On October 5th
2013, Detroit Tigers ace, Justin Verlander, and Oakland A’s rookie sensation,
Sonny Gray, put on a pitching duel for the ages. Neither pitcher gave up a run
and they combined for 20 strikeouts. The A’s would go on to win Game 2 of the
ALDS 1-0, the best of five series was even at one game apiece. During most
Tigers games and all playoff games I text with longtime friend and fellow
Tigers die hard, Ryan. The texts usually include pessimistic dialogue and
sarcastic remarks directed towards our own players. This game was no different.
Early in the game we were nervous. If you follow baseball you know Justin
Verlander wasn’t exactly himself this year. We were waiting for him to blow it.
As innings passed our excitement grew and we noticed something very
interesting: Justin Verlander was Rick Vaughn.
If for some reason you
have not seen the Major League movies, starring Charlie Sheen as Rick Vaughn, at
least hundred times, well shame on you. But I will quickly summarize the first
movie before diving into the sequel, where our comparisons begin.
Major League, the first
installment of the movie trilogy, is centered around a bunch of outcasts,
has-beens, and forgotten professional baseball players who make up the budget-less
Cleveland Indians. As you can probably predict, since it’s a Hollywood scripted
story, this rag tag bunch of nobodies overcame the seemingly insurmountable
odds and claimed the glory that comes with winning the pennant.
Which leads us to Major
League 2. No longer under the radar, the Cleveland Indians are now full of
superstars. The former nobodies were now finding themselves shooting
commercials, making movies, and going to lavish parties. The added attention
takes a toll on the team as they struggle to perform on the field. These struggles
are particularly evident in the former pitching stud, Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn.
In 2011 Justin Verlander won both the Cy Young and MVP awards, a feat that has only been accomplished by
7 other men in the history of professional baseball. After his historic season,
in which he won 24 games and struck out 250 batters, both good enough to lead the
majors, Verlander became recognized as the greatest pitcher on earth. He was
compensated as such and the endorsement deals popped up faster than Prince
Fielder in a clutch-hitting situation. JV, as us Tiger fans refer to him, also
started dating supermodel Kate Upton. This was the beginning of his demise.
Similarly, in Major League
2, Rick Vaughn began shooting commercials and dating models. He became more
interested in his wallet and appearances, and less interested in perfecting his
craft. Vaughn could no longer throw a fastball, or as he puts it in the film,
“I can’t believe I forget how to throw the heat.”
In 2013 the average speed of
Verlander’s devastating fastball dropped about 4mph, through much of season.
Which may not sound like a whole lot, but ask David Ortiz if he’d rather see a
97mph fastball or a 93mph fastball, and he’ll adamantly state the latter.
It was a sad year. JV had
lost his fastball and began trying to compensate by throwing an absurd amount of
curveballs that simply did not curve. Opposing hitters were smashing Verlander’s
pitches like an angry Bruce Banner. It was apparent to Tiger’s fans that JV had
become more concerned with making out with the hot supermodel and checking his
stock portfolio, that he forgot his roots. The once untouchable Verlander was
human, hell he looked average at best. But a movie can’t end with the
protagonist walking down a lonely road of shame, can it?
The Indians made the
playoffs despite their struggles and found themselves in a battle with the
Chicago White Sox. Vaughn, disgusted at the corporate puppet he had become,
vowed to regain his rightful position as the dominant force in pitching.
As “Wild Thing” by The Troggs
blares throughout the stadium speakers Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn emerges from the bullpen. Equipped with his cut-off leather jacket, skull and crossbow
bedazzled eyeglasses that fans had loved from the original Major League flick,
the Indians stud had returned. Long story short, Vaughn dominated and everybody
lived happily ever after.
October 10th,
2013. Game 5. The Detroit Tigers versus the Oakland A’s in Oakland, California.
The winner moves on to the ALCS to face the powerful Boston Red Sox, the loser
goes home and starts booking vacation plans for the winter. The season is on
the line and the burden of pressure falls on the shoulders of Justin Verlander.
We all know what happened.
Verlander carved through the A’s like a top prized jack-o-lantern at the county
fair. JV had transformed back to his dominant self that had propelled him into
superstardom. The events unfolded like a perfectly polished Hollywood script
that Ron Howard would be proud to direct. Justin Verlander had remembered how
to throw the heat.
