A Hit is Legit; A Walk, Just Talk
Posted: Fri Apr 28, 2017 10:49 am
Imagine this. You are at your job. You are at your job and you are doing nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Some co-workers walk by trying to entice you to do something, but you do nothing.
You do nothing all day with co-workers still trying to entice you to do something, but you do nothing.
And at the end of the day, you are lauded and applauded by your bosses...for doing nothing.
Even better, you are in the newspaper and on web sites.
For doing nothing and not being enticed by co-workers to do something, you are now mentioned in the press as being good at doing nothing.
In baseball terms, it is called the base on balls.
Batters are enticed by pitches that are not strikes. If they do nothing for four pitches, their boss loves them and they get National acclaim from guys like Brian Kenney who puts a rug down and prays in the direction of the next base on balls.
Back in the day, the base on balls was not an offensive stat at all. Sure, we knew that sluggers were walked more because pitchers wanted to avoid big bats. But for most hitters, a walk was more a product of a pitcher being wild.
Pitcher's wild?
That doesn't happen any longer.
Now, if a pitcher walks three batters in a row, he has 'lost his command'.
Rubbish.
He's wild.
The walk becoming an offensive stat started with sabermetricians.
These were the same kids who bat ninth for their Little League team. They took it to heart when a coach yelled, "A walk is as good as a hit!"
Never noticing that the Coach never yelled that phrase to his previous eight batters.
The coach knew that the best outcome for his ninth hitter was a walk.
In his case, doing nothing, was a far better outcome than swinging the bat.
The kids that hit ninth went to high school and realized that they had no future as a baseball player.
Fortunately or unfortunately, they wanted to stay close to the game and became sabr geeks.
They championed the base on balls.
This was their area of expertise.
They came up with on base percentage. They came up with K/BB ratios.
They wanted their walks to count for something!
When we go to a baseball game, the base on balls is possibly the most boring part of the game.
The base on balls is when we're talking with friends or family because NOTHING is happening.
We are literally watching a batter who is doing the same thing as us. Watching the pitcher play catch with the catcher!
The walk is the most boring part of what most folks consider, a boring game.
And those former ninth hitters for their Little League team love it.
When the best hitter on a home team is intentionally walked, the home fans start to boo.
You know why?
First, because it's dull.
And second because they did not pay to watch a walk, they came to watch their guy hit!
Now, with no pitches needed for an intentional walk, the home fans don't have time to boo.
At least they are spared watching the pitcher play catch with the catcher for four more pitches.
The ninth place hitters succeeded. The walk is in our conscious being.
We are all aware of the walk.
Still lauded.
Look at the RotoWorld view of a struggling hitter in the minors....
'Phillies prospect J.P. Crawford went 1-for-4 on Wednesday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
That hit saw Crawford's average rise to .100. Yikes. There are only two positives to take away from this start: He's still drawing walks (nine in 17 games) and it's still just April.'
Thatababy RotoWorld!
In reality, the walk has not changed. Most walks are due to a pitchers wildness or an unwillingness to face a hitter who is considered lethal.
But, in this politically correct world where we give participation ribbons to kids who do not finish a race, everybody must get a pat on the back.
Even, if it's for doing nothing.
The Kansas City Royals, by far, have been the worst hitting team in baseball during the month of April.
In 21 games, they have scored 54 runs. Two and a half runs a game.
Coincidentally, they have walked 54 times as well.
And if my math is correct, that comes out to two and a half walks a game.
None of those walks have driven in a run.
Only six of those walks have come around to score.
Do you know why?
Because a team needs to HIT to make 'drawing' a walk effective.
By itself, a walk is just a boring walk.
And not a help.
And worse for our former ninth hitting little league friends, it isn't the bottom of the order that draws walks.
Nobody on the Royals roster who hits down in the lineup has no more than three bases on balls.
Raul Mondesi with three on his way to the minor leagues.
Alcides Escobar with three, none of which resulted in a run scored.
Over the years, the walk has gone from a demerit of the pitcher to a credit to the hitter.
In this way, those ninth place hitting little leaguers have won.
They used to say, rather meekly, that they hit .050 as a 10 year old.
Now, thanks to little league wildness, they can puff out their chest and speak proudly about their .300 on base percentage.
Unfortunately for the sabrs, there is a new group coming into the baseball consciousness.
A group that eliminates the walk.
Statcast.
They will measure distances covering ground in the field and exit velocities off of bats.
They measure something that these ninth place little leaguers wanted us to forget.
Atleticism.
Exit velocities off bats is the polar opposite of a base on balls.
Hard hit balls once again triumphs.
Walks, ignored.
Chicks dig the 115 mph exit velocity and yawn at walks.
Figuratively, third hitters are back to stuffing ninth hitters in lockers.
