Street: Fans only like velocity because of social media

Huston Street, the Los Angeles Angels' veteran closer with 319 saves on his resume, has averaged just under 88 miles per hour with his four-seam fastball this year - and he's just fine with that.

"I think velocity is one of the most over-hyped things in the game," Street told Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times on Friday. "And, to hear people say that my velocity is down this year is funny. It just is not."

Despite his protestations, Street's velocity is down a touch so far this season, according to Brooks Baseball, but it hasn't made him less effective. Through his first eight appearances, the 32-year-old boasts a 1.35 ERA with a 0.75 WHIP while notching four saves in as many chances.

So why are people so obsessed with the numbers on the radar gun? Well, Street has a theory.

"My honest-to-God opinion of why velocity has become such a hot topic in the media - unlike how big of a deal it was when (Tom) Glavine and (Greg) Maddux dominated for two decades without it - is because of the whole idea of followers," Street said. "It's social media. It's an easy tag line."

After all, Street opined, when a pitcher like Noah Syndergaard or Aroldis Chapman unloads three straight fastballs in the triple digits, people go nuts on Twitter.

"You're talking about velocity, and you put a little graphic across the screen in yellow, or you tweet out, 'so-and-so threw 19 fastballs today and 17 were 100 mph,' and it gets retweeted 500 times, so that becomes a bigger deal," Street said. "If they said I threw a beautiful slider, started at the knees, broke down two inches off the plate and got a nice first-pitch ground out, who's going to retweet that, much less even believe that's what you were trying to do?"