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FiveThirtyEight: Smaller baseballs, flatter seams fueling home run surge

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Joey Votto is on pace for a career-best number of dingers this season. Scott Schebler has already clubbed 20 dingers. And Scooter Gennett - yes, Scooter Gennett - now has a 4 homer game to his credit. There's no denying that the rate at which MLB players honk dingers has escalated rapidly over the last few seasons, and FiveThirtyEight's Rob Arthur recently ran a study on the evolution of the ball itself to help determine if that has played a part. His findings? They suggest the ball has certainly changed, becoming more aerodynamic and creating less drag in the air, which helps explain why balls are flying farther (and perhaps why average pitch velocity has risen, too). Interesting stuff!

A Seat At The Table

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I recently got a chance to sit down with a group of fellow baseball enthusiasts to talk about the moments that shaped our baseball fandom. We also got to hear a couple of legends tell some great stories, so if you're a fan of baseball, I think you'll like this.

Don't heckle Joey Votto. It will only end badly for you

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Heckler: [Inaudible] Votto: Pardon me? Heckler: I remember when you used to be good. Votto: I remember when you used to thin.

Cincinnati Reds currently rank as the best defensive team in baseball

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Yes, it's still early in the season. Yes, defensive stats in baseball are notoriously fickle, and often times key ones don't even agree with one another. However, the way the Cincinnati Reds have played defense this year has certainly passed the eye test both in the infield and with Billy Hamilton anchoring the outfield defense. That makes finding out that the team's overall defense ranks as the single best in all of MLB according to FanGraphs' Defensive Runs Above Average not necessarily surprising, but certainly affirming.

Pensacola BlueWahoo Tyler Mahle throws a perfect game

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Reds prospect Tyler Mahle (#10 on MLB.com's Reds prospect list) tossed a perfect game Saturday night, needing only 89 pitches to mow down the Bay Bears. Mahle's season ERA is now down to 0.68 for the year. This was the first complete game shutout for the Wahoos, let alone perfect game. Last season, they threw a combined no hitter in a 7 inning make up game. Congrats to Tyler Mahle!

Reds Prospects Pod

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Chris Berset joined Bat Flips and Nerds and talked a lot about Reed, Garrett, Stephenson and Barnhart as well as missing a September call up and getting over it with GB Baseball.

Dilson Herrera headlines four Reds on World Baseball Classic rosters

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It appears that four members of the Cincinnati Reds' system are on WBC rosters, as they were announced earlier on Wednesday. The Enquirer's C. Trent Rosecrans has the details, as the group is headlined by young infielder Dilson Herrera (Colombia) and veteran reliever Jumbo Diaz (Dominican Republic).

On Baseball Writing With C. Trent Rosecrans

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Red Reporter's own Eric Roseberry had the opportunity to interview C. Trent Rosecrans for the latest episode of "On Baseball Writing." Trent talks about his early career, managing relationships at the major league level, his experience with Reds Twitter, and much more. You can check out the entire conversation at the link.

Michael Lorenzen had one of 2016's best pitches, per FanGraphs

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After bucking his early-season forearm issues, Michael Lorenzen helped bolster the Cincinnati Reds' bullpen during the second half of 2016, mercifully. He did so with a five-pitch mixture, though the bulk of his repertoire featured heavy usage of his fastball (47.9% of pitches) and cutter (33.5% of pitches). FanGraphs' Eno Sarris attempted to quantify which pitches across the league were the 'best' last year based on a few different measurements, and - sure enough - Lorenzen's fastball ranked right near the top, a dominant two-seamer that averaged just under 97 mph for the season.

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