Quote:
Originally Posted by RchW
The shift has been around since the 20's where Cy Williams was the target. It also seems to me that in the 20's if a shift was put on other batters would immediately counter and hit away from the shift. That adaptability is likely why shifts were underused for several decades until a sufficient number of hitters refused to adapt in modern times.
In my opinion if teams, batting coaches and hitters adopted a "break the shift" approach and stuck with it for 2-3 weeks they could dilute shifting enough to create additional risk for the defense. Right now there is little risk which is why the strategy to no surprise is apparently overused.
|
I wonder how much pitching dominance comes into play right now in beating the shift? With a higher overall velocity, spin rate, etc. I wonder if batters are struggling to direct the ball as much as they used to. Maybe most batters are in "just get the bat on the ball" mode.
I'll be curious what moving the mound back a foot does in the Atlantic League.