Cavs in-air team photo becomes instant highlight
March 11, 2015Amidst historic trades, Browns were maybe too quiet
March 11, 2015There is no denying that Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Trevor Bauer is one of the more intelligent players in Major League Baseball. His penchant for mechanics and the how versus the why have made him into one of the league’s brightest young stars. Conversely, these same mannerisms—the pre-game routine, his replies to post-game questions—have made him a target of additional inquires on Twitter.
On Tuesday night, Bauer received a harmless inquiry about “overthinking” on the mound, and the starting pitcher quickly showed why the microblogging platform is the worst when it comes to these types of discussions.
@BauerOutage Honest question, man. Do you ever feel like you're overthinking on the mound? Carrasco attributes success to not overthinking.
— God Mode (@Brill_Grates) March 10, 2015
Bauer, who has apparently received questions like this before, did his best to reply as thoroughly as possible.
@Brill_Grates I know that question shouldn't make me mad but it kinda does. That term "over thinking" is so annoying. What does that even
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates mean? So if an intelligent person explains why he's doing something and no one else understands it's overthinking. But if I
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates say I'm not thinking on the mound and give up a run then everyone will say well maybe you should think on the mound. It's such
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates an oversimplification of a complex issue. Obviously you have to think on the mound. If I have success, great. If not, I am
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates overthinking. And I'm doing nothing different, just the results change. So what gives? Now if someone said I was activating my
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates prefrontal cortex or trying to run a bottom up system from the top down, then we might be able to have a productive discussion
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
Prefrontal cortex. [Mind blown] Perhaps this is what Carrasco is trying to avoid?
Bauer continued on.
@Brill_Grates but I challenge you to even define what overthinking is. Where's the line? How do you even quantify something like that?
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates it's just a way for fans who have no idea why something is happening to sound like they know something when they don't. IMHO
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates that'll conclude my rant. I feel like @drivelinebases right now.
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
[Dust settles]
It would appear, however, that this A-B discussion attracted plenty of Cs.
Gotta give a shout out to all the trolls who have crept back onto my timeline. Glad to see y'all's off season was productive too
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
Lest anyone be concerned that Bauer was overreacting, he was simply using the 140-character medium as best possible. Proving so, he picked back up with the conversation, letting Mr. Grates know that he took no offense to the question despite the potential appearance of such.
@BriannAtl35 @CupOfLoMo @Brill_Grates I'm just here to help the team win. And so I don't get fined haha
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates I know your question wasn't loaded at all or meant in poor taste. Just sick of that term. People throw it around all the time
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
@Brill_Grates and have no idea what I actually do.
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
Realizing that Twitter was probably not the best outlet (despite it being the only way to really get in front of the pitcher’s eyes), Mr. Grates expanded in Twitpic form.
@BauerOutage Thanks for the reply! More detailed version of my question: pic.twitter.com/f2S2QWX207
— God Mode (@Brill_Grates) March 11, 2015
To which Bauer replied…
@Brill_Grates to answer your question, no. I don't have mental issues. I have a very solid mental routine in place. Thanks for your concern
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
Now, about that breaking ball…
@jp_lipovac @drivelinebases the seams create turbulent flow so the spin axis has to go through the correct part of the ball to make it work
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) March 11, 2015
I got dibs on “Turbulent Flow” as the name of my next punk band.
14 Comments
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I have decided that I really like Bauer.
I think it’s intriguing that there’s a guy who pitches for a living who wants to understand both the science of why the ball moves the way it does, and the mechanics of how he can manipulate the ball into moving the way he wants it to. Instead of saying, “Well, if I grip it like this and twist in this jerking motion, it curves” he actually understands the physics. Cool stuff.
I love the Indians.
I think Trevor may have been overthinking that response.
/ZING!
you *REALLY* are a funny guy!!
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Not sure if I agree with the “harmless” description. Maybe this specific instance was meant to be harmless, but we (media, fans, Bill Simmons wannabes) are way too preoccupied with guessing what’s going on in a player’s head, and that only produces all kinds of bad.
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If he pitches as well as he Tweets Indians rotation will be even stronger!
Harmless in the way that the fan didn’t intend on irking the player. No different than when you attempt to calm someone down by telling them they’re overreacting and then it just makes it worse.
Could not care less if Bauer is prickly or badly socialized if he can pitch. The list of great baseball pitchers who were buttholes to fans and media – Steve Carlton, Gaylord Perry, Bob Gibson – is long and illustrious.
But not sure why he needs to be on Twitter if even the most polite fanboy inquiry about his current issues offends his delicate sensibilities.
I agree that in this instance, the fan seemed to have genuinely good intentions. And the platform, with 140 character limits, certainly can alter how each side perceives a statement. But I think that this kind of question stems from a really bad form of analysis where we go around assuming a lot of things in other people’s heads. And now I’m doing that in regard to the questioner. But still, its the kind of stuff that hacks like Simmons and Bayless live off of, and is completely second-rate.
I’m a big Bauer fan, but he really comes across as a jerk here IMO. Trevor challenges him to define overthinking and the guy did it beautifully. Bauer’s rebuttal that he doesn’t have mental problems just seems childish.
“perhaps some of your issues were on the mental side of the game”
I have since the ucla articles that showed he was thinking through the preparation to the game, then more after his montero tiff.