Baseball Talk: Hitting, Pitching, Catching Strategy

tight - you triggered a memory with your question.

Back in '83, Pedro Guerrero was playing 3B for the Dodgers, Steve Sax played 2B. Sax was in the middle of that "throwing slump" that was so famous. He'd make all the difficult plays, but the easy ones, he threw the ball into the stands, that sort of thing. (Sax corrected this).

Pedro started his own defensive "slump" that season. He was interviewed during the season and the reporter asked him about what he thought about at the crack of the bat. Here's his quote.

"First, I hope they don't hit it to me and then I think, 'I hope they don't hit it to Sax.' "

....Those attributes you desribe are aggressiveness and self confidence - they are critical to a ball-player.

corrected typo

 

All the great players have this...much like a basketball player wanting to take the last shot.

I believe this was developed at an early age and stayed with them. Some of the best athletes may be very good players, but lack this skill. Kevin Garnett is a good example...others like Clemens, Martinez, Rose want the opportunity to rise to the occasion. Hence the term (Clutch players)

...and to relate this to HS ballplayers. This is something I look for when watching performances. The fact that they may lose or fail doesn't concern me. It's how they competed. Those are the Players to respect.

 

I agree with you DodgerBlue. It's just another flavor of the month statistic...much like 60 yard times.

It is a measurement and so there is some validity attributed to it, but it's one of many factors culminated in to projecting a good catcher.

I had this conversation with a scout about JK Whited. Now, JK is not the biggest, nor has the fastest POP time, so some scouts were overlooking him. What JK has, that most of his peers don't, is in handling of pitchers. This kid is light years ahead of most in understanding how to control his pitcher and what pitching calls to make. Unfortunately, many scouts play down this importance and place more emphasis on POP times. Just goes to show, that in some cases, scouts were hired by who they knew, not what they knew.

 

Braves you've got a good point.

I wonder about a lot of assoc scouts (the unpaid kind)...If they don't have detailed knowledge of the position, the only thing they can report is "general impressions" and objective measurements.

I would hope that the Area Scout would be aware of the limitations of his various Associate Scouts when evaluating certain position players (i.e. pitcher/catcher). Like everyone, they have their strengths and weaknesses.

IMHO: Have a former pitcher or catcher scout pitchers/catchers.

 

I also understand that nobody wants to jeopardize their jobs. Objective measurements are the best tools to ensure some security....but it stills comes down to " is he a player". It's a crap shoot at best.

But college scouts place way too much emphasis on these measurements...but this opens up another thread

 

Objective versus Subjective
This is going to be old stuff to some of you players

Why use objective measurements versus subjective measurements? Evaluating pitchers, catchers, middle-infielders, etc.? Speed is inherrent - It can't be taught or learned. It can be improved only to a certain degree. The same is true for the arm. It is one of those rare commodities. A strong arm can "learn" accuracy, an accurate arm can't necessarily learn strength.

By the time someone reaches their senior year in H.S., radical improvements in either are the exception, not the norm. A HS guy that hits 86-87 routinely from the bump you can project upwards about 3 mph. This is the average (not the exception). This gives you a pitcher who throws 89-90 in the pro's.

How can you improve your pop-time?

1. You must do long-toss. Your pitchers are out there doing it, join them. This is the single most important thing. Start as a freshman. Coaches, don't use your catcher for convenience during practice. Learn to throw bp to a back-stop. You'll rest his knees and give him time to work on arm strength.

2. How you hold the ball during the throw.

Let me 'xplain that one:

WHAT: We teach our outfielders to instinctively reach into their gloves and rotate their throwing hand to make sure you have a 4 seam grip before you take the ball out of the glove. We do this to accomplish two things. 1). Cut down on tailing action during the throw. 2). Backspin on a 4-seamer provides "lift" so it's easier to throw low and on-line towards your target.

