MLB nuggets: Pitch clock working like a charm so far

The pitch clock is the best thing for baseball since the 7^th Inning Stretch.  Games are 26 minutes shorter and there has been less than one violation per game. Bravo!

Max effort: The Monday night awakening (2 homers, 7 RBI) by Max Muncy may just be an indication the Dodger cleanup hitter is back – and much needed.   After hitting .196 last year, he’s was off to a terrible start, hitting just .121 and striking out 16 times in the first 9 games.

Joltin' Joe: In his record-setting season of 1941, Joe DiMaggio had 622 plate appearances.  He had 84 extra-base hits and struck out 13 times. Now that’s a cleanup hitter.

Robbed: Nolan Ryan, he of the 5,000 career strikeouts and seven no-hitters, never won a Cy Young Award.  (It’s the same as Alfred Hitchcock never winning an Academy Award, which he never did).

Great bat: In 104 plate appearances against Greg Maddux, Tony Gwynn never struck out and batted .415.

RBI machine: In 1927, Lou Gehrig drove in 175 runs in spite of hitting behind Babe Ruth, who cleared the bases 60 times that year with his home runs.

Dandy Don: After 12 years of managing (5 with the Dodgers and 7 with the Marlins), Don Mattingly is now coaching.  The 61-year-old is the bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Courting Ohtani: If he becomes a free agent at the end of the season – as is expected – there will only be five teams with the financial resources bidding for Shohei Ohtani’s services – the Dodgers, Angels, Padres, Mets and Yankees. Maybe Seattle.

Under the Radar: While all the talk of free agency next fall centers on Ohtani, don’t forget the Dodgers’ young ace, Julio Urias.  He’s 43-10 over the last four seasons and won’t be 27 until August, right before he becomes a free agent.

Jo's jump: Former No. 1 draft pick Jo Adell is no longer considered a prospect by the Angels, but he’s hitting .353 with 7 home runs in 9 games in the minors (Salt Lake City) and could change some minds in Anaheim.

Fox feats: Nellie Fox had 35 home runs in his entire career and Jimmie (double x) Foxx had 534, but both are in the Hall of Fame, proving there are different ways to get to Cooperstown.

Chap's Stick: The hottest hitter in the game is former Cal State Fullerton (and El Toro High) standout Matt Chapman who was hitting .475 through Sunday for Toronto.

Perfect 10: The Tampa Bay Rays are off to a franchise-best 10-0 start, but most baseball fans couldn’t name a player on their team. The Rays are doing it both on the mound (they have allowed just 18 runs) and at the plate (they have scored 76 runs).  But their schedule has been very weak to date.

Innings eater: Long-time Valley resident Don Sutton holds one of baseball’s more remarkable records.  He pitched 200 or more innings 20 times. That's the most in history.

Pete Donovan is a Palm Desert resident and former Los Angeles Times sports reporter. He can be reached at pwdonovan22@yahoo.com

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: MLB: Pitch clock working like a charm so far