The Natural (Home Run Swing)

Ryan Howard is ridiculous. Every time I look at a Phillies box score these days he has hit another homer. Today, September 3, he hit three homers to give him 52 on the season, putting him five homers ahead of the incredible David Ortiz (who has been out roughly a week with an irregular heartbeat). How does Howard do it? I don't know. All I can say is that he has a power swing. Some people would say that Howard benefits from playing in the banbox that is Citizen's Bank Park, but I don't think that is helping him that much. I don't see many (if any) of his homers leave by only a few feet. They are usually hit somewhere near the stratosphere.

Those three homers today give him 76 for his career in 240 games. To compare, the great Albert Pujols (the man on pace to shatter some of baseball's most hallowed records, like hits, homers and RBI) has 243 homers in 907 games (and oddly enough he also hit three today, those three are included in those totals). Going strictly by games Howard is on pace to have 287 homers in his first 907 games, 44 homers (or roughly one season worth) ahead of Pujols. If you were to go by at bats (Pujols has 3390 and Howard has 847), Howard is on pace to have 304 homers by the time he reaches Pujols' 3390 at bats.

So, judging by that last paragraph, Ryan Howard is going to blow by whatever numbers Albert Pujols puts up, right? Think again. Here's the kicker. Ryan Howard was born on November 19, 1979, making him 26 years old today, and turning 27 in November. Pujols was born on January 16, 1980. Making him 26 years old today, and 27 in January. Howard is older than people think he is because he played all four years of college ball and then spent the usual two to three years in the minors. Howard looks like a 500 home run guy, but as far as touching the records go, he is going to have to start cranking out 75 and 80 homers a year. But with the way he swings, who's to say that he can't?