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For all you brand-new readers ... welcome and two things you should know.
1. If you join the conversation, we'll be delighted. And we don't bite. :- ) You don't have to be as expert (in any topic) as Rick in order to chat with us. Also, you don't have to be as expert as my daughter. If you ask "why do they go to the base when they get four balls?" that will actually lead to a fascinating conversation.
So, 'ave at us mate.
2. MoeDawg (Keith) brings the vaunted SSI "cross-training" element when he's talking about hitting, is 'cause he is a scratch golfer, and few things in sports are as similar as the baseball swing and the golf swing.
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DAWG SEZ
Cultural Patience: I've been watching some highlights of Matsui +Son, Kim and some other Korean stars. What stands out is how they wait, weight back, with the bat (letting the ball travel) then they don't seem to try to hit it out, just hit it hard.
I am intrigued. Like the Kuma's who appear to "pause" or "pose" in their motion, Asian hitters (or real good ones) give the perception of having more of this than their American (North/Central/South) counterparts.
Of course, I'm looking at a bunch of BMOC's in their respective leagues and none of those Smoaks.
I'm sure you've written about his in Aiki terms with pitchers, but can not recall if you've done it with batters.
Mr. Oh, of course, was the poster chld for this, with his Ott-like perch. But it seems to be "cultural" in some sense. There is no hurry, or less of it, to my eye, than you see in your typical MLB'er. A "go slow to go fast" approach.
"Wait, wait, wait, attack"
Fill us in. I'm really into that approach, right now.
Both Son and Kim have so many AB's where they rip it the other way, often launched down the LF line, yet they are not "going the other way" (intentionally).
I want guys like this.
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WEIGHT AND WAIT
Wade Boggs' mantra.
If you really are Dr. D's daughter reading this, Wade Boggs was a famous Red Sox hitter in the 1980s who routinely batted .360+ in his prime. He did it by swinging very, very late, "picking the ball out of the catcher's mitt." This gave him more time to see the pitch; it was like he turned the volume down on a 92 MPH fastball until it was 88 MPH. In baseball, guys with 92 MPH fastballs might receive $75,000,000 contracts and guys with 88 MPH fastballs might receive a blog where they can write about guys with 92 MPH fastballs.
Boggs meant, "Keep your weight back as the ball is approaching and wait an extra tick to hit it." He stepped into the box and muttered to himself, Weight and Wait. Now, those are swing keys you can actually apply in 0.4 seconds.
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Moe Dawg has absolutely a great observation about star Asian hitters. We've seen the "pause at the top" with Iwakuma et al on the mound. And I agree that you could perceive this with Ichiro, Godzilla, et al, as though there is a (more) distinct moment in which they're making sure to perceive the pitch before acting.
Keith I would *love* to see an explanation, pro and con, of a (reasonably) exaggerated "pause at the top" concept in golf. Have seen a few weekend warriors on the course who paused for like 2 seconds :- ) at the top of their drives.
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LIFE LESSON
An astronaut once said, "if I had 10 seconds to live, I would use 9 of them to think and 1 of them to ACT."
but .. how EASY is it to do that in the middle of a "spirited debate" with your wife
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MARINERS APPLICATIONS
1) Don't be afraid to enjoy this Iwakuma pause more thoroughly.
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2) Don't be afraid to "buy in" to Asian hitting stars an extra thumb's worth on the scale. Especially with the Royals' approach all the rage among real GM's. Kim and Son are going to get nice contracts and spots in MLB lineups.
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3 a b c) Robinson Cano gains this advantage by INVERTING it with his "fence drill." He defends the jam pitch so beautifully, it "frees" him to wait on the ball. Does that make sense?
Nelson Cruz is known as a cleanup hitter who is --- > well capable of hitting the ball hard to right field. And one of the 3 cleanup hitters who can pull the ball in the air when he chooses to.
Kyle Seager gets many of his "hard RBI" by relaxing and zinging a little shot to LF. Yes, it's trite to single :- ) out these three stars as being good at Wait and Weight, but it is TRUE.
3d) Mark Trumbo, when he is in sync, is actually quite talented at this. And, Trumbo is quite talented at hitting the ball 450 feet. There's a reason the guy is a starter.
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4) Outside of the stars, Chris Taylor is by far the best Mariner at this. When I say "By Far" I mean, there is a huge gap between him and number 2, that being Jesus Montero with Trumbo probably being # three. Dr. D believes in Taylor; like Bill James says, you have to give a young player some time.
Now, how about that discussion of "Wait and Weight" in golf?
Enjoy,
Jeff
