July 3, 2017

Don't give up.

44 comments:

Mark said...

Be aggressive and things will happen.

Meanwhile, I once got a "triple" on a strikeout.

Original Mike said...

Is "establishing a new baseline" really a thing?

Ryan said...

But he violated the unwritten rule that you can't make a great play when your team is leading by three or more runs.

Ryan said...

These young kids like Orlando Jesus Arcia just don't understand the spirit of baseball. They think its all about being a superstar and making Top Ten on Sports Center. That play was disrespectful.

mockturtle said...

I listened on the internet--didn't get to see the game--and was really swept up in the fervor. I'll be pulling for the Brewers this year, by golly!

mccullough said...

Excellent use of the ump and third base coach as screens. Pitcher should have backed up third, not the catcher. Give the catcher props for quickly realizing his pitcher is a terrible fielder. Left fielder made a valiant effort to get into back up position for throw to third. The third baseman should have sprinted back to bag when shortstop fielded it. Maybe he did and is just slow.

mockturtle said...

Ryan contends: But he violated the unwritten rule that you can't make a great play when your team is leading by three or more runs.

Ridiculous! I've seen the Seattle Mariners blow a ten-run lead in one inning to the Cleveland Indians. The fans were calling the new stadium "No Lead is Safe-co Field".

donald said...

Yes it is Mike.

All y'all got fields of expertise, this is mine.

I see this all the time.

mccullough said...

The shortstop ended up fighting the catcher for the ball as the runner slid home. Nice job by the first baseman to back up the throw home. Can't tell who the hitter was with the fake bunt slash hit, but I'm guessing he ended up on second and not third.

Jim S. said...

Has there ever been an inside-the-park homerun on a bunt? There must have been.

mccullough said...

Poor decision by the shortstop to try and throw out the hitter. His route to the ball was off. Only way he makes that play is if he makes a direct route to the ball.

CWJ said...

Mark wrote -

"Be aggressive and things will happen."

Yep! See '14/'15 Royals for validation. We lost our mojo last year, and started out this year even worse. Somehow we've clawed our way back to 500 by the AS break. But when you're a season ticket holder watching the boys play day in day out, you can see the spark is gone and they are no longer playing as a team. I blame Moss.

Chuck said...

A Twitter question. This was video about Orlando Arcia of the Brewers. In the Tweet, the name of Orlando Arcia is somehow transformed into the incomprehensible "@orlandoarcia9". So obviously, that is a link to the Twitter handle of Orlando Arcia... on which he has never posted anything, apparently.

Am I supposed to be somehow impressed with Twitter as a communication medium? Does anybody on Twitter use real names? Does it change your typing if it picks up that you have used the name of a Twitter account-holder? Does Twitter ever screw up and turn the name of someone you typed, into the name of an unrelated Twitter account-holder?

As for scoring on bunts, it happens. More times than I can count, in MLB. It's basically never a true inside the park home run. It's usually a 2-throwing-error play. A bunt is laid down, the throw to first is wild and goes into a right field corner, and then the right fielder makes another bad throw when the runner challenges his arm and goes to third. The second throwing error lets him score.

This play with the Brewers was a variation on that type of play.

Otto said...

Arcia has guts ,made a bad bb decision. Law of averages would have him out in a rundown. Ann's kind of guy,passion over reality. But as she is well aware, for a more secure life, reality is the name of the game.
And yes Ryan is correct, that is an unwritten rule in BB. That doesn't mean it has never been broken.In the old days, the next time arcia comes up to bat he is dusted back.

donald said...

Ya got yer hits and ya got yer errors. Who is confusing this and why would anybody knowledgeable conflate the two?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Ryan said...
But he violated the unwritten rule that you can't make a great play when your team is leading by three or more runs."

That's a very stupid "unwritten rule." Arcia wasn't out to "make a great play." He was trying to get to 3rd, overslid the bag and decided he might as well try for home anyway, since he was probably going to be out. Good for him for eluding the tag - what would you have him do, Ryan, gently surrender so as not to hurt the Orioles delicate feelings? I didn't see the game, but it looks like the Orioles decided they didn't feel like playing baseball today.

I think Althouse is becoming fond of Arcia. So am I, although he's a bit of a hot dog. He reminds me of Carlos Gomez, who also ruffled feathers, but was always fun to watch.

Birches said...

That was fun.

Meade said...

I gave up as soon as I saw Orlando slide past 3rd but Mrs. Meade immediately called out to the screen, "You can do it!"

Then, just as I was about to meadesplain that, no, that almost never happens, these are pros, and besides, the review will probably show he got tagged at 3rd...

He touched home.

Meade said...

"That play was disrespectful."

Not by Arcia it wasn't. From the moment he took off for 2nd, he was paying the game it's very highest respect.

Paul From Minneapolis said...

My wife asked me "What was the catcher doing way down by third base?" That led to this analysis by us, if anyone cares.

I think the chaos developed in part because the third baseman - who had moved to his left to try to field the roller - looked like was dogging it back to the base to field the inevitable throw. That's why the catcher ended up on top of third base even though he didn't end up taking the throw - the third baseman did I think, kinda lunging back just in time (out of guilt?) even though it probably would have been better to let it go through to the catcher, who being more stationary would have been better-positioned to tag Arcia on the overslide.

