The shift.

[RallyMo]

Just bite the bullet and bunt already, Hamilton.

 

If teams want to offer this offense a free base runner, let them pay.

 

What is there to prove by trying to beat it otherwise?

[Blarg]

I think his run scoring double in the first took away his urge to bunt down the third base line.

[laagamer]

Bunting is for the weak (read: National League) 

[Blarg]

He is also concerned ex teammate Colby Lewis will put him on blast on Twitter.

[disarcina]

shift the stance a bit and wait for an outside pitch to push to the left side of the infield and into LF...........

 

I'm wondering - did they pull any sort of shift on Tony Gwynn when he was playing? NO -- (the SS might have moved over and cheated toward the hole as opposed to up the middle a bit) because it they did, Tony Gwynn would pull a Wee Willie Keeler (now that goes way back) and 'hit it where they ain't"

 

Halos should spend a lot of time on this kind of stuff at Tempe.

[CaliAngel]

Love this kind of "smart" baseball RallyMo and can't say I disagree at all.

 

Getting into a teams head by keeping them on their toes is one of those intangibles I think we should be considering at all times.

 

Not saying Hamilton should bunt everytime, but if he's up there with nobody on base to start the inning, fuggit.

[disarcina]

on this kind of stuff -- jearlier this month was up at two games up at AT&T Park -- St. Louis vs. the Giants.

 

Hunter Pence, good ballplayer / RF'er for the Giants.......at AT&T he is shifted to Right- Center, pretty much playing the power alley (on virtually every play --regardless of the hitter (Lefty or Right), regardless of the pitcher (fireballer vs. hitting spots kind of hurler) -- Pence is fast and can get to baseballs but not when the shift is so pronounced -- but in the games I saw, St. Louis (Matheny learned something from La Russa) had several shots into RF (some at the line) that either would have been OUTS if Pence would have simply been positioned straight away OR would have been SINGLES instead of one/two run scoring doubles........

 

I watched Pence's positioning the entire game..........on a very few hitters (not often) he might shift a step or two to his right but not much.

 

I don't get it.

 

Cards won the games and the hits to RF helped make the difference.......I was rooting for the Cards so I was pleased, Giants fans less so.

[disarcina]

laagamer "bunting is for the weak, read NL"

 

OK -- so I guess then the AL game can be described as "Response to shift: GIDP"

[CaliAngel]

Honestly a lot of success in hitting can be brought by looking at the position of the defense before you step in the box, and looking to put the ball in places they ain't. So on a shift for Hamilton, he should be looking to to throw his bat out to push or bloop a ball to left field for something away. Nope, his swing is that he's looking to pull it no matter how far off the plate it is. And when you're looking to pull no matter what an outside pitch is going to turn into a roller right into the shifted infielders.

 

If there's something inside he can turn on, by all means try to jack it. But this is the majors and guys are going to do whatever they want, so he's swinging for the fences all the time.

 

Another thing a poster referred to was Gubi saying there's no reason to be watching on 3-0. And I completely agree with this. Especially with a guy like Trout, indisputably the best hitter in the game. Why on earth would you tell the guy to sit there and watch a salami that everyone in the stadium and their mothers KNOW is coming when he could easily jack it over the fence. It defies all logic. Then, when pitchers start catching on that he may be swinging at 3-0, they might be a little hesitant to not throw one down the pipe, and wah-lah, we instead got a walk, a free runner, instead of it being 3-1 and the pitcher getting back into the at-bat.