Dragons Digital PlayBall! Issue 2 by Dayton Dragons Baseball

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Seth Mejias-Brean’s Walk-Off Grand Slam Home Run What was the most dramatic home run in Dragons history, and the most exciting finish to a Dragons game? The answer came on the same date, on July 18, 2013 at Day Air Ballpark. The hero that day was Dragons infielder Seth Mejias-Brean, a hard-nosed, hustling player who was very popular with his teammates and coaches because of the winning attitude he brought to the ballpark each day.

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Mejias-Brean connected on what has come to be known as an “ultimate grand slam,” one of the rarest accomplishments in all of baseball. In Major League Baseball history, where record-keeping has been very detailed for more than 100 years, there have been only 29 ultimate grand slams. In terms of degree of rarity, that puts it in a class with a pitcher’s perfect game, and only about twice as common as an unassisted triple play. It is far less common than a pitcher throwing a no-hitter, or a batter hitting for the cycle. What exactly is required for an ultimate grand slam? The following conditions must be present: The home team must be at-bat in the ninth inning or later; the bases must be loaded; the team at-bat must be trailing by exactly three runs (putting the potential winning run at the plate); and of course, the batter must connect on a home run. That is exactly what Mejias-Brean did that day in the bottom of the ninth inning. With the Dragons trailing the Beloit Snappers 6-3 with one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning on July 18, 2013, Mejias-Brean came to the plate and drilled a home run over the right-center field fence. The blast ended the game and gave the Dragons a thrilling victory. It was the first walk-off grand slam in which the winning team trailed by three runs in the Cincinnati Reds organization since Adam Dunn hit a walk-off grand slam to give the Reds a 9-8 win over the Cleveland Indians on June 30, 2006. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

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The only other walk-off grand slam in Dragons history was hit by Samone Peters on June 10, 2001, also against Beloit. The grand slam by Peters came with the score tied, so it did not qualify as an “ultimate grand slam.” The Dragons have had 19 “walk-off ” home runs over their 20-year history (any home run that ends a game). The most recent came from Aristides Aquino in 2015, Aquino, now with the Reds, has set numerous MLB records for most home runs to start a career. As far as Mejias-Brean, he was named the Reds Minor League Player of the Year following his 2013 season with the Dragons. Then, slightly more than six years after he blasted that memorable home run in Dayton, he became the 102nd Dragons player to reach the Major Leagues, playing for the San Diego Padres in 2019. In his ninth MLB game, he drilled a 10th inning walk-off home run to defeat the Arizona Diamondbacks. ###

Dragons All-Time Walk-Off Home Runs, 2000-2019: Aristides Aquino Jesse Winker Seth Mejias-Brean Donald Lutz Dominic D’Anna Miguel Rojas Angel Cabrera Angel Cabrera Zack Cozart Brandon Waring Todd Frazier Denis Phipps Jason Louwsma Eddie Rodriguez Drew Stubbs Jeremiah Piepkorn Luis Bolivar Samone Peters Samone Peters

August 15, 2015 July 21, 2013 July 18, 2013 August 30, 2011 May 21, 2011 June 18, 2009 July 23, 2008 July 13, 2008 June 26, 2008 June 19, 2008 April 8, 2008 July 15, 2007 June 10, 2007 June 5, 2007 May 6, 2007 May 31, 2005 April 15, 2004 June 21, 2001 May 19, 2001

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vs. Burlington vs. Wisconsin vs. Beloit (Grand Slam) vs. West Michigan vs. Lake County vs. West Michigan vs. Peoria vs. Beloit vs. South Bend vs. Great Lakes vs. Fort Wayne vs. Clinton vs. West Michigan vs. Lansing vs. Kane County vs. South Bend vs. Lansing vs. Beloit (Grand Slam) vs. Kane County

