Roy Halladay's postseason no-hitter was an improbable, once-in-a-lifetime performance.
Or is it just a sign of things to come?
If the 2010 season taught me one thing, it was that all the batting statistics achieved during the "steroid era" should not be included in the record books.
After steroids were officially banned from major league baseball and the drug policy became stricter, a new era of baseball began.
Major League Baseball is currently in the process of cleaning up the game, and the effects of this are becoming increasingly evident.
Including Roy Halladay's dominant postseason start, there have been six no-hitters this season. (There would have been seven if not for a blown call in the ninth inning with two outs.)
That's the most no-hitters in a single season since 1991. There were also two perfect games in a season for the first time ever.
The year 2010 has been unofficially deemed "the year of the pitcher," and rightfully so. But maybe it's the batting statistics that need to be looked at more closely.
This was the first time since 2007 that a player hit at least 50 home runs in a season. Even more stunning: from 1955-90, there were only seven players to eclipse 50 home runs in a season, compared to 23 players who did so from the years 1991-2007.
Now, these statistics are nothing new.
After the strike in 1994, attendance for the MLB was at an all-time low. The steroid era began, and baseball recovered due to the increase in home runs. I was affected as well. The home run race in 1998 was one of the most exciting events in baseball history.
What hitters like Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa did for baseball should be appreciated.
After seeing the recent pitching performances, however, I more firmly believe that home runs were simply made less meaningful and that the records set by the hitters in the steroids era can't be counted.
People argue that hitters and pitchers were in the same boat – everyone was taking steroids and had that equal advantage.
But it is no coincidence that the last time there were more than three no-hitters in a season was 1991, before steroids reached their peak. And in 1990, there were six no-hitters.
These numbers point to the fact that baseball is, at heart, a pitcher's sport.
Hitters shouldn't be rewarded for finding a way around this by what can most basically be defined as cheating. What they did for the popularity of baseball was one thing, but their place among the historical records is quite another.
Dominant pitching performances like Halladay's and Tim Lincecum's should not be considered out of the ordinary.
Rather, baseball at its most pure form is finally starting to resurrect itself.
E-mail: jacob.laurenti@ubspesctrum.com
