Zack Greinke has played 17 seasons in the major leagues, and he remains one of the more fascinating characters of baseball.
From his brutal honesty to teammates until he actually calls up pitches for the hitter, it’s hard to root for Greinke.
Sunday’s game between the Astros and Padres was no exception. It was vintage Greinke.
When Trent Grisham was on his way to San Diego, Greinke was back to call his own pitches. After agreeing on signals with Martin Maldonado, Greinke broke out a 54 mph eephus pitch that was taken for a strike. The field was so slow that Grisham could be seen smiling as the ball went through him.
Just fantastic.
Although players know that Greinke in STADICH eephus pitch, it’s hard to pick up when it’s actually coming. According to Statcast, he threw 28 eephus places last season at an average speed of 63.5 mph. Not one of them went for hits.
That, yes, it is terribly difficult to sit on a 54 mph eephus when a pitch of 90 mph on the corner immediately follows.
In that situation, all you can really do is smile.
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