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Bringing the BIG LEAGUES to day air ballpark There is a unique situation in Minor League Baseball that is hard to envision ever happening anywhere else in sports: When a Major League baseball player suffers an injury, and then is nearly ready to return to action, he is often assigned to a Minor League club to get some live game experience before rejoining the big league team. He will play a few games with one of the farm club team in his organization in an effort to â&#x20AC;&#x153;shake off the rust,â&#x20AC;? regain his timing, and get a feel for the speed of the game. Compare the concept to other sports. Can you imagine if Ezekiel Elliott of the Dallas Cowboys was about to return from an injury and went back to Ohio State to play a game for the Buckeyes? These players are not rising prospects trying to make a name for themselves. They are current, established Major League players already known to the fans. In some cases, they are star-quality players. The fans love the chance to see a player they have watched on television now performing for their hometown team. The practice has come to be known commonly as a Major League Injury Rehabilitation Assignment. It can last as long as a few weeks, but it usually concludes after a few games. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

Brandon Phillips, 2014

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The close proximity to Dayton from Cincinnati has allowed the Dragons to feature many MLB rehab assignments over the years at Day Air Ballpark. Perhaps the most famous one came in the Dragons second season, when former 1990 Reds World Series hero Jose Rijo returned to the mound after missing five full seasons due to injury. Rijo, the Most Valuable Player of the 1990 series, had last pitched in 1995. By 2001, after four elbow operations, he was 36 years old and on the comeback trail. He threw three innings for the Dragons on July 4, 2001 at Day Air Ballpark, allowing one run. About six weeks later, Rijo was back in the big leagues with the Reds, and he made 44 appearances over the next two seasons with Cincinnati. Joey Votto has made two separate returns to Dayton after playing for the Dragons in 2003 and ’04. Votto came back on MLB rehab assignments in both 2009 and 2012. In his first at-bat during his 2009 assignment in front of a crowd of over 9,000, he blasted one of the longest home runs in the history of the ballpark. When Votto played for the Dragons in 2012, he arguably became the most accomplished player ever to appear in a Midwest League game. By that point, Votto had already won a National League MVP in 2010.

Joey Votto, 2009/2012

Edinson Volquez made two starts for the Dragons in 2010, just a few weeks before he earned the start for the Reds in game one of the National League playoffs against the Phillies. Volquez’s assignment was slightly different. He was not coming back from an injury. In fact, he was not hurt at all. The Reds simply felt he would benefit from making two starts in the Minor Leagues to regain some confidence. It must have worked, as Volquez was given the chance to start the Reds biggest game of the season about one month after he took the mound in Dayton. By rule, players on MLB rehab assignments do not count towards the Minor League team’s roster limit, so no other player must come off the roster when they arrive. But in the case of Volquez, since he was not hurt when he was assigned to the Dragons, he was actually placed on the Dayton roster for two starts, and another player had to be deactivated. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

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In 2013, Johnny Cueto returned to the Dragons, and there was an interesting result. Cueto had posted a record of 8-1 for the Dragons as a prospect in 2006. His nine career decisions were one short of the minimum needed to qualify for the club record for career winning percentage. When he returned seven years later on a rehab assignment to make two starts, he earned a victory in his second appearance with the Dragons, going five innings. The win lifted his career record with the Dragons to 9-1 and gave him 10 career decisions, making him the new franchise record-holder in career winning percentage at .900. In 2014, two of their most famous players to complete rehab assignments with the Dragons arrived. Second baseman Brandon Phillips and pitcher Aroldis Chapman, both former N.L. All-Stars, spent time with the Dragons. In fact, Chapman set a Day Air Ballpark record by throwing a fastball at 101 mph, a record that stood until Hunter Greene reached 102 in 2018. In 2019, Reds utility man Kyle Farmer joined the Dragons for one game and the timing was perfect. Farmer was the catcher that night for the Dragons debut of 2019 first round draft pick Nick Lodolo. Farmer was able to return to Cincinnati and provide some first-hand perspective on the potential of the big left-hander out of Texas Christian University. On average, one or two Reds players play for the Dragons each season. ###

All-time list of the 34 Major League players who have played for the Dragons on a rehab assignment: Mark Wohlers, P (2000) Jose Rijo, P (2001) Seth Etherton, P (2002) Jimmy Haynes, P (2003) Ben Weber, P (2005) Grant Balfour, P (2006) Matt Belisle, P (2006) Elizardo Ramirez, P (2006) Paul Wilson, P (2006) Eddie Guardado, P (2007) Mike Stanton, P (2007) Jolbert Cabrera, INF (2008) Kent Mercker, P (2008) David Weathers, P (2008) Jared Burton, P (2009) Joey Votto, 1B (2009) Homer Bailey, P (2010)

Orlando Cabrera, SS (2010) Edinson Volquez, P (2010) Miguel Cairo, 3B (2012) Bill Bray, P (2012) Drew Stubbs, OF (2012) Nick Masset, P (2012) Joey Votto, 1B (2012) Johnny Cueto, P (2013) Ryan Ludwick, DH (2013) Aroldis Chapman, P (2014) Jack Hannahan, DH (2014) Brandon Phillips, 2B (2014) Anthony DeSclafani, P (2016) Tony Cingrani, P (2017) Homer Bailey, P (2017) Anthony DeSclafani, P (2017) Kyle Farmer, C (2019)

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Homer Bailey, 2017

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• Celebrating missed milestones of deployed

• Hosting families of deployed

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Season Preview

2020

WHO’S ON FIRST?

This is part two of a nine-part series previewing the 2020 Dragons. Players listed here are candidates for positions on the 25-man Dragons season-opening roster. Minor League rosters have not yet been assigned. While the timeline to the start of our season is unknown at this point, when play resumes, the players in these previews will compete for roster positions with the Dragons.

Bren Spillane spent part of the 2019 season with the Dragons and showed flashes of the skills that made him the 2018 Big Ten Player of the Year (and Triple Crown winner) at the University of Illinois. Unfortunately, Spillane also dealt with a rough start and a later injury that ended his season just when he was starting to play his best baseball of the year. It is possible that Spillane will return to the Dragons in 2020, at least to start the year. In 2018 at Illinois, Spillane produced one of the best seasons in the history of the Big Ten Conference and was named national “Player of the Year” by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, becoming the first Big Ten player to be selected to that honor in the 35-year history of the publication. Spillane batted .389 with 23 home runs and 60 runs batted in, leading the conference in all three categories. In addition, Spillane led the nation in 2018 in slugging percentage (.903), OPS (1.401), and home runs per game (0.46). His slugging percentage was second best in Big Ten history and the best mark since 1987. The Reds drafted Spillane in the third round in 2018 and he spent that summer at Billings, batting .236 with five home runs in 48 games and a .439 slugging percentage. Spillane opened the 2019 season with the Dragons. After 36 games, Spillane was batting just .150 and was transferred back to the Reds extended spring training complex in Goodyear, Arizona on May 16 for some individual work. He returned to the Dragons three weeks later. On June 26, Spillane’s season turned completely around. Over the next 15 games, he batted .385, going 20 for 52. DAY TON

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*CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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WHOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ON FIRST?

Season Preview

2020

He also cut way back on his strikeout troubles that had hounded him up to that point. Spillane had struck out 88 times in 161 at-bats through his first 47 games, but over the 15-game stretch starting June 26, he cut the strikeouts to 16 in 52 at-bats. Unfortunately, on July 17, he suffered a sprained left wrist that brought his season to an end. He finished the year with a batting average of .207 with five home runs in 62 games. If Spillane returns to the Dragons in 2020, there is obviously potential for dramatic improvement from 2019. Leonardo Seminati is a native of Italy who has shown steady Photo: Bren Spillane with Dayton in 2019 improvement since signing with the Reds as an international free agent in July of 2017. The only Italian player who has ever played for the Dragons was Luca Panerati in 2011. Panerati was a relief pitcher who appeared in 17 games for the Dayton playoff team that also featured Billy Hamilton and Tucker Barnhart. Panerati gained attention in 2013 when he started a game for the Italian national team against Team USA in the World Baseball Classic and tossed three scoreless innings. Seminati would like to become the second Italian to play for the Dragons. Seminati opened his professional career in 2018, splitting the season between Billings and the Arizona League Reds and batting a combined .252 with four home runs in 42 games. He spent the entire 2019 season with Billings, serving as their starting first baseman for most of the season. He batted .270 with a team-leading nine home runs in 58 games. He had a streaky year, batting .391 in June, .152 in July, .342 in August, and .105 in September. Seminati also had a home run in the third and deciding game of Billingsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; first round playoff series, a game the Mustangs lost to end their season. Seminati started 43 games at first base for Billings, another eight games at third base, and six games in left *CONTINUED ON PAGE 19 field. 17 DAY TON

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WHO’S ON FIRST?

Season Preview

2020

Garrett Wolforth was drafted by the Reds in 2019 out of NCAA Division II Nova Southeastern University, a Florida school that was a top-20 D2 program last spring. He played just one season there after spending the previous three years at Dallas Baptist University, a very strong D1 program that has been the top team in the Missouri Valley Conference in recent years. Wolforth was a catcher in college, but he did not see an inning behind the plate in the Reds system last summer. He primarily played first base with limited time in all three outfield spots and third base. Wolforth enjoyed his best year at Dallas Baptist in 2017, his sophomore season, when he earned 1st Team All-Conference honors. He batted .289 with seven home runs in 57 games as his team won the MVC tournament and went to the NCAA Regional. His production dropped in 2018 when he batted .242 with five home runs in his third and final year at DBU. He transferred to Nova Southeastern for the 2019 season and hit .307, ranking second in the conference in home runs with 12. He posted a .585 slugging percentage in 51 games. He was named the top defensive catcher in all of D2 college baseball. After signing with the Reds, Wolforth was assigned to Greeneville, where he played in 53 games and batted .242 with five home runs. At the end of August, the Reds moved Wolforth to the playoff-bound Billings club, where he appeared in another six games and hit .238 with one home run. Wolforth is from the Houston, Texas suburb of Spring and played for a powerhouse high school program at Concordia Lutheran, earning 1st Team All-State honors in one of the top baseball states in the country. His pre-college background is filled with appearances in major showcase events and personal honors, including 2nd Team All-American honors from Perfect Game in 2015. Both of Wolforth’s parents were college athletes (his mother was an All-American softball player at Nebraska), and he has been strongly credited by his coaches for his advanced understanding of the game and overall baseball intelligence. His high school coach, Rick Lynch, with over 500 career victories to his credit, called Wolforth “the most prepared player” he had ever coached in an article at PerfectGame.org. ###

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POWER TO THE POHL SIDE

WDTN Sports Director Jack Pohl has teamed up with Dragons broadcaster Tom Nichols on Dragons game broadcasts for the past four years on Dayton’s CW. Pohl has a friendly personality and is known for his tremendous sense of humor. He is a native of the Dayton area and has worked in media in the market since his days on radio at Centerville High School in the 1980’s. He has been at WDTN since 1995 and has served as sports director at the station since 2002. We spoke with Jack about his 25+ years in Dayton television. Q: Let’s trace your career. You started in radio before making the move into television. Tell us how that happened. JP: At Centerville High School, it may shock you to know that I was a class clown. Ken Carper built a radio program and it became a full-fledged radio station. Your junior and senior years, you were allowed to work at the radio station and it was half your day. So they brought me in. I am very lucky. Most people do not know what they want to do as a junior in high school. So I did radio at Centerville for two years. I worked at WTUE. Bill Pugh hired me, the program director in 1983. His brother is Dan Pugh, who most people know as Dan Patrick. I did five hours of public service broadcasting every Sunday morning. And for 15 minutes every Sunday I got to be a DJ on WTUE. And it was a monster back then. Huge listenership.

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I eventually went to Wright State, started a family. Landed as the morning show man at Z-93. Did mornings with Kim Faris. Long story short, Omar Williams opened some doors, and I eventually got hired at Channel 2. It was the only station I ever applied at. And it worked out. Q: In our market, you have many close friendships among the sports reporters from the different stations. It is competitive, but unlike many other markets, the competing reporters have maintained close friendships for decades. Does that make it special to work here? JP: It is extremely special. And sports is a little different. While you can “break” a story, it is not like news where you are trying to scoop somebody. We all are going to be at the same games. So 95 percent of what we cover are scheduled events that everyone, including people at home, are aware of. How you cover it differentiates you from everyone else. Mike Hartsock over at Channel 7 is a very close, dear friend of mine. We are at the same events, over and over again. We see each other every night at the Dragons games. We see each other at the Bengals games, the Buckeyes games, and countless high school games. So it is a huge advantage to be able to work with your friends. And there has never once been any animosity. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 23 DRAGONS

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POWER TO THE POHL SIDE Q: If you broke down the number of stories you have done over your career, it would be an enormous number. What are a few stories or events you have covered that you would place at the top?

players on that team…A.J. Hawk from Centerville, Nick Mangold out of Alter. I was very emotionally invested that year.

JP: When the Dragons came to town 20 years ago, it was unlike anything Dayton has ever seen. Nobody knew. The mystery surrounding what it would be was so great. It was one of those rare things that once it got up and running, it was far greater than even we thought it would be. I will never forget, we were at the ballpark for days on end. We did all of our newscasts at (Day Air Ballpark) that year. It was amazing. When I look back now, it was much greater than I realized at the time. Maybe it is like being a kid. You don’t realize how great it is being a kid until you are an adult. It was the same thing with the Dragons. Now, I see a Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player wore that Dragons uniform (Joey Votto). When it started, we knew it was great, we just didn’t understand it fully. It was like some mystery. Amazing. There was UD’s unbelievable run to the Elite Eight in 2014. That team under Archie Miller was not expected to go that far, and it was really fun. For Dayton, Ohio to be represented as one of the eight teams was something I will never forget. When Ohio State won the national championship in the first College Football Playoff with Urban Meyer in 2014, that was great, but the one that sticks out in my mind was beating Miami in 2002 under Jim Tressel. And I can remember, that many years ago, it wasn’t the production it is now. Out in Arizona, no one’s cell phone worked in the stadium because they just didn’t have the towers back then. So no cell phone service. Ohio State wins in dramatic fashion and I was immediately out on the field. There were local DAY TON

Q: What makes you unique as a sportscaster? JP: It is tough to pin something on yourself but I think by what other people have told me at the grocery store or at the ballpark, I think energy is what defines at who I am. I am enthusiastic about my job. Recently, I am walking out of a Kroger, and a guy stops me and tells me his son is a quarterback at a local high school, he says, ‘I just appreciate the energy, your enthusiasm, and how you come across.’ It causes most people to smile, so that is the main goal. When sports come on the news, it should be upbeat and fun, because at the end, they are all just games.

“When sports come on the news, it should be upbeat and fun..”

-Jack Pohl

Q: How has covering television news changed most during your time at WDTN? JP: Well, you could talk about all the equipment and the technical part. When I first started, the camera was about the size of a Volkswagen. Now, you can literally shoot a news story on your phone if you have to. But in terms of the business itself, where before, you hoped to have your highlights in time for the 6:20 sports, and now, five minutes after the game, you have everything. It is the instant access. When you were a kid, the scores on the west coast were not in the newspaper. Now, you can ask your smart device in your house, ‘hey, did the Reds win.’ And you will get an answer immediately. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 25

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FEATURED STORY

POWER TO THE POHL SIDE

Q: How much different is doing TV on Dragons games compared to your nightly sportscasts within the news? JP: I think they are completely different animals. There are similarities…there is a camera in front of us, but that is about it. The difference is, on the news, I know what I am going to say. I write it. I know what the video is going to look like. I know what the guy is going to say when I throw to a sound byte. I am in complete control. You go to Day Air Ballpark, and you could have a game where anything could happen. We had a no-hitter with three pitchers. You can’t prepare for that. Every game has the possibility to be great. When I walk into that booth, who knows what we are going to get. So to compare the two, one is complete preparation of knowing exactly what I am going to say, to the word, for three and one-half minutes, and the other is pretty reactionary for three hours. It is the great unknown. There are so many possibilities. You might see the biggest comeback, the biggest blown lead. That is fantastic. DAY TON