Telling them, "A hit is legit; a walk, just talk."
Some co-workers walk by trying to entice you to do something, but you do nothing.
You do nothing all day with co-workers still trying to entice you to do something, but you do nothing.
And at the end of the day, you are lauded and applauded by your bosses...for doing nothing.
Even better, you are in the newspaper and on web sites.
For doing nothing and not being enticed by co-workers to do something, you are now mentioned in the press as being good at doing nothing.
In baseball terms, it is called the base on balls.
Batters are enticed by pitches that are not strikes. If they do nothing for four pitches, their boss loves them and they get National acclaim from guys like Brian Kenney who puts a rug down and prays in the direction of the next base on balls.
Back in the day, the base on balls was not an offensive stat at all. Sure, we knew that sluggers were walked more because pitchers wanted to avoid big bats. But for most hitters, a walk was more a product of a pitcher being wild.
Pitcher's wild?
That doesn't happen any longer.
Now, if a pitcher walks three batters in a row, he has 'lost his command'.
Rubbish.
He's wild.
The walk becoming an offensive stat started with sabermetricians.
These were the same kids who bat ninth for their Little League team. They took it to heart when a coach yelled, "A walk is as good as a hit!"
Never noticing that the Coach never yelled that phrase to his previous eight batters.
The coach knew that the best outcome for his ninth hitter was a walk.
In his case, doing nothing, was a far better outcome than swinging the bat.
The kids that hit ninth went to high school and realized that they had no future as a baseball player.
Fortunately or unfortunately, they wanted to stay close to the game and became sabr geeks.
They championed the base on balls.
This was their area of expertise.
They came up with on base percentage. They came up with K/BB ratios.
They wanted their walks to count for something!
When we go to a baseball game, the base on balls is possibly the most boring part of the game.
The base on balls is when we're talking with friends or family because NOTHING is happening.
We are literally watching a batter who is doing the same thing as us. Watching the pitcher play catch with the catcher!
The walk is the most boring part of what most folks consider, a boring game.
And those former ninth hitters for their Little League team love it.
When the best hitter on a home team is intentionally walked, the home fans start to boo.
You know why?
First, because it's dull.
And second because they did not pay to watch a walk, they came to watch their guy hit!
Now, with no pitches needed for an intentional walk, the home fans don't have time to boo.
At least they are spared watching the pitcher play catch with the catcher for four more pitches.
The ninth place hitters succeeded. The walk is in our conscious being.
We are all aware of the walk.
Still lauded.
Look at the RotoWorld view of a struggling hitter in the minors....
'Phillies prospect J.P. Crawford went 1-for-4 on Wednesday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
That hit saw Crawford's average rise to .100. Yikes. There are only two positives to take away from this start: He's still drawing walks (nine in 17 games) and it's still just April.'
Thatababy RotoWorld!
In reality, the walk has not changed. Most walks are due to a pitchers wildness or an unwillingness to face a hitter who is considered lethal.
But, in this politically correct world where we give participation ribbons to kids who do not finish a race, everybody must get a pat on the back.
Even, if it's for doing nothing.
The Kansas City Royals, by far, have been the worst hitting team in baseball during the month of April.
In 21 games, they have scored 54 runs. Two and a half runs a game.
Coincidentally, they have walked 54 times as well.
And if my math is correct, that comes out to two and a half walks a game.
None of those walks have driven in a run.
Only six of those walks have come around to score.
Do you know why?
Because a team needs to HIT to make 'drawing' a walk effective.
By itself, a walk is just a boring walk.
And not a help.
And worse for our former ninth hitting little league friends, it isn't the bottom of the order that draws walks.
Nobody on the Royals roster who hits down in the lineup has no more than three bases on balls.
Raul Mondesi with three on his way to the minor leagues.
Alcides Escobar with three, none of which resulted in a run scored.
Over the years, the walk has gone from a demerit of the pitcher to a credit to the hitter.
In this way, those ninth place hitting little leaguers have won.
They used to say, rather meekly, that they hit .050 as a 10 year old.
Now, thanks to little league wildness, they can puff out their chest and speak proudly about their .300 on base percentage.
Unfortunately for the sabrs, there is a new group coming into the baseball consciousness.
A group that eliminates the walk.
Statcast.
They will measure distances covering ground in the field and exit velocities off of bats.
They measure something that these ninth place little leaguers wanted us to forget.
Atleticism.
Exit velocities off bats is the polar opposite of a base on balls.
Hard hit balls once again triumphs.
Walks, ignored.
Chicks dig the 115 mph exit velocity and yawn at walks.
Figuratively, third hitters are back to stuffing ninth hitters in lockers.
Telling them, "A hit is legit; a walk, just talk."