Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Commentary: Is long-ball talk thin air or hot air?

TOP TEN thoughts Erik Hanson and Carlos Reyes, the starting pitchers in tonight's major league season opener between the Blue Jays and Athletics, must have had upon seeing cozy Cashman Field for the first time:

10. There goes the shutout.

9. Now that I think about it, what's so awful about using a port-a-potty?

8. I heard they launched the last space shuttle here from home plate.

7. Boy, that Ed Bernstein guy (whose face is painted on the left-field fence) sure is creepy looking.

6. Is pitching with a batting helmet legal?

5. Two words: Intentional walk.

4. Hmmm, maybe it's not too late to become a long reliever.

3. Ads on outfield wall a better read than The Sporting News.

2. Too bad there isn't a 24-hour disabled list.

1. And here I thought the lines at the Gallagher show were short!

When it was announced new restrooms and other renovations at the Oakland Coliseum would have the A's playing their first six games in Las Vegas, you could hear sluggers Joe Carter (of the Blue Jays) and Cecil Fielder (of the Tigers, who will be in for four games) smacking their lips from Florida.

The consensus was that Cashman's short porches, Las Vegas' thin air and the suspect pitching of the three teams would have their batting orders playing pinball with the outfield walls.

But if the integrity of the game is at stake, four exhibition games played in Cashman over the weekend allayed some of those fears.

On Friday, the Mariners beat the Blue Jays 6-5. On Saturday, the Jays beat the Padres 9-5 and the Brewers beat the triple-A Stars 5-2. On Sunday, the Brewers beat the Jays 10-3.

While there were enough home runs (12) to keep fans entertained, there weren't so many to support the notion that playing major league baseball here would result in run totals akin to the National Debt.

"You hear the ball carries well and in the back of your mind, you think 'if I can get one airborne with a little something on it, it has a chance,'" said Blue Jays belter John Olerud about the temptation of swinging for the fences.

"But for me, I have to concentrate staying with my swing. If I go up there trying to hit a long ball, my mechanics break down and I don't make as good as contact. That's a trap I fall into."

The trap fans and media have fallen into is believing the pitchers won't adjust.

"They still have to throw strikes," Olerud said, "but I don't think they will give you as much when they get behind in the count. In some ballparks, they know they can just throw it in there and if some guy hits a long fly ball, the park is going to hold it."

In this ballpark, if Fielder or Joe Carter or Ed Sprague or even Mike Bordick hits a long fly ball, the county may not hold it.

But at this point, the home run derby talk around the batting cage seems to have subsided. And Erik Hanson and Carlos Reyes still have their shutouts.

RON KANTOWSKI is Las Vegas SUN sports editor. He can be reached at [email protected]

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