The Club | The resin, Primeau and the ballottage and… Sony Michel!

Show white paw

Since when do pitchers have to have their hand checked by the umpire after innings? Was a culprit caught cheating?

Richard Payette

Response from Alexander Pratt:

Your intuition is correct. It is indeed the fault of cheaters. Their magic potion supplier, a former Los Angeles Angels employee, admitted to having prepared a lotion made from pine resin and rosin. This product allowed pitchers to better grip the ball, or to make it livelier. Umpires began checking pitchers’ hands in 2021.

Where are the full matches?

Why do we hardly ever see pitchers make full games in baseball anymore?

Daniel Fournier

Response from Alexander Pratt:

In 1972, Steve Carlton pitched 30 full games. That’s two more than ALL major league pitchers in 2021. This drop is mainly due to scientific research. Clubs are trying to better protect the arm of their pitchers, reducing the workload. Also, the more the game progresses, the more the batter recognizes the pitches, and the more the pitcher is tired. Hence the interest, for a coach, to call on relievers early in the game.

Primeau and the tie

If not this season, when will Cayden Primeau have to go on waivers before being traded to the American League?

Donald St-Pierre

Response from Simon-Olivier Lorange:

Barring a major turnaround, it’s not going to happen this season. The minimum number of games that Primeau must have played before being placed on waivers is 74. To date, he has played 18 of them. He would therefore have to play 56 games in 2022-2023, which seems unlikely. However, the other criterion is the number of professional seasons, which is four. Primeau is just entering its fourth season. Thus, at the latest at the start of the 2023-2024 season, he will have to go through waivers if the Canadiens wish to give him up to the minor leagues.

They were… 74!

The Canadian has 74 players in his training camp. Is it because management and coaches are mostly new?

Steve Leonard

Response from Simon-Olivier Lorange:

There is no single answer to this question. We can indeed deduce that the new management team wanted to evaluate all the players linked to the Canadiens, the Laval Rocket and the Trois-Rivières Lions. Martin St-Louis, for his part, offered a different explanation, saying he preferred to create smaller practice groups so each player had a better chance of hitting the puck. He also wanted “to show everyone what [que l’équipe] done, how [elle] the fact”, which is somewhat similar to the initial hypothesis.

The situation of Sony Michel

I don’t understand Sony Michel’s situation. Patriots first-round pick, winner of a Super Bowl with them, traded to Rams for 4 picks^e and 6^e tour, then left behind by the Rams after another Super Bowl ring. Michel was then claimed by the Chargers, potential contenders for top honors. I want to believe that he is not the reincarnation of Barry Sanders, but is there something fishy?

Pierre Levac

Response from Miguel Bujold:

Indeed, Michel’s value has been declining for a year or two. Why ? First, as is the case with receivers, there is an abundance of running backs. So unless you’re exceptional players, running backs are interchangeable parts these days. And Michel is a good player, nothing more. The Patriots risked losing Michel without getting anything in return a few months later. As for them, the Rams acquired it because they had several injuries at this position. As for being a former first-round pick, after a few years of career, that’s not worth much in the NFL. So for all these reasons, no, I don’t think there is something fishy in Michel’s case.