Talk:Greg Harris (harrigr01)

Guys who don't throw hard seem to get written off more, while flamethrowers get lots of chances (which sometimes do pan out - Koufax, Randy Johnson, etc.) - Mischa (talk) 16:39, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

Yes, that's absolutely the case. His case is egregious, though. He almost always pitched well; and he always had to scrounge for opportunities to do so. Philippe (talk) 17:08, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

The margin of error is smaller the lower the strikeout rate. There's a minimum level of strikeout rate that is necessary to be a major league pitcher. And strikeout rates will drop as a pitcher ages (unless they're from Alvin, TX). So essentially the higher the strikeout rate to begin with, the longer the pitcher has until he just can't be effective anymore. Choosing flamethrowers is the front office giving itself the best chance at success. Jeff (talk) 17:27, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

Though you can have a good K rate without throwing heat. You do raise a good point, Jeff - I remember a Bill James essay to this effect (about Tommy John or Lew Burdette, I think) - Mischa (talk) 18:18, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

I remember the James writing as well... his summary was that Jimmy Key (and others maybe?) defined the bottom line of strikeout rate at which a pitcher could survive "if he's left handed and does everything else well" Essentially strikeout rate is a filtering mechanism for being a major league pitcher. And throwing hard is the easiest indicator of that... Jeff (talk) 18:45, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

Although in Harris' case (and he's not alone), he always had good K rates. He just didn't overpower batters, just got them out on breaking balls and off-speed stuff. He still managed to have a long career, it's just that teams always wanted to look at other guys ahead of him, even though he had an excellent track record. Philippe (talk) 19:56, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

His K rates in his 1st 5 years in the minors were 6.1, 5.8, 4.9, 7.5, and 4.9. It says something about him that he made the majors at all. Jeff (talk) 20:05, 5 June 2020 (UTC)