Home MLB'Weekly' Hit Ground Ball Weekly Hit Ground Ball: Smoltz starts again

Weekly Hit Ground Ball: Smoltz starts again

by Matt Smith

There are some sights that you come to expect on a Major League ballfield.  Albert Pujols blasting two homers in a game is a common sight, albeit an always spectacular one (especially when one of those bombs is of the grand slam variety, as happened against the Royals last Sunday).  Milton Bradley going nuts is a familiar firework show of a different kind, one that Cubs manager Lou Piniella finally tired of on Friday.

But John Smoltz pitching in a Red Sox uniform?  You see the footage, do a double-take and still it doesn’t fully sink in. 

Smoltz had worn the Atlanta Braves uniform with distinction for twenty years before this season.  He had excelled as a starter in an era-defining rotation with Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine and even though both of those pitchers moved elsewhere, Smoltz was a constant in Georgia.  When he switched to the full-time closer role between 2002 and 2004, his great stuff and bulldog character made him one of the best to ever take the ball in the ninth inning. 

Smoltz seemed destined to join the increasingly rare list of top players who ended his career as a one-team man.  However injury concerns and the Red Sox’s cheque book resulted in the pitcher moving to a new team and a new league over the offseason. 

Boston’s failed attempt to sign Mark Teixeira focused their minds on creating depth in their pool of pitching talent.  Daisuke Matsuzaka’s struggles have reminded everyone of that old piece of baseball wisdom: you can never have enough good pitching.  Some people in Beantown seemed to be worrying about the number of pitchers their team had to pick from, but these things often find a way of working themselves out. 

The Red Sox’s plentiful pitching options and payroll flexibility allowed them to sign up Smoltz despite knowing that he would miss at least the first two months of the season.  His rehabilitation from right-shoulder surgery could be conducted at a considered pace so that when he did finally make his way back onto a Major League mound, he would have every chance of staying healthy for the rest of the year.

The process also ensured that Smoltz’s 2009 debut was one of the most eagerly anticipated events of the season so far.  As so often happens, it didn’t quite live up to expectations.  The Washington Nationals tagged him for four runs in the first inning on Thursday and the thirty-five pitches he was forced to throw in that opening frame contributed to his exit after five innings.

But the Red Sox won’t be worried.  Smoltz recovered from that rusty start and ended on strong note by retiring the last eight batters he faced.  More importantly, Boston aren’t going to be too concerned about one game in June.  Smoltz was added to the Red Sox’s roster with the second half of the season and the postseason in mind.

Throughout all his great years in Atlanta, he only managed to win one World Series.  Don’t bet against John Smoltz winning a second with his new team.

More fans able to watch more baseball

British baseball fans found out how they would be able to access ESPN America for the foreseeable future after Setanta Sports’ demise was confirmed on Tuesday.  The impact of the new arrangements for the only channel currently broadcasting MLB in the UK varies depending on your TV coverage supplier. 

Virgin Media customers are in a similar position to before.  They can now buy ESPN America as a standalone channel for £10 per month, which is basically what they were paying before for the package that also included channels such as Setanta Sports 1 and 2.

In contrast, Sky customers have really benefitted from the change.  The channel has been added to the News and Events pack for Sky customers.  Quite a few subscribers would already have that pack and they have therefore found that baseball (and other North American sports) has suddenly become available to them at no extra cost. For those that don’t have the News and Events pack, they can add it to their subscription for a painless £1 per month.

The switch on Sky puts MLB in front of a much larger potential audience, which can only be a good thing for the sport.  It’s not free-to-air coverage and it doesn’t come with a British studio presence, but it does mean that people who wouldn’t initially pay specifically for MLB may stumble across it. 

Meanwhile, established baseball fans are also enjoying the latest new feature at MLB.com that provides live coverage of in-game action for free.  The scoreboard page has been upgraded to include ‘Live look-ins’ that take you into ongoing games for a short period.  It works neatly as a taster for the MLB.TV Premium subscription and is yet another example of MLB.com’s continual attempts to create new ways for baseball fans to enjoy MLB.

Which can only be a good thing for all of us.

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