Million Dollar Arms?
Start with the premise that one in a million people can throw a baseball very well and multiply that by the population of India exceeding one billion people, which also boasts a healthy love for cricket, and of course someone thought they could discover raw baseball talent in India. That someone was Californian JB Bernstein and he created a reality TV show called "The Million Dollar Arm" that offered a guaranteed $100,000 to the winner of a pitching contest with the chance at winning a million dollars. 37,000 young people (16 to 21 years old) tried out and the top two ranked contestants signed with the Pirates after working out before many MLB scouts. It is speculated they may be the first people from India to sign a professional sports contract in the United States or even outside of India.
According to the program's rankings, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Kumar Patel (both 18 years old at the time & both from Delhi) topped out at 89 and 87 MPH respectively. The videos online show just their talent as raw and very in the style of cricket - the men run towards the plate after throwing the baseball.
The young players' blog reveals as much of the cultural differences ("In the USA we have noticed a trend. They have a tablet or machine for everything to help you.") as it does about the players' abilities. It appears they have received a lot of attention and could become minor celebrities regardless of the outcome - they posted they have an offer to film a reality TV series chronicling their run in the minor leagues. The Pirates official press release quoted senior vice president and general manager Neal Huntington, "By adding these two young men, we are pleased to not only add two prospects to our system but also hope to open a pathway to an untapped market." The players' agent, JB Bernstein said more plainly, "I don't know how many other untapped markets are out there, but India is truly a unique country. Imagine if either of these boys makes it and plays with the Pirates. You could have 300-400 million people tuning into that. I think that would be hard to find in other places."
The blog claims they pitched in excess of 90 a few times. Sight unseen it is hard to judge the talents of the men that are now 20 years old and who have received several months of intensive training. However it is reported during MLB tryouts Patel's top speed was 90 MPH and Singh's top speed was 84 MPH - much faster than I can throw, but not noteworthy for MLB talent. They will play together on the Gulf Coast Pirates in the Gulf Coast League (a rookie league full of players just signed out of college and high school that plays from June through August). I will be surprised if they make it out of that league, it will be amazing if they just get the chance to play routinely. I assume the Pirates define a successful season as enough attention on them in India to generate the next, better talent pool. Season 2 of "The Million Dollar Arm" will attract a lot more young arms and a much better chance at a talented pitcher. JB Bernstein expects half a million to a million young people will try out and the Pirates will be first in line to sign the next best thing to come out of India. It might take a couple more years before this long-term plan yields MLB quality talent.
According to the program's rankings, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Kumar Patel (both 18 years old at the time & both from Delhi) topped out at 89 and 87 MPH respectively. The videos online show just their talent as raw and very in the style of cricket - the men run towards the plate after throwing the baseball.
The young players' blog reveals as much of the cultural differences ("In the USA we have noticed a trend. They have a tablet or machine for everything to help you.") as it does about the players' abilities. It appears they have received a lot of attention and could become minor celebrities regardless of the outcome - they posted they have an offer to film a reality TV series chronicling their run in the minor leagues. The Pirates official press release quoted senior vice president and general manager Neal Huntington, "By adding these two young men, we are pleased to not only add two prospects to our system but also hope to open a pathway to an untapped market." The players' agent, JB Bernstein said more plainly, "I don't know how many other untapped markets are out there, but India is truly a unique country. Imagine if either of these boys makes it and plays with the Pirates. You could have 300-400 million people tuning into that. I think that would be hard to find in other places."
The blog claims they pitched in excess of 90 a few times. Sight unseen it is hard to judge the talents of the men that are now 20 years old and who have received several months of intensive training. However it is reported during MLB tryouts Patel's top speed was 90 MPH and Singh's top speed was 84 MPH - much faster than I can throw, but not noteworthy for MLB talent. They will play together on the Gulf Coast Pirates in the Gulf Coast League (a rookie league full of players just signed out of college and high school that plays from June through August). I will be surprised if they make it out of that league, it will be amazing if they just get the chance to play routinely. I assume the Pirates define a successful season as enough attention on them in India to generate the next, better talent pool. Season 2 of "The Million Dollar Arm" will attract a lot more young arms and a much better chance at a talented pitcher. JB Bernstein expects half a million to a million young people will try out and the Pirates will be first in line to sign the next best thing to come out of India. It might take a couple more years before this long-term plan yields MLB quality talent.
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