Axios Sports

April 22, 2021
👋 Good morning! Let's sports.
Today's word count: 1,520 words (~6 minutes).
1 big thing: ⚾️ Hitters, we have a problem


Major league hitters were batting .232 entering Wednesday's action, five points below the worst single-season mark in MLB history, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes.
- Wild stat: Since 1900, just 11 teams have batted .220 or worse. So far this season, nine teams are on pace to join them.
- Sub-.220: Orioles (.218), Giants (.218), Rangers (.218), Mariners (.215), Tigers (.213), Brewers (.209), Indians (.209), Yankees (.205), Cubs (.201).
The state of play: It's no mystery that baseball has evolved rapidly in the past couple decades. Strikeouts and home runs have taken over, and batting average's sabermetric importance has dwindled.
- Yes, but: .232 is still comically low. And, unlike in recent years when low averages were balanced out by huge power numbers, home runs are also down this season.
- With 45 team shutouts through 500 games, MLB is on pace for a record 437. The previous high of 359 was set way back in 1915, at the height of the dead-ball era.
Between the lines: Pitchers control at-bats more than hitters, and the bevy of tools at their disposal to analyze and improve their technique has begun tipping the balance of power into unprecedented territories.
- Improving spin rate in particular has been a game-changer. While hitters learned that increasing launch angle led to more homers, pitchers learned how to bend the ball's trajectory in such a way that launch angle is rendered moot (i.e., more whiffs).
- For a 14th straight season, pitchers are on pace to set a record for strikeouts per nine innings (9.4). And, while called strike rates have more or less leveled off at ~17%, swinging strike rates have been setting new records every year since 2015.
- Seriously, what's a hitter supposed to do with this pitch?
The big picture: Could batting averages climb once hitters (and the weather) warm up? Certainly. But MLB has already seen enough, and is now experimenting with rule changes that could reverse this trend.
- To mitigate pitchers' advantage, the independent Atlantic League will move the mound back this summer.
- And to help hitters get on base more often, defensive shifts will be limited in Double-A.
The bottom line: In 1982, Ted Williams said that "hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in sports." So far in 2021, batters are proving just how right he was.
2. 🔥 Hot streaks: New York, Oakland, Vegas

NEW YORK — The Knicks held off the Hawks, 137-127 (OT), for their eighth straight victory. It's the franchise's longest winning streak since 2014 and catapulted them into fourth place in the East.
- Breakout star: Julius Randle continued his incredible year, joining Hall of Famers Richie Guerin and Bernard King as the only Knicks with multiple 40-point, 10-rebound, 5-assist games in a single season.

OAKLAND — The Athletics beat the Twins in a wild 13-12 extra-inning affair to extend their winning streak to 11 games, the team's longest since their historic 20-game run in 2002, immortalized in "Moneyball."
- Flipped the script: The A's began the season 0-6 and were outscored 50-13 in those games. Weeks later, they're seemingly unbeatable.

LAS VEGAS — The Golden Knights beat the Sharks, 5-2, for their eighth straight win and became the first NHL team to clinch a playoff berth.
- One-sided rivalry: Vegas improved to 15-1-3 all-time against San Jose in the regular season, including a perfect 7-0-0 this season.
3. 🏈 Concussion study inspires practice limits
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Major changes could be coming to college football's grueling preseason in an attempt to create a safer environment for athletes.
Driving the news: In response to a recent study that found that most concussions occur during practice, the Football Oversight Committee plans to recommend new rules for fall camp. Possible changes, per SI...
- Reduce full-padded practices (from 21 to eight).
- Reduce scrimmages (from 3.5 to two).
- Abolish collision exercises (like the "Oklahoma Drill").
By the numbers: The study reviewed 68 concussions in Division I college football from 2015 to 2019, finding that 72% happened outside of games.
- Preseason training was deemed the most deleterious, comprising just one-fifth of the time studied but nearly half of the concussions.
The big picture: This is the latest attempt to dial back the intensity of fall camp. In 2017, the NCAA banned two-a-days, and in 2018, preseason practices were reduced from 29 to 25.
The last word: "Concussions in games are inevitable, but concussions in practice are preventable," write concussion experts Robert C. Cantu and Christopher J. Nowinski.
4. 🏟 Dodgers to offer "fully vaccinated" section

The Dodgers will debut a "fully vaccinated fan section" for Saturday night's game against the Padres.
Details: Social distancing will not be required in the vaccinated section, but face coverings must still be worn.
- The seats are in the loge level, right next to the visiting bullpen, and tickets are still available ($121-$143).
- Fans 16 and older must provide documentation showing that at least two weeks have passed since a final vaccination dose. Children must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours.
The big picture: The Giants have a similar section, which ups the stadium capacity by 1,000, and other teams will likely follow suit in the weeks ahead. Welcome to the (temporary) new normal.


