Chris Davis is a Keeper

[JayThomas]

Chris Davis has been my second favorite Oriole (after Nolan) since we got him.

Obviously, a lot of his strikeouts have been swings-and-misses on pitches down & in. If he can mature a little - think how much less often Adam Jones swings at the low outside pitches this season than he did last season - he could be a monster. He seemed to have pretty decent walk rates in the minors.

[LA2]

I don't buy into TV broadcast distance estimations. I do buy into these. Hittracker had Reynolds shot into the club level at 463 feet. The Branyan shot I'm talking about can be found here, with video here.

In the Branyan video, I like the comic touch Adam adds by stopping in mid-stride to cross his arms and admire.

[DrungoHazewood]

Think about that blast of Davis' last night and then consider that Babe Ruth has 49 documented 500 + footers. And in an exhibition game in Wilkes Barre Penn., he hit one over 600".

I have extreme doubts about some of the old time tales of ridiculously long home runs. Either they're exaggerations, or we're not comparing apples to apples. The Ruth 600-footer may have been 600' after clearing a fence with nothing behind it and rolling another 150'.

[Moose Milligan]

Well. Davis looks like Lou Ferrigno and Lou Ferrigno was on roids. That makes as much sense as, Davis hit a massive HR so he must be on roids. Roids don't make you hit the ball farther. That's not why players take them. They take them primarily to keep themselves on the field the whole season.

That's just not true.

Sammy Sosa didn't roid to stay on the field the whole season. Neither did Barry Bonds.

Davis has been awesome. I think he's a keeper.

[LookitsPuck]

Well. Davis looks like Lou Ferrigno and Lou Ferrigno was on roids. That makes as much sense as, Davis hit a massive HR so he must be on roids. Roids don't make you hit the ball farther. That's not why players take them. They take them primarily to keep themselves on the field the whole season.

Could you please stop spewing this nonsense?

Guys like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Miguel Tejada, Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, etc. aren't taking steroids to stay on the field the whole season. It's a fringe benefit. These players are taking steroids to hit the ball further. Period.

It all comes down to bat speed and bat weight. Swing the heaviest bat you can the fastest and make contact on the best part of the bat.

[El Gordo]

I have extreme doubts about some of the old time tales of ridiculously long home runs. Either they're exaggerations, or we're not comparing apples to apples. The Ruth 600-footer may have been 600' after clearing a fence with nothing behind it and rolling another 150'.

The fellow who has done the rseacg=h on this point =s out that most major league cities back then hd many nea=wespaers all wirting full descriptions of the game ab=nd Ruth's HR in particular. From these accounts and eyewitnesses it can be determined with a high degree of accuracy where the ball came down. Then using plans of the stadiums of that time, they can calculate the true distance.

[El Gordo]

Could you please stop spewing this nonsense?

Guys like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Miguel Tejada, Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, etc. aren't taking steroids to stay on the field the whole season. It's a fringe benefit. These players are taking steroids to hit the ball further. Period.

It all comes down to bat speed and bat weight. Swing the heaviest bat you can the fastest and make contact on the best part of the bat.

Clearly you don't know what you are talking about. Do a little research and come back and demonstrate how it's been proven that steroids make a player hit the ball farther. I don't think you'l have much success.

[isestrex]

Could you please stop spewing this nonsense?

Guys like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Miguel Tejada, Sammy Sosa, Gary Sheffield, Alex Rodriguez, etc. aren't taking steroids to stay on the field the whole season. It's a fringe benefit. These players are taking steroids to hit the ball further. Period.

It all comes down to bat speed and bat weight. Swing the heaviest bat you can the fastest and make contact on the best part of the bat.

Do steroids make you gain muscle? If I took a series of injections, will it automatically add 20 pounds of pure muscle while I sit on the couch? Is that how it works?

[markdublya]

Remember Davis' broken bat home run? That's just ridiculous.

[zkeller97]

Clearly you don't know what you are talking about. Do a little research and come back and demonstrate how it's been proven that steroids make a player hit the ball farther. I don't think you'l have much success.

You are joking, right? Steroids/PEDs can help you gain testosterone/strength. When this happens, you generate more force. When you generate more force when you swing a bat, the ball travels further off the bat. What do you not understand about this.

[CA-ORIOLE]

Do steroids make you gain muscle? If I took a series of injections, will it automatically add 20 pounds of pure muscle while I sit on the couch? Is that how it works?

Yes.

Anabolic steroids change muscle mass and strength by two processes. First, the steroids lead to an increased production of proteins, which are the building blocks of muscle. The steroids also block the effect of the hormone cortisol on muscle tissue, so that existing muscle is broken down at a slower rate. Additionally, anabolic steroids lead to cells differentiating into muscle more readily than fat.

http://chemistry.about.com/od/medicalhealth/a/anabolicsteroid.htm

[CA-ORIOLE]

Clearly you don't know what you are talking about. Do a little research and come back and demonstrate how it's been proven that steroids make a player hit the ball farther. I don't think you'l have much success.

Obviously the force of the bat hitting the ball determines how far a ball will be hit, but do we really need to debate that stronger players will not have an advantage over a weaker ones.

[isestrex]

Anabolic steroids change muscle mass and strength by two processes. First, the steroids lead to an increased production of proteins, which are the building blocks of muscle. The steroids also block the effect of the hormone cortisol on muscle tissue, so that existing muscle is broken down at a slower rate. Additionally, anabolic steroids lead to cells differentiating into muscle more readily than fat.

Key word. Steroids don't automatically increase proteins/muscle

http://www.globalchange.com/steroids.htm

Taking steroids won't increase muscle bulk without exercise but the normal response to exercise is exaggerated.

http://www.steroidology.com/how-to-use-steroids-cycles-stacks-workouts-precautions-diet-and-more/

The belief is that by simply popping a pill or taking an injection, the user will suddenly grow giant muscles. But just like all things in life, building muscles with steroids takes a good deal of hard work, sound information and routine discipline.

Steroids HELP someone working out gain MORE muscle. It allows players to work out longer and get better results. The players that benefit the most from steroids are the ones that purposefully work hard to make those benefits felt. Steroids don't make you stronger, working your muscles make you stronger. Steroids just helps that process.

[Mondo Trasho]

I've never really cared about steroids, HGH, or any of that junk. Reality is the game is so much different than it was 20, 30, 40, 50+ years ago. Players are now full time players, there's been all kinds of advances in body training and nutrition science as for me to consider those things on equal par with steroids and the like. It doesn't matter how hard or far you can hit a baseball in batting practice or off a tee, you still gotta hit one in the game off a pitcher trying to strike you out.

[CA-ORIOLE]

Steroids HELP someone working out gain MORE muscle. It allows players to work out longer and get better results. The players that benefit the most from steroids are the ones that purposefully work hard to make those benefits felt. Steroids don't make you stronger, working your muscles make you stronger. Steroids just helps that process.

Since athletes (what we're discussing here) generally workout, then they will gain more muscle. Not sure what the point is.