their arm turns to rubber. Their last one or two pitches before being relieved could go practically anywhere. The hitters also seem aware of this, and become more wary as a pitcher gets worn down.
- thatwebdude 9y ago
  There's still an idea of wearing the pitcher out in the majors. Of course, if you're an ace throwing no-nos then you can routinely go 110+ pitches per game. Most pitchers go about 60-70. The bullpen is stacked with varying arms and pitch types to throw off hitters their 3rd+ time through.
cafard 9y ago
Years ago, a badly adjusted pitching machine put a batting-cage ball off my left thumb. It was probably set for 60 mph, for I doubt I could have hit anything faster. But batting-cage balls are made for durability, to hold up under constant hitting by aluminum bats. In other words, they are damn hard. I did not enjoy it.
BrandoElFollito 9y ago
> a courage that deserves our total admiration. It is what separates them from the rest of us. I am not a native speaker and cannot find out whether this is a real statement or sarcasm/humor.
- coolgeek 9y ago
  It's both - it is meant to be humorous, but it is a real statement
  - BrandoElFollito 9y ago
    Thank you. In that case the authors need to seriously reconsider his priorities.
dafty4 9y ago
Uhh, bad. It feels bad.

22 points by DiabloD3 9y ago

As someone that has been hit by a baseball hundreds of times...it's always scary, rarely hurts that much, but when it does...it sucks!

sharkweek 9y ago

Someone more familiar with baseball than me - could you explain the "rules" behind retributive "hitting the batter" with pitches? I've heard rumblings that pitchers will intentionally return the favor when their own teammates get hit. Anyone have any insight into this?

Erik816 9y ago
I'm sure entire books have been written on this, but yes, it happens all the time. There's all kinds of unwritten rules about how you should do it, when, and to whom.
boogiewoogie 9y ago
If the umpire thinks it's intentional then the pitcher will be ejected. Or if only the batter thinks it was intentional then you might have a brawl https://youtu.be/4APOqlpyseM https://youtu.be/4APOqlpyseM
- blackbagboys 9y ago
  A recent example of this is Bryce Harper being nailed by Hunter Strickland and taking it personally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY
- blackbagboys 9y ago
  A recent example of this is Bryce Harper being nailed by Hunter Strickland and taking it personally: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0w6tEO81kAY
blackflame7000 9y ago
The likelihood of retaliation is more or less proportional to talent level of the player you hit. Retaliation is much more likely if you hit the cleanup hitter vs 8th or 9th man in the lineup. The reason for this is to protect good hitters from constantly being pitched inside with reckless abandon.
trowawee 9y ago
It broadly falls into two categories. The first, rarer case is trading beanballs (pitches that hit the batter). Pitchers routinely pitch inside, or close to the batter, to get him to back away from the plate (making it harder to hit pitches that are on the side of the plate opposite the batter). Sometimes, though, the pitcher's command isn't as good as he thinks it is, and he hits the batter when he tries this. If this happens a few times (once or twice can be an accident; more is seen as reckless/intentional), the other team's pitcher might throw near or at a batter on the first pitcher's team. Sometimes, in this case or the second version, the pitcher who throws at someone is the person targeted for retaliation, but this is complicated by the fact that, in one of the two divisions that compose Major League Baseball, pitchers do not have to hit, which means you can't directly target the person who is targeting your teammates. The second, and more common, is a perceived violation of baseball's unwritten rules. There are a lot of these, but they mostly boil down to "don't have too much fun" and are exceedingly stupid. Things that are seen as violations of these unwritten rules include: - Hitting a home run and watching it go over the wall - Taking too long to run around the bases after hitting a home run - Taking too long to go to first base after drawing a walk - Flipping your bat after a hit - Stealing a base while you're up by a lot or down by a lot - Bunting for a hit (trying to tap the ball with your bat rather than really hit it) to break up a no-hitter (a game where a pitcher has not surrendered any hits, a very rare occurrence) Basically, pitchers are sensitive babies and they will throw a 95 MPH projectile at you if you hurt their feelings by being better than them. Sometimes breaking these rules will result in an exchange of hit-by-pitch events (you hit my guy, whether arbitrarily "justified" or not, so I hit you/your guy). Bizarrely, this is tolerated, but if the hitter decides he wants retaliation in an equally violent way (say, by walking up to the pitcher and punching him), this is considered completely unacceptable. I love baseball, but it's a really dumb sport in some ways.
- fiatpandas 9y ago
  >Stealing a base while you're up by a lot or down by a lot Never heard this one before. Up by a lot I can understand, but what's the rational for not stealing when you're down by a lot?
  - 9y ago
imperialdrive 9y ago
you can be creative about it... good pitchers remember every batter... I took my time about it to keep just about everyone on edge to this day i likely hold the league record hitting, and getting hit haha (always body shots, no aiming high of course)

eximius 9y ago

The only major pitch hit I've experienced was in the side of the head, so I was spared the immediate jolt and pain by simply having my next conscious moment on the ground. Also, it was probably going 50mph or something relatively low compared to what this talks about.

specializeded 9y ago
You were knocked unconscious? That’s quite scary, I’ve always imagined the helmets and low velocity prevent that :(
- eximius 9y ago
  Eh, this was a pickup game - no helmets, just kids playing. I was actually walking away from the box because I had to leave so I'm not really sure why it was thrown at me. Didn't find out either, just scowled and left. And it was only a few seconds of being unaware. I wasn't completely limp, just was walking out and then I was suddenly on my hands and knees.
- Doxin 9y ago
  There's a difference between a lapse in memory and being knocked unconscious. It's not at all uncommon to simply not remember the moment of impact and a second or so after, whatever it is that's doing the impacting.

hourislate 9y ago

Could the guy at bat who gets hit charge the pitcher and wack him with the bat? If the pitcher can use the ball to try and kill you why would the league punish you for trying to use the bat to hit the pitcher?

gameshot911 9y ago
Not using a bat as a weapon seems to be some unwritten rule of baseball. And rightfully so IMO, a bat could end someone's career, and falls squarely into 'criminal assault' territory. Consider it a MAD strategy if you will - if YOU use a bat, then that opens the doors to someone using it against you(r team) someday.

analog31 9y ago

Completely as an aside, I thought it was going to be about a sales pitch. Something I'd note is that the major league pitchers are pretty amazing, but I've gone to a few minor league games. In the minors (perhaps depending on the league), a pitcher rarely lasts for an entire game, and their accuracy goes to hell as their arm turns to rubber. Their last one or two pitches before being relieved could go practically anywhere. The hitters also seem aware of this, and become more wary as a pitcher gets worn down.

thatwebdude 9y ago
There's still an idea of wearing the pitcher out in the majors. Of course, if you're an ace throwing no-nos then you can routinely go 110+ pitches per game. Most pitchers go about 60-70. The bullpen is stacked with varying arms and pitch types to throw off hitters their 3rd+ time through.

cafard 9y ago

Years ago, a badly adjusted pitching machine put a batting-cage ball off my left thumb. It was probably set for 60 mph, for I doubt I could have hit anything faster. But batting-cage balls are made for durability, to hold up under constant hitting by aluminum bats. In other words, they are damn hard. I did not enjoy it.

BrandoElFollito 9y ago

> a courage that deserves our total admiration. It is what separates them from the rest of us. I am not a native speaker and cannot find out whether this is a real statement or sarcasm/humor.

coolgeek 9y ago
It's both - it is meant to be humorous, but it is a real statement
- BrandoElFollito 9y ago
  Thank you. In that case the authors need to seriously reconsider his priorities.

dafty4 9y ago

Uhh, bad. It feels bad.