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Baseball shifts are as bad as Free Speech?
freerepublic.com ^ | 6/23/2018 | a little elbow grease

Posted on 06/23/2018 4:25:05 AM PDT by a little elbow grease

There is a haunting stirring in the baseball community to establish that fielders defensive “shifts” should be against the rules.

From BusinessInsider.com: “MLB's New Commissioner Is Open To Banning Defensive Shifts To Increase Scoring — Here's A Simple Way To Do It.”

Does this seem to anyone else as more than heavy-handed, almost totalitarian???

Do you suppose that they also will want to impel OUTFIELDERS NOT TO SHIFT, play deeper in the outfield when a power hitter comes to the plate?

Do they suppose to suggest that when a sacrifice bunt is most likely about to be attempted, that the first and third basemen should NOT BE PERMITTED to creep in toward the plate in order to get the ball and throw out the runner at second base for a force play?

Should outfielders not be permitted to shade toward the right field line when a strong left handed pull hitter comes to the plate? My, my.

Baseball has been shifting since Ted Williams and even before that. Now that we realize its effectiveness, we exploit the advantage. Personally, I don't think that this particular strategy EVER should be made illegal.

As a baseball fan said on reddit.com: “People hate the shift when their team hits into it, but love it when the opposing team hits into your shift. It's a part of the game now. Hitters will just have to adjust.

As Wee Willie Keeler used to say, “ Keep your eyes clear, and hit’ em where they ain’t: that’s all.”

I’ll just say this now …………. I find this idea of restrictions on defensive players’ shifts to be about the most ignorant, idiotic, witless, reactionary, vacuous, mindless, unintelligent, half-baked, harebrained, imprudent, unwise, and foolish idea of which I have ever heard.

“If all seven position players want to form a human pyramid behind second base then they should be allowed to.” LOL

________________

LEAVE THE GAME ALONE …………… and hit’ em where they ain’t.


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Sports
KEYWORDS: baseball; rules
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To: a little elbow grease; Whenifhow; null and void; aragorn; EnigmaticAnomaly; kalee; Kale; ...

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141 posted on 06/23/2018 8:57:16 AM PDT by bitt (t\\)
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To: a little elbow grease; gwjack
See post #4.

I saw #4 and #5 but, notwithstanding the well-known adage, "A picture is worth a thousand words.", nothing clicked until I got to Jack's narrative in #10 and my first cup of coffee had kicked in. {;^)

142 posted on 06/23/2018 9:00:29 AM PDT by frog in a pot (Obama's "Remaking of America" will continue in the absence of effective political opposition.)
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To: Alberta's Child
Any thoughts on this, baseball fans?

I think it's a very good idea. Probably way too radical, especially for National League fans. But really worth trying out in some Spring Training games to see what happens.

143 posted on 06/23/2018 9:07:26 AM PDT by Mr. Jeeves ([CTRL]-[GALT]-[DELETE])
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To: Alberta's Child

It would devalue relief pitching as it is used now. It would put more value on relief pitchers that can get both righties and lefties out. Runs scored would go way way up, as would era’s. This would be more drastic than lowering the mound as far as increasing offense. It would devalue bench players, especially pinch hitters in NL. Complete games, no hitters and perfect games would become even more rare.

I might be OK with it. The problem I see is it might actually cause teams to carry less extra bench players and more pitchers. If it made the game faster with less pitching changes I would be for it, the problem is what if they actually start use more pitching changes because they can carry more pitchers on a staff?

Freegards


144 posted on 06/23/2018 9:18:03 AM PDT by Ransomed
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To: bitt; a little elbow grease

Thanks for the ping; post. As a pitcher, I would have liked the idea of a defensive strategic shift behind me although back in my day none were used in high school and college...besides I would have figured I could get the hitter out regardless.


145 posted on 06/23/2018 9:24:14 AM PDT by PGalt
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To: a little elbow grease

A bunt towards third base would be an easy double.

146 posted on 06/23/2018 9:43:13 AM PDT by So Cal Rocket (Task 1: Accomplished, Task 2: Hold them Accountable!)
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To: Ransomed
"The shift is working now because there is a generation of players playing at the highest level that didn’t have to deal with it on their way up. Now they are having a hard time making the adjustment at the highest level. The owners can’t do anything because they are tied up in contracts, so it makes for ugly baseball until the adjustment is made. It might take years and years, hope they don’t panic and change the rules."

_________

Good points ......... and they won't panic. I won't allow it.

147 posted on 06/23/2018 9:44:52 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: Alberta's Child
"That's because advanced analytics were used to determine that it rarely ever made sense in the long run to give up an out just to move a runner up one base."

____________


148 posted on 06/23/2018 9:47:44 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: LakeEffectLad
Think about your playing days. How many times did you exhort your teammates to “make that hurt” or “make them pay” for a mistake (error, missed cutoff, failure to keep the force play intact, walk, etc.). Mistakes. Turn the opposition’s risk into a mistake by hitting against the shift.

