Long-Reads

Longreads

Friday, September 25, 2020

An Official Guide To Being "Shy of the Cycle"

On Thursday Night, Jose Altuve was a triple shy of the cycle in the same game that Alex Bregman was a single shy of the cycle. This led to an increase in my mentions because, 238 years and a day after the founding of This Country (whatever it is, now), I tweeted the following:


I'm going to guess that it was in reference to Albert F. Pujols' night on July 5, 2014, that saw the Astros take a 5-1 lead and then watch the Angels the next ten runs - including eight runs in the bottom of the 7th - to propel them to an 11-5 win over the Astros. Well, friend, that little tweet earned me a little capital for A Bit. So I thought I'd break down the other scenarios of being Shy of the Cycle.

Triple Shy of the Cycle:

Obviously: A Triple Shy of the Cycle is being "A 2nd Girl Shy of the Threesome."

Home Run Shy of the Cycle:

In 2019, MLB teams hit 6776 home runs and 785 triples. From 2010-2019, MLB teams hit a total of 51,931 home runs and 8,551 triples - a ratio of 6.07 HR/Triple. It's way easier to hit a home run than a triple. Thus, your partner has agreed to chat up a Third Party to gauge their interest. 

Double Shy of the Cycle:

You have one partner willing with an eye on a potential Third, and they've gone to the bathroom to discuss.

Single Shy of the Cycle:

Both partners are willing, but one might throw up at any given moment, so the whole thing is in doubt.

There have been 304 no-hitters thrown in MLB history. There have been 330 instances of hitting for the cycle in MLB history. As one who has been married for Quite A Long Time, I have no interest in the figurative Hitting For The Cycle, but seeing An Actual MLB Cycle would be very okay.