The Value of a Home Run

Last year when home runs were being smashed out of ballparks at a historic pace, Major League Baseball did not bat an eye. In fact, they fined players and coaches that spoke out about the epidemic.  The average per team was an astounding 204 dingers per 162 games, up for 187 long balls in 2016 and 164 round trippers in 2015. But we’re not allowed to talk about that… No, no, no, we can’t talk about the fact only one team hit over 200 home runs in 2014 but in 2017, 17 teams did.



The baseballs aren’t juiced, per MLB.



Think about this: Boston fired their hitting coach because they only had 168 last year, good for only 27th in the league. That number would have been good enough for 4th in the league in 2014.



A new study came out last week x-raying the 2017 baseballs with baseballs from the past. Turns out, everything the players and coaches were citing about a bouncier, tighter laced ball was right.



Now as Tom Glavine and Greg Maddox once stated, “chicks dig the long ball”. MLB knows this, fans know this and players know this. But what happens when seemingly every position players contract that has ever been signed is based off a stat that nearly everyone can do?



Strikeouts are here to stay. Contracts don’t really penalize for that anymore. Contact is fun but it seems as if two things matter OBP and homers. I wish I could reference defense or base stealing but those are long lost art forms.



There are a ton of free agent position players left, many of which can mash, but when you have a 2019 free agent crops that’s gold and a now pennies on the dollar stat, you’ve got a dumpster fire brewing.