"The trick against Drysdale is to hit him before he hits you."  - Orlando Cepeda

Whatever happened to the brush back pitch? The days of “dusting a player off” are long gone and it makes me mad.  Gone are the days of Bob Gibson, Don Drysdale, and Sandy Koufax.  Very few pitchers today throw inside. And it’s obvious.  It’s a lost art and batters are taking advantage. 

The “brush back”  is a pitch thrown high and inside, usually a fastball, to force the  batter away from the…