While surfing the net yesterday, I came across the site, mlb4u.com. Which right now is listing players that will be free agents this year or have options that can picked up or declined this year. I was just surfring around and they “predict” (their predictions are not connected to their rumors” that the Mets will pick up right handed starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda. He would have to be posted.
They have a brief description of his arsenal that includeds a mid-90's fastball, forkball, slider and a reverse slider.
The next step was to find out what a reverse slider is.
A reverse slider, according to wikipedia, is called a shutto in japan (or shootball) and it is thrown to right handed batters primarily by RHP. The difference between the reverse slider and a sinker, which it also looks like, is that the ball has less spin, making it break less and have a higher velocity. It also appears to move like a two seem fastball.
So back to Kuroda, who is 32 years old. He has a carear 3.70 ERA with a 91-81 record. Last year in 26 games, his ERA was 1.85. The year before in 29 games, his ERA was 3.17. That year he pitched 212 innings, last year he pitched 182.
I have a feeling we will be hearing more about him. I still have a lot of doubts that he will be coming the Mets, and still have some doubts that he will be posted, just because this is the first news of him I have ever heard.
