The Delicate Genius

Mike Mussina, especially during his tenure with the New York Yankees, has earned the classification of a delicate genius. The origins of the moniker no doubt arise from the fact that he is such a creature of habit and routine that any deviation from it decreases his effectiveness on the mound. One popular anecdote regarding how much Mussina hates any sort of change is how he handled the Yankees' trip to Japan to start the regular season in 2004. Instead of trying to experience a new culture, Mussina spent the duration of the trip in his hotel room. In addition, rain delays are his kryptonite because they ruin his precious schedule and throw him off his game and when Mussina's fielders commit an error behind him, he reacts as if they did it on purpose in order to aggravate him. Perhaps, though, Mussina's reputation as a delicate genius is undeserved.A poorly kept secret in baseball is that the same pitchers who are good at preventing earned runs are equally as adept ...