Posted by: grc () on Fri May 19 15:52:57 2006

> Jack. Assuming you have been following the Bonds homerun chase of the homerun record(s), have you noticed any change in Bonds' mechanics that would have caused him to slump of recent? I figure he is pressing to a degree which is natural. I also noticed that some of the pitchers are crossing him up by actually pitching to him early in the count on occassion and or just giving him pitches in his wheelhouse to his surprise. But 1 for 16 just is not like him. And since many hitters go into slumps at playoff time, this could be typical to observe in other good hitters when they put pressure on themselves. Whatever comments you have on observing his slump is appreciated.

does a great hitter's mechanics REALLY change all that drastically from one year to the next, especially mechanics that he has been using for the lst number of years?....could it be that there is a reason for his decline in performance that is UNRELATED to mechanics?

a list of POSSIBLE factors (other than mechanics) that MIGHT affect performance (note: disclaimer: i am NOT suggesting that any of these particular factors apply to any baseball hitter, pro or non-pro, past, present or future!!!):

the list...age, strength, STEROIDS...