Let’s
Remember What Mr. Keeler Said
Batting coaches throughout baseball have been
espousing this theory that it’s better to hit fly balls than grounders. They
look at the batting average numbers and say the numbers are higher for fly balls.
They’ve got it all wrong. They’re failing to look at all the numbers. They are
missing a key opportunity to get more productivity out of the batting order.
The problem occurs when these batting coaches
encourage players to concentrate on pulling the ball. The distance to hit home
runs is far shorter down the foul lines than in the center of the field.
Therefore, their players turn into pull hitters. What happens next is that
opposing teams see that the batters are hitting everything to the pull side, so
they shift their infield around to put three fielders to the pull side to
swallow up all the ground balls hit there.
You can see an example of what the batters
face when you look at the picture at the head of this post. They say a picture
is worth a thousand words. I’d say this particular image weighs in at several
thousand words as it graphically depicts what these pull-happy hitters are
facing. If there were a view of the left side of the infield in this picture, you would probably only see tumbleweeds.
The solution to this problem is amply apparent
to one William Henry O’Kelleher. (You might better know him by the name he
played under, Wee Willie Keeler.) There are ample opportunities available to
get a base hit if you steer a ground ball to the left side of the infield in
the above picture.
The mistake the hitting coaches make is they
are only comparing the batting average of hitters relative to fly balls and
ground balls. They should check the figures of ground balls hit to the pull
side as compared to ground balls hit to the other side. I’m sure they would
come up with quite remarkable results.
Kevin Long espouses this erroneous theory
about hitting fly balls as opposed to ground balls. I think the Mets show the
results of this philosophy. They score the majority of their runs by hitting
home runs. Last year they had a ghastly RISP. The team has to turn away from being
these one-trick ponies who are only trying to launch the ball into the pull-side
bleachers. They should develop the skill to poke the ball through the wide-open
opposite infield when they find themselves in RISP situations.
Take a look at the numbers for opposite-side
hitting. Poking a 44-hopper through the open side of the infield is going to increase
the player’s batting average, and consequently his OBP. It will also reduce the
need to be so selective at the plate, looking for that one good pitch to hit.
Anything on the outside corner (where most pitches are thrown) can be easily
pooched the other way. I’m sure it would reduce the called third strike on the
batter who is only looking for that one good pitch to drive.
Whenever Richard Herr isn’t solving all the
Mets’ problems, he spends his time writing humorous science fiction novels.
4 comments:
Richard, I agree. Two of the best hitters in Mets' history? David Wright and (for a shorter period) Cleon Jones, who used all fields very well. Someone who is not hitting well right now and who seems to hit a lot to all fields (whether by plan or lack of competence) is Tim Tebow.
Hitting hard grounders into a shift is a losing proposition, because the guys in the shifts wear gloves that catch balls and arms that throw guys out.
Not to turn this into a Tebow comment, but he has only fanned 7 times in his last 10 games, and only once in his last 5 games, so his batting average should start to climb, because contact leads to hits normally.
I was a switch hitter, and years before any 'shifts' came into the game.
Still, I would save all my attempted bunts for when I batted from the left side. I practiced this every day and I could lay down a successful bunt that got me on first at least 50% of the time.
You want to break the shift while, at the same time, increase your team's RISP?
Bunt down third if you a lefty hitter.
good point, Mack, especially for a guy like Grandy who still has at least average speed.
Bunting (with regularity) for Grandy, Duda or Bruce (Conforto?) would at best force the left-side infielder to play a more conventional 3B (they don't get much business at SS anyway) and we'd be back to pull-happy.
Now, putting outside pitches in play the other way would be an earth mover.
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