Okay, let me put this in some perspective.....

Chris Sampston retired 20 hitters and surrendered I think six hits.

If you take away the one K then you get a .240 BABIP. The ML average is .300. That would end up being another two or three hits in a typical game. That might be equivalent to an additional run or two depending on whether a walk was given. The point is this: the fact is that the whole idea of inducing double play balls is largely a myth. A pitcher can keep the ball down in the zone and maybe induce ground balls, but from there it is a matter of luck and a matter of quality fielding as to whether that grounder is a seeing eye single or a double play ball. My point was that this will not be a typical performance for Sampson. He will have plenty of games like this if he remains healthy. He'll also have plenty of games where he gets hit hard.

Harville simply showed that being hard to hit is not as much about velocity as movement and location. However, the idea of "pitching to contact" is a load of BS. The best pitchers try to hit their spots and let the chips fall where they may.

I am a senior writer at thefantasyfix.com and a staff writer at bigleaguesmag.com. The Hall of Fame Index is also still for sale and as relevant as ever.