TBR Instant Classic: Ask Applejack

OK, here is a quick one.
When I was in the minor leagues one year we had this pitcher that had somewhat of a drinking problem. His nickname was slurpy.
His birthday was during the season so a bunch of us got together to help him celebrate.
We decided to take him to a bar and buy him all the drinks he wanted.
He said line 'em up and he will knock them down. (He liked rum and coke)
We bought 7 glasses of rum and coke and lined them up in front of him and he knocked them all down. By this time he was pretty much juiced.
We told him that the record was 10 so he would have to drink 11.
He said that he wanted to break the record.
We lined up four more but the 4th drink was straight coca-cola with no alcohol. We wanted to see his reaction.
He knocked down three and when he drank the 4th we were all gathered round to see what he would say.
After the 4th glass he slammed the glass on the counter and said " What are you guys trying to do kill me? That one was stout. Next time put some coke in there."
That is one of the many reasons that I do not drink. It dulls your senses.

 

Question:
Where do pitchers hide foreign objects and illegal substances while pitching?

 

Between fingers of their glove hand?..Man, Gaylord Perry revealed too many secrets..made it tough to earn a livin'

Good question AJ. I really don't know

 

Since my son refuses to wash his cap during the course of a season, I figure the salt stains should be good for hiding something.

OR we might go back to the 60's when you put "dippity-do" on your hair?

How about on your shoe and load up when you are "cleaning" your spikes?

I honestly have no idea. Makin it up as I type.

 

All of these answers are right.
I have known pitchers to put it on the nap of their neck and let the hair hang over to hide it.
Also on the inside of their belt buckle, armpit, shoes, cup, groin area, cap bill, nose ... man you would not believe most of this stuff.

 

...and all this time my wife thought they were just rearranging their cup

 

How should a parent handle a situation with a coach when he allows their son to exceed a certain pitch count, whatever that number may be? I'm sure we've all seen situations where a team may have one stud who gets rode hard and put up wet. I saw a deal in a fall tournament last year where a kid was left on the mound for 130+ pitches and his mom was about to go nuts. His coach was trying to win the game but it was obvious to most that he was tired and becoming ineffective. It was a showcase tournament and the game didn't mean anything really, no trophy, conference championship or anything like that. You think a parent can tell the coach when enough is enough and not affect the player's playing time or situation overall with the team? Thanks for your insight.

 

I would suggest the first thing that a parent should do is to converse with the coach privately and civilly about your concerns.
Sometimes a coach may get caught up in the moment (I know I do) and not pay attention with the things that he should be very attentive of.
Let him know that you are on top of this and if this conversation does not change things then you should take matters into your own hands and have your kid play with someone that is concerned with the well being of the athlete over the possibility of winning a "meaningless" game.

 

AJ, if I can take your answer further. My son has always pitched and as he has gotten older concern for his arm (and it's longevity) has always been around. Before your son throws one pitch for a new coach, as a parent you should talk to the coach about your son and his pitch count. NEVER discuss innings, only number of pitches thrown. Also remember when you have this discussion, does your son throw a higher number of pitches warming up? Does he throw over to first a little or a lot. Is his throw to first quick and hard, or slow and lazy? IMHO, the average high school pitcher who throws 100 pitches in a game has actually thrown between 150 and 180 pitches for the day. The average pitcher will throw from 25-50 warming up. 4-8 pitches warming up at each inning.

In my experience, a coach who is not receptive to discussing your son's pitch count is not a coach he should play for. Now once you are in a game situation, if you have had these discussions with the coach, you will know his stance. Then a quiet conversation at the fence to remind him about your son's pitch count may be all he needs to realize that he has lost track.

Just my humble $.02 worth.

 

Well said G.:thumbup: