Bewerbungen » NEW YORK (AP) — Baseball has transformed at dizzying speed

since Edgar Martinez took his final swing and Mike Mussina Tony Gwynn Jersey , Mariano Rivera and Roy Halladay threw their final pitches.“We don’t have enough time to talk about that,” the ever erudite Mussina said Wednesday when a trio of newly minted living Hall of Famers appeared at a news conference. “The game always evolves — it always has. I’m not sure I love the way it’s changed lately, but that’s just the nature of it.”When Mussina retired Boston’s Dustin Pedroia on a double-play grounder to end his final outing in 2008, a start that made him a first-time 20-game winner at age 39, strikeouts in the major leagues totaled 32,884. That broke a mark that had stood since 2004.There were 41,207 whiffs last year, setting a record for the 11th straight season.When Martinez took his final swing in 2004, grounding into a double play against Texas reliever Brian Shouse, infield shifts weren’t even totaled, employed only for a few lefty pull hitters like Red Sox slugger David Ortiz.Baseball’s Analytics Age, the successor to the Steroids Era, had just begun by 2013, when Derek Jeter and Andy Pettitte walked to the Yankee Stadium mound to remove Rivera. The closer left in mid-inning against Tampa Bay to tears and cheers in what turned out to be his finale, after Yunel Escobar had flied out. That month also marked the final appearance of Roy Halladay, who died in a plane crash 14 months ago and was elected posthumously on Tuesday.There were 34,673 infield shifts on balls in play last year, up from 8,180 in 2013 and 2,357 two years later. Partly as a result, the major league batting average dropped to .248, its lowest since 1972.“In the past when I played, with two strikes we tried to put the ball in play,” Martinez said in the corner of the ballroom atop The St. Regis New York. “I don’t see many players doing that anymore. Two strikes it’s like Dave Winfield Jersey , swing hard still. I wish that could change with the players today.”The Hall of Fame is baseball’s annual celebration of itself. Hall President Jeff Idelson saluted its exclusivity: Among 19,429 major league players, just 232 have been chosen for the Hall, including 132 from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America annual ballot, which requires a supermajority vote.“It is important to note that the magic number remains 75 percent, a figure never attained by anyone who lived in the White House,” BBWAA secretary-treasurer Jack O’Connell said.Having achieved the greatest at the highest level, perhaps these players’ thoughts should count the most when it comes to the sport’s evolution.“As a starter, if you can’t get deep in games, you lose opportunities to win games and you won’t pitch as many innings. There’s a whole list of things that happen,” Mussina said. “So as a starter, I’m not a huge fan of the way it’s going, but I’m not the one making the decisions. I’m an old guy now who just played a few years ago.”Rivera, the first player elected unanimously by the BBWAA, was as succinct with his words as he was with his pitches.“I agree with Moose,” he said. “He’s the man.”Rivera averaged 92-94 mph with his devastating cutter from 2007 through the end of his career, when velocity got as much attention as wins, losses, homers and RBIs. Martinez said the rise of hard-throwing relievers had just dawned in his final years, pitchers who came out of the bullpen throwing 96 and 97 mph.“Now it’s like every team has two or three, so it is difficult,” he said. “I think players adapt to that type of velocity. The more consistently they see it, they will adapt.”Glowing a day after their elections, Rivera Rollie Fingers Jersey , Martinez and Mussina smiled and joked. Rivera recalled getting fined by the Yankees’ kangaroo court for showing Halladay the grip he used for his cutter.They reminisced over youth and obstacles overcome. Rivera was born in the Panamanian fishing village of Puerto Caimito.“I had no shoes, so we had to be playing barefoot,” he said.Martinez struggled through his first five big league seasons with Seattle and didn’t become a consistent top hitter until shifted to designated hitter at age 32, a move he initially fought, fearful a bad year at the plate could end his career.Mussina remembered his first professional season after leaving Stanford, at Double-A Hagerstown in 1990.