Exposing the Craft

[das]

I find it interesting to read articles with heavy quotes from elite players exposing their craft because its infinitely fascinating to me to try to understand the dynamics they discuss and then watch for them in upcoming games.  Makes me appreciate the game that much more.  I always wonder what the risk is to so clearly laying out part of your game plan.  Take this article for instance.  I would think this gives a roadmap to better success against JV and Cole:
https://www.mlb.com/astros/news/verlander-cole-dominating-with-four-seamers/c-282243266

Maybe their elite "hoppy" 4-seamers are just so hard to hit that it does not matter if the batter knows it's coming.  Alternately, maybe these guys know what they are doing and will load up the next game with 2-seamers down in the zone.

In a somewhat related vein, I wonder if pitchers take stuff they (maybe) read out in the public domain and apply it to their craft.  I found this in-depth look at the decreasingly effective Keuchel slider to be informative and interesting. 
https://www.crawfishboxes.com/2018/6/13/17454146/the-cause-of-keuchels-slide-the-slider-astros-trending-part-1

I also thought it was very interesting that the very next game after this article was published, his slider was MUCH sharper and effective.  I'll be watching Keuchel's start tomorrow night very closely to see if there is a trend here.

[jbm]

As for JV and GC, I don't think they're giving away anything that hitters don't already know.  Hitters must know they will see a lot of fastballs up, but that doesn't seem to help them.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Nice article.   Those guys talk openly because the information is there for all to see.  As for sequencing plans for an individual hitter, I'm sure they'd be more reticent. 

As for the Keuchel slider,  his problems with that pitch were also painfully obvious. Sparks was all over it in the previous broadcast,  and he came on the TV broadcast of the last game to offer his insight on the mechanical adjustment he felt needed to be made.  I'm sure Strom et al. were all over it.

But I wouldn't be surprised if there's an Astros employee scouring the interwebs for content that might be useful.

[subnuclear]

But I wouldn't be surprised if there's an Astros employee scouring the interwebs for content that might be useful.

They went out of their way to hire guys from BP and so forth, so I imagine they are aware of what's out there (to add to their internal stuff).

[JimR]

Every hitter with an IQ above 2 looks for the fastball and adjusts to offspeed. I do not think this article helps hitters, but it is interesting.