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MLB Network Analyst John Smoltz

John Smoltz joined the Norris and Davis show Thursday morning on Baltimore's 105-7 THE FAN to discuss the return of Wei-Yin Chen to the Orioles' starting rotation.  He says that Chen has a "sneaky fastball," or a fastball that hitters can't recognize when it is thrown.  When prompted about the All Star Game, Smoltz believes that baseball has the truest version of an all star game and is the most interesting to watch.

Smoltz discusses rules he thinks are somewhat goofy in baseball.  He thinks the schedule needs to change slightly in order to avoid certain weather problems in the beginning of the season or make the schedule more balanced.  He believes that the American League and National League both are potentially going to disappear at some point, but the games need to be more "regionalized."

At the start of the season, Smoltz picked the Orioles to win the AL East.  He thinks that there needs to be more depth in the pitching staff.  He then mentions that he believes it to be more challenging to be a closer than a starting pitcher because closers need to be on point every game whereas starters get four or five days to get mentally prepared for the next game.

MLB Network Analyst John Smoltz

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