HOW: To learn this, you need a ball, a glove and a partner. Catch a soft-toss and remove the ball, adjusting your grip as grab it. Bring it up the the "ear throwing position" and freeze, then just soft-toss it to him so he can practice the drill. You have to do this Hundreds and Hundreds of times. It can become instinctive. THIS WILL HELP AT EVERY POSITION ON THE FIELD. Adjust it while it's in your glove, NOT while you are going up to the throw position. You can glance into your glove initially while doing this - it' not like duck hunting, 2B isn't going to move - it's still in the same place. Learn to do it without looking.

WHY: Everyone has heard about a 4 seam fastball being faster than a 2 seam fastball. The strange thing is that they both leave the pitchers hand at the same speed. The 2 seamer has more drag on it, thus it slows down faster. Where a 4 seamer will slow down 6-7 mph on the way to the plate, the 2 seamer slows down 10+ mph - that's from 60 feet. The catcher is throwing roughly twice the distance. If a 4 seam FB slows down 1 mph per 7 feet of travel, a 4 seam throw to 2B will slow down 14 mph from launch to catch. A 2 seam throw will slow down 20+ mph from launch to catch. Adding 3-4 mph from routine long-toss and always grabbing in a 4-seam manner will "CUT" that pop time down. In addition, the throws will have less "tailing action" on a 4 seamer, providing a more accurate throw. Pay attention to your thumb to make sure it's directly below your two gripping fingers instead of slightly to one side or the other, which affects speed and accuracy also. Pitchers change their spin/speed through changing their grip while maintaining the same arm action. It's something to try.

Knowing why a coach is teaching you something is half the battle to learning it. Work hard guys.

 

Thanks NCBballFan.

One of the things that I have learned over the time that I have played this game is that all eyes are on the pitcher. Whether it is the opposing team, the fans, the scouts, or your teammates...people are always watching you. Therefore, no action of yours goes unnoticed. Players are going to make mistakes, it is how you bounce back from those mistakes that makes all of the difference. As a pitcher, it is my job when an infielder makes an error to "pick him up" and let him know that I still have confidence in him and that WE are gonna get through it. I let him know that I am going to get him another groudball and that he is going to make the play.

Pitchers: No matter how many errors are made behind you, you can NEVER point a finger. It is your job to compete on the bump and will your team through it. Also...how many times does an infielder try to make an error?..They are trying their best just like you are, so pick them up and compete your butt off.

NCFAN: I hope I answered your question, I couldve written a whole lot more, but our team has workouts and I gotta run.

 

Debate: Is Baseball really losing popularity?

I'm really interested in what you guys think about this.

Has MLB ruined the game for the fans and more importantly, for the kids?

Too much pressure on young kids with "Select" teams?

Too much competition from "other" sports ?

Or is Baseball alive and well and thriving?

I have an opinion, but I'll save it for later

 

How many of us have soap boxes to climb onto for this debate?

Face it guys - baseball is incredibly complex and the rules aren't for the faint of heart ... My wife has spent many a game on the side-lines trying to explain "balk rules" to a lot of fathers. On a lot of plays, I just grin as the other parents in the stands turn to ask her what happened and why after a play was over. Baseball requires your attention.

The game within a game in baseball is more like a dramatic play or murder mystery with subtle nuances and every detail important. The other sports are more in-your-face. If you aren't willing to really WATCH the game, you will end up at the game, waiting for the 3 run homer and miss the point of it.

We do a terrible job teaching baseball on TV. You see MLB and the Little League World Series - that's it. Nothing in between. I would love to see a "baseball network" formed because watching the game will teach you alot.

In the old days (yes Braves - even before my time) every town had a team, the social event of the day all summer was going to watch the town team play the next town over. There wasn't TV and it was the main social event (with Church) that everyone attended. People understood and appreciated the game. But those times will never return. MLB has to learn to market the SPORT not just their product.

"Select" teams have their place after a certain age, but before that, you want the kids just playing the game with their friends.

What's right with baseball? The sport itself is the greatest, most difficult sport in the world. Regardless of what MLB does, baseball will survive. It's a wonderful teacher for kids. (But get rid of the DH)

- - -
"Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets." Yogi Berra

 

Yes, but is it losing it's popularity? and if so, why?