Seems to me, in this thread, you are the one in this thread with undergarmnt bunching (or staining) issues in your kneejerk defense of Comrade Karlos.

Everyone’s point is that the guy declined dramatically last year and has yet to show signs of bouncing back – not shocking at his age – and that a continuation of his decline would be a problem for the Mets.

What, pray tell, is wrong about that?

And please forgive me all of you b/c I didn’t finish my sentence by saying Delgado’s 1st game S/T game in a while.
Gold jacket, green jacket, who gives a s—-

Ralph got it right only in the technical sense that Steve made the Majors…he was on the Orioles’ MLB disabled list for a few days in 1963 but never appeared in a game. By the time his violent control problems were finally solved, he was injured on a freak play fielding a bunt in ST. He pitched in 1963, 1964, and 1965 but wasn’t that effective.

Also, Dalkowski was NOT a relief pitcher as Kiner alluded to. The Orioles used him as a starter in their farm system. The incident he was talking about must have occured when Steve pitched with Kingsport in 1957 (his first year of pro ball) and was used as a swingman.

I’ve had the privilege of seeing Steve wind up, if not pitch. Imagine a combination of Ted Lilly (upper body), Tim Lincecum (stride, but even longer!), and Pedro Martinez (arm angle) all in one. It sure didn’t hurt his velocity that his arm is basically all sinew and bone. There’s a famous picture of Satchel Paige that has a doctor looking at his arm to see why he threw so hard…think of that picture and you got Steve’s arm.

But why was he so wild? Think Oliver Perez. Steve has borderline retardation and was basically given too much information to digest. His arm slot “wobbled” a bit at first, though that got ironed out by then-Minor League manager Earl Weaver. But what he could never get right was his release point. He’d release the ball just a tiny bit too early and that resulted in his wildness (and also the myth that Steve was scientific proof of a rising fastball). He wasn;t wild in and out, he was wild UP AND DOWN!

BTW, Steve was also mentioned by Ernie Harwell (who DID see him pitch) in the 2006 ALCS. Bottom line: Steve’s a great guy, and it was an awesome anecdote!