However, the game is no longer about “get ‘em on, get ‘em over, get ‘em in. Manufacture of runs is no longer in vogue during the age of launch angle.

And yes, it is an attempt to get millenials interested in a what they perceive as a boring game.

Why don’t millenials like the game? Partly, it has become inaccessible. Gone are the days of pickup games with the other kids in the neighborhood. Everything is organized with travel teams, etc. Highly competitive and excludes the marginal players who’ll be not be likely to develop skills with age and physical ability improvements if they’ve already been told they don’t make the cut.

Additionally, and particularly on the big stage of playoffs, games start late - no more day games. Most playoff games last until after midnight. Baseball would rather sell advertising during prime time than during an afternoon game. Good for the bottom line, not so much for cultivating young fans.

Finally, IMHO, baseball is a thinking man’s game. However, we live in a culture that no longer rewards “thinking”. Just my two cents - thanks for posting. Placing the bags ninety feet apart is one of man’s greatest accomplishments.

_______________

Perfectly said.

*****

ps ---- lol, there was a poster a while back on this thread who actually suggested that baseball would be better if they took 2 feet off the distance between bases.

LMAO!!!! (I'll try to find it if I have time.)

149 posted on 06/23/2018 9:53:52 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: LakeEffectLad
ps ---- lol, there was a poster a while back on this thread who actually suggested that baseball would be better if they took 2 feet off the distance between bases.

*******

It was post # 86

LOL

150 posted on 06/23/2018 9:56:54 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: a little elbow grease; Alberta's Child

“That’s because advanced analytics were used to determine that it rarely ever made sense in the long run to give up an out just to move a runner up one base.”

Bunts and steals from first take away the double play.

If you have more than one above average batter coming up, it’s still a good play in the NL.

Get a runner in scoring position, take away the DP.

Of course NOBODY in the AL (except maybe Houston, who plays like a NL team) even THINKS about this. They think only of hitting the ball over the fence.

Of course they don’t get the LOW strike the NL lives on. That low strike, more often than not, results in a ground ball.

When all pitches are between the gonads and the belly button, why not swing for the fences?


151 posted on 06/23/2018 9:59:32 AM PDT by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: Mariner; usconservative; Alberta's Child
Most starting pitchers could go 150 pitches if they could have the next 9 days off. Hell, most of them could go 150 with 5 days off.

Unless they had to do it 31 times in 6 months.

There are even a few that could do that. But they would not be able to do it for 10 years in a row.

_________________

Please...............

See the stats on complete games for pitchers in my day .... the late 50's, 60's and 70's.

The pitching coaches now and all the "experts" are ruining these pitchers.

152 posted on 06/23/2018 10:01:34 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: Mariner; Alberta's Child
"I would support a rule that says every pitcher must record 3 outs (one inning) before they can be relieved."

_________________

wrong

153 posted on 06/23/2018 10:02:52 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: Alberta's Child; Mariner
Unfortunately, I think the trend in baseball is going the opposite way. I believe the whole concept of a "starting pitcher" is going to disappear, and the general approach to a pitching staff will be to have a series of pitchers lined up to throw no more than 2-3 innings in a game. Even a well-pitched game will use a minimum of three pitchers per team.

__________________

That has been talked about for about five years. It would be the end of the game.

154 posted on 06/23/2018 10:04:35 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: So Cal Rocket

That shift is ridiculous and should be banned.

Third base should be on the left side, SS too and he is required to stay on the left side of 2B unless he is going after a ball in play, he cant set up on the right side of 2nd before the pitch.

Don’t need to see the SS and 2B in short right field, BORING.


155 posted on 06/23/2018 10:04:55 AM PDT by Rome2000 (SMASH THE CPUSA-SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS-CLOSE ALL MOSQUES-GOD WITH US)
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To: Alberta's Child

Beautiful!


156 posted on 06/23/2018 10:05:18 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: a little elbow grease

“The pitching coaches now and all the “experts” are ruining these pitchers. “

Again, most human beings cannot sustain the physical stress of modern pitching.

Most pitchers “back in the day” were not throwing a consistent 95mph fastball, which had to be backed-up with a curve, slider and change-up.

It’s a much tougher, more physical game today.

Oddly, played by a bunch of prima donnas and pussies lol


157 posted on 06/23/2018 10:06:16 AM PDT by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: wild74
but some will say you are still beating him by not letting him hit with power if he is a power hitter

________

They will say that.

158 posted on 06/23/2018 10:08:18 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: Roccus; Mariner
If you don’t appreciate that, you should find another sport.

THAT is exactly why I did.

_________________________

What? Curling?

159 posted on 06/23/2018 10:09:59 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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To: sargon
"Hopefully, the MLB Commissioner will abandon this idiocy as soon as a few actual baseball fans are polled, whereby this patently asinine notion will be laughed out of the room... "

______________

Yes!

160 posted on 06/23/2018 10:11:27 AM PDT by a little elbow grease (Zip ties and duct tape are far more productive than pussy hats and #metoo tweets)
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