Marcus Stroman, New York Mets. (Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports)
Marcus Stroman has an odd pregame routine, but then again, this is baseball after all.
Wade Boggs used to eat chicken and Marcus Stroman toes the opposite side of the rubber. Yes, you heard that right. The New York Mets‘ right-hander likes to go southpaw during his one-of-a-king pregame routine. Well, okay then.
America’s pastime is built on quirkiness. Don’t get me wrong, but nobody has ever thought about perfecting a windup with their non-dominant hand. Yes, switch hitting is a thing, but ambidexterity in the field, now that is just weird. All this tells us is we have come a long way from dudes eating chicken before every ballgame. Who knows what Gen Z will do in future big-league clubhouses?
If Marcus Stroman needed to pitch an inning left-handed, I guess he could do it
As the old adage goes, practice makes perfect. While Stroman’s left-handed motion to the plate will never likely be stellar, there could come a game where he has to go southpaw, I don’t know, for an inning or two. The Mets don’t want to burn another pitcher in a laugher of a ballgame, and this is what they have to do to record outs. This will be the moment Stroman has been waiting for.
As long as Stroman doesn’t 50 Cent it or Dr. Fauci it, his left-handed windup and delivery should get the job done in gross, gross, gross mop-up duty. Deep, extra-inning games may not happen in this pandemic, but once the world becomes somewhat normal again, Stroman will be ready. Never before have I wanted to see a big-leaguer throw strikes with his non-dominant hand this badly.
If Stroman strikes you out going southpaw, your skipper should send you straight down to A-ball.