Gar's revenge

March 15, 2009 5:37 PM

Meet batting stance guy. The NY Times has a neat profile on Gar Ryness, who has the most marketable least-marketable skill in America. He does your favorite old-school players, as well as most of the current MLB team lineups, including the (non-Dutch) stars of the WBC. He's made video appearances for several teams (and MLB TV), and has quickly become a fan and player favorite for his uncanny depictions of players' idiosyncratic moves in the batter's box. In terms of virtual baseball, batting stance guy is slightly more awesome than this.
posted by ericbop (20 comments total)

I have a friend who does the windup of a different obscure pitcher from the 80s for pretty much every pitch he throws during a whiffle ball game. He'll be happy to know that there's may more potential fame for that skill than we thought.
posted by diogenes at 5:53 PM on March 15

Wow! I've never heard of this guy before; his Red Sox impersonations are spot-on! You almost forget for a second but he's even changing batting hands to correspond with the hitters… it's not just mannerisms and nervous ticks he's got cold.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 6:19 PM on March 15

Rush Limbaugh has the least marketable most-marketable skill in America.
posted by DU at 6:19 PM on March 15

I don't even watch baseball and I recognized a couple of those. That guy really is awesome.
posted by DU at 6:25 PM on March 15

Reminds me of all the baseball video games I've played, as the batting stances got more complicated and accurate every year. Part of it's just kind of creepy.
posted by Corduroy at 6:35 PM on March 15

Definitely a Cylon.
posted by Stylus Happenstance at 6:48 PM on March 15

I have a friend who does the windup of a different obscure pitcher from the 80s for pretty much every pitch he throws during a whiffle ball game.

Please to describe this windup.
posted by NoMich at 6:53 PM on March 15

For normal people, it'd be nice to see a cut shot with the real people alongside. I looked for a while, but couldn't find anything like that and got lost in a sea of "I have no idea if this is good or not with no frame of reference".
posted by Brockles at 6:54 PM on March 15 [2 favorites has favorites]

Not only does he do two of my favorites, Mark Grace and Andre Dawson, but he does two versions of each.
posted by Stylus Happenstance at 6:59 PM on March 15

I saw his Cardinals ones on YouTube last year and found myself remembering stances for players I had forgotten all about based only on his impressions. He's amazing. It's such a silly hobby but it made me happy watching him.
posted by AgentRocket at 8:05 PM on March 15

The last two of the 2008 Red Sox playoff lineup are priceless.
posted by schoolgirl report at 8:22 PM on March 15

I spent countless hours trying to perfect my Micky Rivers while playing stickball growing up. This battingstanceguy is awesome. He has an inventory of players that is HUGE.

I would love to see him do an imitation of NBA free throw shooters.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 8:45 PM on March 15

He even used his tongue to make it look like he had a dip in as Moises Alou! That killed me. This guy is great.
posted by PhatLobley at 9:04 PM on March 15

Yankees Suck!!!
posted by ericb at 12:01 AM on March 16

what
posted by tehloki at 1:55 AM on March 16

that'll be baseball then.
posted by the_very_hungry_caterpillar at 5:39 AM on March 16

LoL that is exactly how Kevin Youkilis bats. Hillarious.
posted by MrBobaFett at 7:25 AM on March 16

For some weird reason, battingstanceguy.com is a blocked site at work. Is this also some code phrase I don't understand?

His technique is interesting, something of a physical caricature: he needed to watch a batter only once or twice to memorize his stance. "I try to think of the first thing I see, the characteristic I notice the most, and then just heighten it," he said.
posted by filthy light thief at 8:26 AM on March 16

Check out the Orioles. "Cal Ripken Jr. Cal Ripken Jr. Cal Ripken Jr. Cal Ripken Jr. Cal Ripken Jr." As a baseball fan it's almost impossible not to laugh.
posted by matt755811 at 2:10 PM on March 16

That is just uncanny and delightful. "Playoff Intensity Youkilis" from the 2008 playoff Red Sox put me in grave danger of a screen ruinous spit take.
posted by mostlymartha at 12:53 AM on March 17