100

"Forget about the curve ball Ricky, give 'em the heater" -Lou Brown

In my youth, the battle of fireballers was headlined by Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens.  The read from the radar gun was not prominently displayed as it is in today's telecasts.  Unless one of the announcers made reference, pitch speeds were a mystery.  No doubt both men had the ability to hit triple digits.  In modern coverage, more often than not, speeds flash after each pitch.  I'm not sure how long this has gone on but it was never more obvious to me until the emergence of Billy Wagner with Houston early in the new millinium.  In 2002, Wagner hit 100 mph on the radar gun 159 times, Bartolo Colon was second in the majors with 12.  Wagner working no more than 4 or 5 innings a week to tally such numbers.  One day mid-summer 2003, ESPN was playing a bonus day game between the Astros and Giants.  Barry Bonds was in the prime of his tear, two years removed his record breaking 73 home run season.  Today he was on the bench.  The 9th inning rolls around and the Astros are up 3-2, Wagner is called from the pen to close it out.  Two quick outs and a walk, Dusty Baker puts the bat, and the game in the hands of Bonds, pinch hitting.  I was never really mad at Barry, and always respected his bat, especially after the bomb he hit in game 2 of the previous years fall classic.  "That's the furthest ball I've ever seen hit" mused Tim Salmon from the opposing dugout.  So Bonds steps into the box, Wagner on the hill, goosebumps all around.  9 pitches; 100, 100, 99, 101, 100, 100, 99, 101, 100. Lights out Barry. Game Over.  Nasty.

7 years gone.  Late August 2009.  The Boston Red Sox sign Billy Wagner.  Goodbye Brad Penny.  Now don't get confused, I'm not expecting the guy to shatter bats like he did some years back, or for his arm to carry the Sox to the playoffs.  What I am expecting is a fierce competitor to liven things up a bit.  He is 38 years old coming off elbow ligament replacement surgery, but he's also a bad ass.  In between the Astros and Red Sox, Wagner threw for the Phillies then Mets.  Both teams came under the hard throwing lefty's heat at one time or another during his respective tenures.  Both instances lighting a fire under his teammates for apparent lack of heart or effort. In my humble opinion, both instances were warranted, especially the Mets.  His most recent rant came at the tail end of one of the Mets typical end of the season meltdowns.  He was in the clubhouse after another loss, one in which he didn't even appear, reporters all around, cameras and tape recorders in his face.  "Why you all crowded around me?  I didn't even pitch tonight . . why don't you talk to them? (gestures to the rest of the clubhouse, which is empty) oh, surprise, there all gone".  It is worth noting he was wearing a New England Patriots hat during the interview, right when the media was all over the "spy gate" scandal and the Pats undefeated season.  So here we are, the Red Sox fighting for a playoff spot.  A couple of smart moves around the trade deadline; Victor Martinez, the return of Alex Gonzalez, and now Billy Wagner.  As usual, Papelbon had something to say about the addition of a second closer.  Wagner's response to his negative remarks? Cool and collected.  Papelbon might be wise to sit down and learn some valuable lessons from the veteran if he is only mature enough to respect his elders (who have twice as many career saves).  The addition of Wagner makes the Sox pen look even more like an All-Star team.  Manny Delcarmen,  Takashi Saito, Hideki Okajima,Josh Bard (throwing 100 a number of times last night), Johnathan Papelbon, and now Wagner.  That is what you might call stopping power.

I'm sure everyone in New England is ready to jump all over this latest acquisition, compare it to the Eric Gagne pick up around the same time in the season a few years back.  Well, only time will tell . . but remember, Gagne tried his best to sink the Red Sox that post season, and we swept the opposition in the World Series.