For the Love of Pete! Put the Ball in Play!
It's only May, but the Nationals are already a second-division squad (again), pitchers can't seem to hit the plate, and batters, well, don't get Donnie started. It's baseball season. Wake up!
By Donnie Johnston
COLUMNIST
Football players are usually considered the dumbest athletes on the planet, but baseball players are close to claiming the top spot.
I was watching the Washington-Cleveland game the other night, and the Cleveland pitcher started the inning by throwing two pitches and getting two groundouts.
In an era where pitch count is more sacred than the Pope, you would logically assume that this hurler would try to tie the Major League record (held by many) of getting three outs on three pitches.
If it had been me, I would have thrown the next pitch down the middle, maybe even a batting practice fastball. You know the Washington bench is going to tell the batter to take a pitch or two, so the Nationals’ pitcher gets a break. Worst case scenario, the pitcher gets ahead if he throws a strike.
But the batter might have seen that old fastball coming and disobeyed his manager and popped it up. Three pitches and the pitcher is out of the inning.
But no! The pitcher throws four straight balls, none close to the strike zone, and walks the third batter, extending the inning and allowing the Nationals’ pitcher to rest. Grrr!
The next night the Mets are playing Arizona with the Diamondbacks leading 5-1 with one out in the ninth and a New York runner on third. All Arizona has to do is get two outs before the Mets get four runs and they win the game. Simple. And the odds are strongly in their favor.
The batter hits a dribbler down the first base line. Easy play. The first baseman picks up the ball, tags the runner coming right at him and there are two outs. The runner at third is not running on contact (which I hate), so he is not going anywhere, but even if he does, that run is meaningless. Get the out!
First baseman stands there and looks at the ball and hopes it will go foul, which it did. Why? He has a sure out. Even if the runner at third scores, you have a 5-2 lead and two out. You just need one more out to end the game and the bases are empty! Grrr!
I get frustrated with baseball the way it is played today. Players don’t think when they should think, and they think when they shouldn’t think.
I watch some of these guys at the plate. They will stand there and take two pitches right down the middle, then swing at a ball two feet out of the strike zone. Then they walk stoically back to the dugout as if striking out was perfectly fine. Grrr!
They are guessing, hoping they guess right and get a pitch to hit out of the park. Hitting is reaction. You see the pitch and react to it. You’re not going to out-guess the pitcher one time in 25, which is why so many batters strike out 150-200 times a season.
If you put the ball in play, something good might happen. I watched a Minnesota game recently where the Twins got three runs in one inning without once hitting the ball hard. Soft dribblers, bloops over the infield, ground balls in the hole. In baseball, the soft hits look like line drives in the box score. And when you hit the ball somewhere, you give a fielder a chance to make an error. Hit the durn ball!
I watched one Washington game where the first batter up in the inning took three perfect strikes and then sat down. The next batter never swung the bat and walked on four pitches. When you are in the batter’s box, you’re a hitter, not a stander. Put the ball in play somewhere! Maybe there’s a reason the Nationals are a second division club.
I played baseball for 40 years, and I batted against some Major League caliber pitchers. I never guessed. I reacted. And I never stood there looking for a walk. I swung at the first pitch that was a strike because I figured I might need all three to hit the ball.
I remember striking out only once (I’m sure I did other times) and I went after a high pitch out of the strike zone. Twenty-five years later I’m still kicking myself for not being more patient.
Batters of my generation hated striking out. It was a sign of failure. Now, it is no big deal.
And yes, we faced 90-plus mph fastballs and good breaking stuff just like today. But we reacted. We didn’t guess.
You take what is given to you. If the third baseman is playing way back or in the shortstop hole, a decent bunt is a sure hit. To the average Major League hitter, six or seven bunt hits a year can be the difference in being a.290 hitter and a .300 hitter, if that means anything to anyone anymore.
I alluded to walks earlier. They always seem to score, especially if you walk the first man of the inning. Still, you can’t tell pitchers that. They nibble, run the pitch count up and feel like a hero when they go five innings. There’s no pride anymore.
Anyhow, I better put this column to bed. My blood pressure is rising just thinking about how the game has changed.
Throw strikes, swing the bat and think. That’s how you become a good baseball player.
One final thought. Am I the only one who thinks a catcher’s nose looks like a pig’s snout through these new masks?
Support the Advance with an Annual Subscription or Make a One-time Donation
The Advance has developed a reputation for fearless journalism. Our team delivers well-researched local stories, detailed analysis of the events that are shaping our region, and a forum for robust, informed discussion about current issues.
We need your help to do this work, and there are two ways you can support this work.
Sign up for annual, renewable subscription.
Make a one-time donation of any amount.
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit the link that follows.
This article is published under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND. It can be distributed for noncommercial purposes and must include the following: “Published with permission by FXBG Advance.”