From everything I've seen so far, it seems like Zack Greinke's primary aim coming into the shortened 2020 season was to just toy with everybody.
I mean, seriously, first he was deliberately calling out the signs before delivering pitches and getting outs...
... and now he's randomly whipping out 54-MPH eephus pitches, just for kicks.
Of course, we've seen Greinke's devastatingly slow curves before, but 54 miles per hour is reaching a new level of slow. Most of his Diamondbacks' curves settled in the mid-to-high 60s.
54 miles per hour puts him in some pretty rare company. That's, like, Phil Niekro-level slowness.
And, like Niekro, Greinke is likely destined for Cooperstown. A six-time All-Star, a six-time Gold Glover, a two-time ERA title holder and a Cy Young award winner, Greinke's resume isn't complete yet, though, if it was, it might be loaded enough to get him in the Hall. He's ranked at No. 38 among all pitchers in MLB history in terms of WAR, ahead of Hall of Famers like John Smoltz, Bob Feller and Roy Halladay.
And with nasty pitches like the eephus and the confidence to throw them, we can only expect that number to continue to grow for at least a few more seasons.
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