Ryan Braun tests positive for PED

[TheGuardian]

No it won't. The initial response comes from the central nervous system. And steroids won't change that. So the speed at which his CNS processes the reaction time does not change. Since you are talking bat speed, it wouldn't matter. He would just swing the bat FASTER but he still wouldn't connect with the ball. You don't get that.

It's like saying that a guy can shoot a pistol faster than the next guy, thus he must be more accurate. One has nothing to do with the other.

Batter A has better hand/eye coordination but swings a bad slower than batter B. Batter A can hit a curve ball but batter B can't. It's because the speed at which you swing doesn't matter if you can't connect the bat to the ball.

Rather than continue arguing just say you don't know what you're talking about and leave it at that.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by TheGuardian

No it won't. The initial response comes from the central nervous system. And steroids won't change that. So the speed at which his CNS processes the reaction time does not change. Since you are talking bat speed, it wouldn't matter. He would just swing the bat FASTER but he still wouldn't connect with the ball. You don't get that.

It's like saying that a guy can shoot a pistol faster than the next guy, thus he must be more accurate. One has nothing to do with the other.

Batter A has better hand/eye coordination but swings a bad slower than batter B. Batter A can hit a curve ball but batter B can't. It's because the speed at which you swing doesn't matter if you can't connect the bat to the ball.

Rather than continue arguing just say you don't know what you're talking about and leave it at that.

I played baseball for a decade - yes, I get what you're trying to say; you're just not correct in saying it. The speed at which you swing is instrumental in connecting the bat with the ball. If you have a slow-ass lumbering swing, you're not going to get around on fastballs. If you can't get around on fastballs, you have to trigger early to keep from getting blown away. If you have to trigger early, you're going to swing fastball and a changeup/curveball is going to kick your ass when you're way out ahead of it. Or you have to cheat to protect from inside fastballs and suddenly sliders away kick the shit out of you.

You're trying to create a distinction between some idiot that's never played and a superstar - that's not who we're talking about. Every single person that plays major league baseball can recognize a breaking ball. All of them. And yes, being able to swing a bat faster absolutely makes it easier for them to hit a baseball.

It allows a hitter to wait back on a pitch longer before committing because he knows he can get the head through the zone quicker. As a consequence, it can let him see a breaking ball before he swings at it. That's the most obvious way a hitter can help his ability to hit a breaking ball through increased batspeed.

And like I said, when he's a tick slower on the uptake for said breaking ball, he can now get the bat into the zone to either tip it foul to survive when he would've missed it, or drive it when he would've popped it up or grounded out with it.

I'm not arguing steroids with you here - I'm arguing baseball. I'm allowing your stated position - that batspeed is increased by steroids - to control the discussion w/r/t the physical impact of steroids. But what you clearly don't understand is that hitting a baseball is MUCH more complicated than you believe it is.

Ultimately, I flat-ass couldn't recognize a breaking ball so I couldn't keep playing; anyone with a show-me curveball would own me. There was no amount of steroids in the world that were going to help me. However, if you're someone that's playing in MLB, or even in the high minors, you're a hell of a good hitter. You can recognize breaking balls and you have good enough hand eye coordination to hit an Aspirin with a broomstick. At that point, the difference between a star and a role-player is purely in the margins.

The additional batspeed generated through the use of PEDs absolutely helps in those margins and absolutely improves a hitter's ability to hit breaking pitches.

If you're trying to make a layperson's response to this, you're not going to be accurate.