This is fun. From Joe Strauss’ latest, talking about New England native Chris Carpenter’s return to Fenway park:
There’s enough tug here for the sidelined former Cy Young Award winner to ask Matheny if he could participate in batting practice. (Carpenter only bunted during pregame work with the Jays.) Permission granted, Carpenter drove five balls over the Monster, each to his teammates’ loud approval. “It felt great,” Carpenter said as batting practice ended.
Fun, yes. But it’s also worth remembering the next time you hear a story about a player impressing everyone in batting practice before a game. If a DL’d pitcher can put on a BP show, a lot of guys can. They’re big leaguers, after all.