Some context: Patrick John Neshek (born September 4, 1980) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, and Colorado Rockies. The Twins selected him in the sixth round of the 2002 MLB draft from Butler University. Neshek made his MLB debut for the Twins on July 7, 2006, and played for them until 2010, except 2009, which he missed due to Tommy John surgery.
Neshek has a very unorthodox style of delivery that transitions from starting at a submarine angle to finishing sidearm with an explosive thrusting motion. Near the release of the pitch, his torso and arm angle in a moderate "V" shape. He developed the delivery after being struck in the forearm with a ball in high school by C. J. Woodrow (a former Philadelphia Phillies farmhand). He then began to throw side arm and play shortstop due to his injury. When it healed, he could not change back to over the shoulder and his unique delivery stayed the way it is. He still has a lump in his forearm where he was struck. The delivery has earned mention on SportsCenter as well as Baseball Tonight. Professional baseball scouts have had a divided opinion on the issue. Some were worried that this violent-looking delivery would lead to arm problems. Others considered the delivery to be an asset, as right-handed batters have a very difficult time seeing the ball. For example, Jose Marzan, his former manager with the Single-A Fort Myers Miracle believes that one of Neshek's greatest strengths is his ability to have enough strength to throw hard from such an angle, as his fastball used to top out around 96 mph (154 km/h) prior to his Tommy John surgery. Neshek has had great success in both the minor and major leagues as a reliever, averaging more than a strikeout per inning pitched. After joining the Cardinals in 2014, Neshek's sinking fastball showed effectiveness well-above expectations through May 21. With a mean movement of 10.9 inches, it averaged more horizontal movement than any other pitch from any other reliever on the Cardinals staff, which was 1.3 inches more than Carlos Martinez' two-seam fastball. Martinez' own fastball has been heralded for its movement. Neshek's sinking fastball also averaged over 91 miles per hour (146 km/h) during that time, its highest velocity since 2007.
Was he ever injured?
A: He developed the delivery after being struck in the forearm with a ball in high school by C. J. Woodrow
Some context: Dafydd Rhys "Dave" Williams OC (born May 16, 1954) is a Canadian physician, public speaker and a retired CSA astronaut. Williams was a mission specialist on two space shuttle missions. His first spaceflight, STS-90 in 1998, was a 16-day mission aboard Space Shuttle Columbia dedicated to neuroscience research. His second flight, STS-118 in August 2007, was flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour to the International Space Station.
In January 1995, Williams was selected to join the 1995 international class of NASA mission specialist astronaut candidates. He reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995 and completed training and evaluation in May 1996. On completing basic training, he was assigned to work technical issues for the payloads/habitability branch of the astronaut office. From July 1998 to November 2002, Williams served as Director of the Space and Life Sciences directorate with responsibility for research in both physical and biomedical space sciences at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). With this appointment, he became the first non-American to hold a senior management position within NASA. Overall crew medical safety was one of his principal concerns, in addition to flight medical operations and JSC occupational and environmental health. His programs were directed toward protecting astronauts from the hazards of the space environment, including space radiation and microgravity, in addition to maintaining their medical, physical, and psychological well-being while aloft and on return to Earth. His other oversight responsibilities were in the fields of telemedicine, 3-D tissue culture/regeneration in microgravity, the curatorial management of extraterrestrial materials, and of qualifying humans for very long space journeys and ensuring their safe return to Earth. Williams served as an aquanaut on the first NEEMO (NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations) crew aboard the Aquarius underwater laboratory in October 2001. During this mission, he was thrilled to shake hands underwater with Canadian underwater explorer Joe MacInnis. Williams was originally scheduled to command NEEMO 7 in October 2004, but was replaced by back-up crewmember and fellow CSA astronaut Robert Thirsk due to Williams undergoing review of a temporary medical issue. In April 2006, Williams commanded the NEEMO 9 mission. During this eighteen-day mission, the six-person crew developed lunar surface exploration procedures and telemedical technology applications.
How long was he the director for?
A: From July 1998 to November 2002,
Some context: Nash was born on July 9, 1959, to a devout Christian family, in southwest Detroit, Michigan. Nash's father, Robert, died of a heart attack on April 4, 1968, aged 36, when Nash was eight years old. On December 27, 1994, Nash's mother, Wanda, died after a four-year struggle against breast cancer. He attended Aquinas High School, followed by the University of Tennessee, where he majored in psychology and minored in educational philosophy.
Nash debuted in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as the orange-mohawked "Steel", one half of the tag team known as the Master Blasters. He was initially partnered Master Blaster Iron, with whom he made his debut at the Clash of the Champions on September 5, 1990, defeating Brad Armstrong and Tim Horner. At the following Worldwide taping on September 7, the Masters Blasters began a feud with Tim Horner and Mike Rotundo. They would defeat Horner and Rotundo on several house shows. On September 22, Nash's partner Master Blaster Iron was replaced by "Blade". The reconstituted Master Blasters continued their undefeated streak in October. Meanwhile, Nash would have his first singles match on September 28 by defeating Tom Zenk. At Halloween Havoc on October 27, 1990, the Blasters upended The Southern Boys and began to move up the WCW tag team ratings. However, their winning streak would finally come to an end on November 22, when Tom Zenk and Brian Pillman handed them their first defeat with Pillman pinning Blade. They rebounded to go on another undefeated streak by defeating The Southern Boys as well as Alan Iron Eagle and Tim Horner, and earning a NWA United States Tag Team Championship title shot against then champions The Steiner Brothers, but were defeated in two occasions. They were squashed on television in 52 seconds by the Steiners in a match that aired on Worldwide on February 2, 1991. Following this loss, their momentum began to dissipate as the Blasters would suffer follow-up losses to The Southern Boys and Ricky Morton and Tommy Rich. The tag team disbanded at the end of the month. Nash was then rebranded as simply The Master Blaster in February 1991 and suffered his first singles defeat on February 27, 1991 when he was pinned by The Junkyard Dog. He also lost to Brian Pillman in house show matches, while appearing in tag team matches with Stan Hansen and Arn Anderson. His final match in this guise was against Pillman at a house show on May 12.
Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?
A:
The reconstituted Master Blasters continued their undefeated streak in October.