Q: Each station in this market is unique. What are the strengths for the sportscasts on WDTN with you and Hutch Konerman? JP: I will start with content. We are the only the station with a scheduled sportscast at 6, 10, 11, and during mornings. We are literally on every day part. We are also the only (sports department) with two guys. We have a full-fledged team. When I first started at Channel 2, there were seven or eight guys in the sports department. I don’t know what we did. It was the same amount of time to fill. Maybe we can be a little more efficient now. Hutch is a great storyteller. When he gets a human-interest story, I don’t think there is anyone better. My niche is to bring enthusiasm and fun. We are part of the entertainment business. But for Channel 2, great storytelling, lots of content, consistent sports seven days a week, four shows a day. ###

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Great Food coming in 2020 to

DAY AIR BALLPARK When the Dragons begin the 2020 season at Day Air Ballpark, there will be some delicious new food choices available to fans. Phil West, Director of Operations for Professional Sports Catering, oversees the food concessions and catering operations at the ballpark. He explains some of the new items. “We will be doing a new carnitas styled pulled pork as a menu option in our “Fiesta Time” buffets and suite packages,” West says. “It will also be available at the “Salsa” cart on the main concourse.” Fans who have been captivated in the past by the scent of the smoker at Monument BBQ, located on the third base side of the concourse, will find a new item tempting them this season. “We are adding jumbo smoked wings, prepared in the smoker,” West adds. *CONTINUED ON PAGE 31

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For fans who love a great burger, West and his team have added a new option. “The ‘Dragon Fire’ stand, known for it’s gourmet burgers, will have a full, pound burger that you can top any way you like,” West says of the new 2020 addition to the food menu. West indicates that there will be several new souvenir items available through the concession stands. “We’ll have a giant black helmet that is used for a super nacho and an orange helmet as part of a kids’ meal. We’ll also have a chalice for a signature mixed drink.” West also describes a new food area that groups attending Dragons games are sure to enjoy. “We have done a renovation of the AZEK Dragons Lair, located beyond the left field fence. The new area was a big part of our offseason efforts.”

NEW!

Fans can also order a Mar-Chele Bavarian pretzel with beer cheese, available behind home plate.

West speaks with great excitement about one more addition. The ballpark will welcome a new chef in 2020, Dutch-born, culinary extraordinaire Klaas Lampe. The experienced and accomplished chef ran operations at a downtown Dayton hotel for 10 years. He will oversee the food preparation throughout Day Air Ballpark. “He is amazing,” says West. ###

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The Dragons MVP Program uses the marketing power of Dayton Dragons Baseball as an educational tool for fourth and fifth grade teachers in the five county area. Each teacher can select five students as a Dayton Dragons MVP in their classroom. Each MVP winner receives four tickets to a special MVP night at a Dragons game at Day Air Ballpark, MVP certificate, access to the â&#x20AC;&#x153;MVP Zoneâ&#x20AC;? with a player photobooth, face painting, and games, as well as a MVP hat. During MVP nights at Dragons games, all MVPs in attendance are invited on the field for a pre-game parade. MVPs are randomly selected to throw a first pitch, deliver the official lineup card, deliver the game ball, or become a Jr. PA Announcer! Another part of the MVP Program are school visits where Dayton Dragons players, staff, and mascot bring the Dragons experience to local 4th and 5th graders.

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DAYTON’S BEST Our community is a great place to live, work, and play. But what makes Dayton truly great are the people who do incredible things each and every day to make our community a special place to call home. The Dragons Community All-Stars Program honors those citizens and organizations that have gone above and beyond to help others in need or improve the quality of life in the Miami Valley. The Dragons recognize these Community All-Stars for their good deeds and efforts at games all season long.

WHO ARE COMMUNITY ALL-STARS? Community All-Stars come from all walks of life and age ranges. They are firefighters and police officers, doctors and good Samaritans, first responders and volunteers. Whether they’re saving a life or lending a hand, Community All-Stars help make life better for others.