5. 🏈 QB spotlight: Mac Jones
Mac Jones. Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
Five of the top 10 picks in next Thursday's NFL draft could realistically be quarterbacks. This week, we'll meet those signal-callers.
Mac Jones just led Alabama to a championship in one of the most dominant seasons ever. Now, he could go as high as No. 3 in next week's draft, Jeff writes.
Bio: The 6-foot-3-inch, 214-pound, 22-year-old Jones went from a three-star recruit out of Jacksonville to, statistically, one of the greatest college QBs of all time.
After backing up Tua Tagovailoa in 2018 as a redshirt freshman, he became the starter late in 2019 after Tagovailoa's hip injury.
- From that point on, Alabama went 16-1 and Jones went 381-500 (76.2%) with 55 TDs (one rushing) against just six interceptions.
- In the record books: His 2020 completion percentage (77.4%) and passer rating (203.1) are the best single-season marks ever.
The big picture: Jones' lack of athleticism is the biggest knock against him right now, but coming from Bama's pro-style offense gives him a leg up.
- "If I had to win right now ... [Jones] is the most advanced quarterback of any of them," one NFL QB coach told The Athletic (subscription).
- And regarding athleticism, sure, he probably won't scramble for too many first downs, but "just because he looks bad without a T-shirt doesn't mean he's a bad athlete," said another QB coach.
Projected landing spot: The 49ers have been linked to Jones ever since they traded up for the No. 3 pick, and most reports suggest he's still the leader in the clubhouse.
Go deeper:
- Read: The draft's biggest question mark (The Ringer)
- 🎥 Watch: 2020 highlights (YouTube)
6. 🏁 Indy 500: The pandemic's biggest event
The 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 in 2015. Photo: Jamie Squire/Getty Images
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway plans to host 135,000 fans (40% capacity) for the Indianapolis 500 on May 30, making it the world's largest sporting event since the pandemic began.
The state of play: Four of the largest sports crowds of the pandemic era have gathered over the past five weeks.
- 66,352: India vs. England (cricket), March 14 (Ahmedabad, India)
- 54,159: West Coast vs. Collingwood (AFL), April 16 (Perth, Australia)
- 47,218: Alabama spring game, April 18 (Tuscaloosa, Alabama)
- 38,238: Rangers Opening Day, April 5 (Arlington, Texas)
7. ⚡️ Lightning round
Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
❄️ Pic du jour: The Rockies beat the Astros, 6-3, at Coors Field in a game played in freezing temperatures and snow flurries.
⚽️ Olympics draw: The USWNT landed in a loaded Group G, where they'll face a familiar foe in Sweden, ninth-ranked Australia and a New Zealand team coached by former USWNT coach Tom Sermanni.
🏈 New jersey rules: NFL owners have voted to loosen uniform number rules, paving the way for more players to rock single-digit jerseys.
🧊 Easy on the ice: Icing muscles after intense exercise is not just ineffective, it could be counterproductive, a new study in mice suggests.
📚 Good read: Zeb Powell is looking for the "next me" (Michael Venutolo-Mantovani, NYT)
"In a sport whose most famous athletes often are white and usually hail from the world's most impressive mountain ranges, Zeb Powell, a Black Southerner, is one of snowboarding's fastest rising talents."
8. 📆 April 22, 1947: The NBA's first champs

74 years ago today, the Philadelphia Warriors beat the Chicago Stags, 83-80, to win the Basketball Association of America's inaugural championship series, 4-1.
Why it matters: Two years later, the BAA rebranded as the NBA, which still recognizes the original league's history and record books, making these Warriors the first NBA champions.
The backdrop: The ABL (founded in 1925) and NBL (1937) were the top basketball leagues in the mid-1940s, but most teams played in small towns and shoddy venues.
- Walter Brown, the owner of the Boston Garden, didn't see why basketball and hockey teams couldn't share an arena, and thus turn a profit on twice as many nights.
- With that in mind, American Hockey League president Maurice Podoloff was made the first president of the BAA, founded on June 6, 1946, in New York City.
- The BAA was the first basketball league to play in large arenas in major cities, such as Madison Square Garden and Boston Garden.
Teams:
- Founding members: Boston Celtics, Chicago Stags, Cleveland Rebels, Detroit Falcons, New York Knicks, Philadelphia Warriors, Pittsburgh Ironmen, Providence Steamrollers, St. Louis Bombers, Toronto Huskies, Washington Capitols
- Joined from the ABL (1947): Baltimore Bullets
- Joined from the NBL (1948): Fort Wayne Pistons, Indianapolis Jets, Minneapolis Lakers, Rochester Royals
🎥 Watch: Archival footage of the title game (YouTube)
9. 🏀 NBA trivia
Photo: Will Newton/Getty Images
Bradley Beal (31.0 ppg) and the Wizards beat Steph Curry (31.1 ppg) and the Warriors on Wednesday in a battle of the NBA's top two scorers.
- Question: Which two players are tied for third in scoring (28.6 ppg)?
- Hint: Neither played Power 5 college hoops, and neither are named Giannis (he ranks fifth at 28.5 ppg).
Answer at the bottom.
10. 🎥 Wednesday's top plays

Talk tomorrow,
Kendall "How can you not be romantic about baseball?" Baker
Trivia answer: Luka Dončić and Damian Lillard
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