“First bus trip I got my luggage run over by the bus,” he said. “First game I actually pitched, it rained so hard they couldn’t get the tarp on the field. So I pitched two innings, and so it didn’t really count, and so I got two debuts in the minors, which doesn’t happen all the time.”Rivera and Mussina were former New York Yankees teammates, and Rivera and Martinez are tied by the batter’s unusual success against him. Martinez hit .579 (11 for 19) off Rivera with three doubles, two home runs, six RBIs and three walks.That provided food for thought. Or rather, thought for food.“Edgar has to take me to dinner, maybe tomorrow?” Rivera said. “One of these days. Because of me, his average was better, so therefore, you owe me dinner.”Not so fast, Mussina insisted. Mussina’s 270 victories included 49 that were saved by Rivera — the reliever’s second-most for a pitcher behind 72 for Andy Pettitte.“How many times did I set you up so you could sit up here?” Mussina asked Rivera. “I think you take me some place, that’s what I think.”Rivera was quick with a cutting reply: “Olive Garden.”More laughs and smiles. CINCINNATI (AP) — Sonny Gray had a few hours to make a career-changing decision. The Yankees no longer needed him. The Reds wanted another starter, and they were willing to deal for him so long as he agreed to a three-year contract extension.That’s a big commitment to a team that’s lost 90 games each of the last four seasons. Sure, Gray had a personal connection with Cincinnati — his dad tried out for the Reds’ farm system, and Gray attended his first big-league game at Great American Ball Park. Still Randy Jones Jersey , the Reds have languished in last place for four straight years.What to do? Gray signed on .“I think it’s obviously notable what the Reds have been doing,” said Gray, who agreed to a deal adding $30.5 million from 2020-22. “I’ve got a really good feeling that we’re trying to turn the corner here and we’re trying to start winning a lot of baseball games.”After four years of shedding veterans and tossing rookies onto the field to see what they’ve got, the Reds decided it was time to start moving up again. They rebuilt the rotation through three trades, adding Gray, left-hander Alex Wood and Tanner Roark while getting rid of Homer Bailey.They also overhauled the lineup by acquiring outfielders Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp from the Dodgers.The remake wasn’t confined to the field. They hired David Bell as a first-year manager to oversee the metamorphosis from rebuilding to contending — or, at least, being competitive in the short-term. Significant attendance drops during the rebuild prompted the moves that made the Reds an intriguing team as spring training opens.Instead of wondering how low they’ll go, it’s now more a question of how much ground they can make up in one year in the formidable NL Central.“I think we’ve got a good chance to win now,” Gray said.Some things to watch as the Reds fit the new pieces together in Goodyear, Arizona:NEW LOOK: The rotation got a total makeover, with the three newcomers joining Anthony DeSclafani and Luis Castillo. Bell has to decide how to arrange his new staff. Also, the arrival of Puig and Kemp give the outfield a new dynamic with center fielder Billy Hamilton gone.ROOKIES TO WATCH: Unlike the last few years when rookies came and went, there should be much more focus on veterans. Nick Senzel could have the biggest impact of the youngsters. He’s a career infielder, but the Reds haven’t ruled out giving him a chance to win the open job in center field.THEY’RE SET: The infield returns Joey Votto, Scooter Gennett, Jose Peraza and Eugenio Suarez. The back of the bullpen is set, too, with David Hernandez and Jared Hughes setting up closer Raisel Iglesias.THEY’RE NOT: Center field is their biggest question. They could move Scott Schebler or Puig to the spot, or let Senzel try to grow into the role.ON DECK: Puig and Kemp are free agents after the season, along with Roark, so if it doesn’t work out, there could be trades in July and the Reds could be back to starting over in some ways. At least the fans will have something different to watch when the Reds open their spring schedule against the Indians on Feb. 23 and the regular season at home against the Pirates — a division rival they’re looking to overtake — on March 28.