NOMINATE YOUR COMMUNITY ALL-STAR TODAY! Do you know a person or organization that’s making a positive impact on our community? If you do, we want to hear their story. Simply visit www.daytondragons.com/communityallstar, tell us about your nominee, and hit submit. Entries with more details are more likely to receive consideration.

The Dragons Community All-Star Program is made possible by:

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GEAR UP ONLINE

While the Dragons retail store at Day Air Ballpark, the Dragons Den, is closed during this emergency, all items available at the store are currently available for on-line purchases. You can go to DaytonDragons.com/Shop for a complete selection of a wide variety of items. Here are some examples of what is currently available at the Dragons Den online...

REPLICA JERSEYS Replica jerseys are available for all five Dragons jersey styles, including: • White home jerseys • Orange Friday jerseys • Green Sunday jerseys • Gray road jerseys • Black practice jerseys Jerseys are $79 for adults, $59 for kids (home, Friday, and Sunday only in kids’ sizes).

*Other jersey styles are also available.

IN THE SHOPPING MOOD? As a bonus, please take 20% off your online purchase and use the code SPRING2020 at the checkout. This 20% is now available through May 3rd, 2020. (some exclusions apply)

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GEAR UP ONLINE New Era Clubhouse Collection Hats The New Era 9FIFTY hats feature a rubberized Dragons logo. They are available in snapback for $30. Other styles include 9FORTY adjustable caps for $25 and 39THIRTY fitted for $29. Other popular style caps are the ’47 Clean Up with Dragons mascots Heater or Gem on the hat, available in adult and youth sizes.

*Many other styles of hats are also available.

Other Popular Items • Men’s Outerwear, T-Shirts, Sweatpants, and Shorts • Women’s and Youth • Outerwear and T-Shirts • Toddler/Infant T-Shirts and Hats • Novelties including Dogs Items, Plush Items, Baseballs, Keychains • Baseball Cards and Mini Bats

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PITCHER’S PITCHES The goal of a pitch in baseball is very simple. Throw it for a strike and don’t let the batter hit it. As you journey in to the finer nuances of the game, it becomes more complex. The variety of pitches a player can throw, the mechanics necessary to throw them, and the decision of firing the right pitch in a certain situation morph this straightforward effort in to a challenging artform. So, what are the different pitches used in today’s game?

CURVEBALL

As for off-speed pitches, the curveball is the most well-known. The hand of the pitcher forms a “C shape” with two fingers on the right seam. As the pitcher’s arm comes forward, the ball is snapped downward at the top of the throwing arc to generate a forward spin. This causes the ball to eventually dive. The amount of break on the pitch depends on the pitcher’s arm velocity, the way the ball is snapped, the throw off, the arm angle, etc. The curveball can break straight downwards, which is known as a 12-6 curveball, or slant at an angle while traveling down. On average, a MLB pitcher throws a curveball at 77 MPH. However, with the aid of time, technology, and increasing athleticism, curveballs have more movement than ever before. Two prominent pitchers in today’s game with outstanding curveballs are Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander, while legendary pitchers Sandy Koufax and Orel Hershiser were also known for the deadly breakers.

SLIDER

A close relative to the curveball is the slider, which travels laterally and downward with more speed than a curveball. It is similar to the cut fastball but, has more break and less velocity. Movement of the slider is in direct correlation to the fingertip pressure applied on the ball while a pitcher throws in the same motion as a fastball. With a similar grip to the curveball, pressure is placed on the index (outside) finger instead of the middle (inside) finger. A slider often looks like a fastball out of a pitcher’s hand with a late break, making it exceedingly difficult for opposing batters. Zach Greinke has one of the best sliders amongst current players, while the “Big Unit” Randy Johnson had arguably the greatest slider in MLB history, paired with his 100 MPH fastball. Other pitchers who threw the slider very well were Bob *CONTINUED ON PAGE 45 Gibson, Steve Carlton, and Dennis Eckersley. DAY TON 43 D R A G O N S

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Despite decline in recent years, the fastball is still the most common pitch thrown by baseball pitchers. As the name suggests, pitchers rely on the speed of the fastball to prevent the batter from making contact. Within the fastball category, there are options to make the task of hitting that much more difficult.

FOUR-SEAM

The four-seam fastball occurs when the pitcher grips the two seams perpendicularly with two extended fingers. It is the most common variant and is regarded as the fastest version of a fastball that can be thrown. The downside is minimal movement which could result poorly if the batter times the pitch correctly. The fastest four-seam fastball recognized by the MLB was off the hand of former Reds player, Aroldis Chapman, at 105.1 MPH. Another branch is the two-seam fastball. To throw a two-seamer, the pitcher locates the area of the baseball where the two seams are closest together and places the index and middle fingers on each of the two seams. This takes away from the speed a four-seam fastball has but, adds to the movement. Depending on which finger the pitcher applies more pressure, the fastball can move laterally or sink. Hall of Fame pitchers, including Greg Maddux and Pedro Martinez, were known for their exceptional two-seam fastballs that forced no or soft contact from hitters.

TWO-SEAM

SPLITTER

An increasingly popular pitch is the cutter. To throw a cutter, the pitcher starts with a four-seam grip but shifts the thumb inward and two fingers to the outside of the ball to create more spin. This causes a late shift but looks very similar to a four-seam fastball out of the pitcherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hand. This deceiving grip and unexpected motion can stymie a hitter. Hall-of-Fame closer, Mariano Rivera, had the best cutter in baseball history, throwing it with significant movement and at a speed of up to 96 MPH. The splitter, or split-fingered fastball, is thrown like a fastball but, behaves like a change-up. The pitcher needs long and flexible fingers to grip the outside of the horseshoe seam on the ball. As the ball approaches the plate, it appears to travel in a tumbling fashion, like a knuckleball but, comes in much faster. The pitch breaks downwards late, to the right or the left. Current New York Yankee, Masahiro Tanaka, uses the splitter very effectively, while retired pitchers including Roger Clemens, John Smoltz, and Bruce Sutter, also threw excellent splitters. DAY TON 45 D R A G O N S *CONTINUED ON PAGE 47

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CHANGE-UP A lost art in the game of baseball, the change-up is the least flashy but, can arguably be the most effective off-speed pitch. Held further back in the hand, it is thrown the same way as a fastball, throwing off the hitters’ timing. While there are several change-up variations, the circle change grip is well-known. The pitcher forms a circle with the index finger and thumb while the rest of the fingers sprawl across the seams. With this hand positioning, it can lead to a break in the opposite direction of a curveball along with a slight downward shift. Stephen Strasburg, Lucas Giolito, and Max Scherzer are a few current pitchers who throw a phenomenal change-up. Many consider the change-up the best pitch thrown by Hall of Famer, Pedro Martinez, as well. The knuckleball is one of the more unusual, yet entertaining, pitches in baseball. It’s designed to minimize the spin of the ball, causing erratic and unpredictable motion as it approaches the plate. This is challenging for hitters but, can also be difficult for catchers and umpires to judge. Common terms used to describe the movement of the ball are “flutter”, “dance”, and “jiggle”. Pitchers initially used their knuckles to grip the ball, leading to the name of the pitch. The more common and effective grip is with a pitcher’s fingertips while the thumb is used for balance. The most recent pitcher to use the knuckleball at a high level was Mets hurler, R.A Dickey, who won the Cy Young in 2012. Tim Wakefield and Phil “Knucksie” Niekro also had excellent knuckleballs. An extremely rare pitch, the eephus is thrown with a very high trajectory, at a very low speed. Bearing resemblance to a slow-pitch softball arc, the pitch is normally thrown around 45-55 mph. Pirates pitcher, Rip Sewell, was the first to throw it regularly in the 1940s. In the 1946 MLB All-Star Game, Sewell threw the pitch to all-time great, Ted Williams. Williams swung and missed. He asked Sewell to throw another and Sewell obliged leading Williams to hit a home run. While any professional hitter could make good contact, the challenge is the hitter has to provide all of the power himself. Former Reds first baseman, Tony Perez, is remembered for hitting a home run in the 1975 World Series off an eephus pitch from Boston’s Bill Lee. ### DAY TON 47 D R A G O N S

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