So then you had two fielders handling the third base end of the rundown, which is probably why it was the shortstop (!) who ended up running in to take the futile last throw home. Just ahead of the aforementioned catcher, trying this time to sprint back to try to handle his more customary position.

And no, Arcia didn't do anything wrong in a baseball morals sense. He made a bad slide and then took advantage of the dilemma had got itself into.

Paul From Minneapolis said...

(...the dilemma "the other team" had gotten itself into.")

Susan said...

Got himself into more of a pickle than an actual dilemma.

Static Ping said...

Blogger Original Mike said... Is "establishing a new baseline" really a thing?

Yes. See the explanation here.

Once he over-slid, Arcia had the right to go directly to home plate in a straight line from where he started with a 3 foot margin on either side. There is no requirement to return to the third base baseline. The exception is when running to first when there is a play at first, as the article will explain.

As to the play, that was fun. However, the rundown between third and home was poorly executed. If the team executes the rundown properly, the runner is always going to be out. Speed can ruin execution.

DavidD said...

I thought the catcher did a good job of getting out of the way. He trusted his teammates to make the play at the plate and they let him down.

DavidD said...

Is there a write-up someplace of who did what here, keyed to the video?

The shadows and the speed of the action make it hard to follow.

mccullough said...

It's an infield single with the runner scoring from first and the hitter advancing to second on the throw. There was no error on the play. Fake bunt slash hits are extremely rare. There was arguable interference by the catcher blocking third base since he was in the baseline without the ball, which was thrown to the third baseman who was out of position. That caused the runner to slide past the bag. But the third base coach did a helluva job screening the runner from the tag and the first throw home. It was a poor decision by the shortstop to make the first throw and an arguable poor decision by the first baseman to throw to third since the third baseman was out of position. It was great baserunning by the Brewers.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Chuck, the pitcher did not bunt. It was a butcher boy chop and he beat out the throw to first.

Meade said...

Wow. mccullough's descriptions might be even better than Arcia's execution. Well done!

donald said...

The third base umpire got mixed up in there, shoulda been up the line a little. The catcher would have committed obstruction (not here though) and it was indeed a pickle.

Oh and Angel Hernandez is suing MLB for racial discrimination because he's never been a crew chief or worked in a World Series.

A: Hernandez is the worst umpire in the major leagues. Worse than CB Buckner.

B: MLB is all affirmative action all the time nowadays in an effort to get minority (And the big dream, a female) to the majors. Hernandez is in the majors because he's Hispanic.

Angel sucks.

donald said...

Should be minorities.

Limited blogger said...

Just 'fake' the throw, the runner will stop in his tracks, and you tag him out.

Yancey Ward said...

The Russians hacked the Orioles, otherwise Arcia gets put on in the rundown.

BudBrown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Fen said...

This is why it's so annoying when the GOP just caves. You should never give up, you should always fight. Because if you give up, Darwin and Murphy can't help you.

German tank battle. Allies hopelessly outnumbered. But they fight. And the Germans obliterate them. The End? Murphy says hang on a sec.

HQ sends 2 star General in to praise the troops for their glorious victory. 2 star happens to be brilliant tactician, ordered the last 5 victories. He flies in, gives great speech, flies out. Lightning hits plane, plane crashes, genius General dead. And the German army never recovers from the loss.

Bonus points, Rommel called back to Europe, Patton sweeps across North Africa.

The only time a loss is certain is when you quit.

tim in vermont said...

Biggest pot I ever won in poker was drawing to an inside straight and pulling the card. Doesn't mean it wasn't stupid though.

Mrs. Meade immediately called out to the screen, "You can do it!"

Then, just as I was about to meadesplain that, no, that almost never happens, these are pros, and besides, the review will probably show he got tagged at 3rd...

He touched home.


It's like the receptionist who wins the football pool because she chose the Bears over the Rangers when everybody knew the Rangers were better on account of she watched Yogi and Boo Boo.

Henry said...

Here's another never-give-up play from last night:

Dustin Pedroia makes a pinball play.

MadisonMan said...

You miss every shot you never take.

Meade said...

"It's like the receptionist who wins the football pool because she chose the Bears over the Rangers when everybody knew the Rangers were better on account of she watched Yogi and Boo Boo."

Ha!

But really, I think many would be surprised at just how profound her understanding of the game really is. It's a lot of fun to watch with her (even though she tends to "feel sorry" for the other team when our side "runs up the score" on them).

Bad Lieutenant said...

HQ sends 2 star General in to praise the troops for their glorious victory. 2 star happens to be brilliant tactician, ordered the last 5 victories. He flies in, gives great speech, flies out. Lightning hits plane, plane crashes, genius General dead. And the German army never recovers from the loss.

who when where?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

It turns out that play wasn't the only weird thing that happened at the game yesterday. Kato Freakin' Kaelin, famous for being an idiot, won the 50/50 raffle.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I see your scoring from first without the ball leaving the infield and I raise you a Pedroia pinball play

https://twitter.com/lemang01/status/882423110091370497

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Talk about not giving up.

Bob Ellison said...

That's a beautiful play. That guy Arcia showed great baseball skill. As AA says, "don't give up". I love pickle plays, and when the guy in the middle pulls it off, it's a miracle.

Herb said...

actually the wierdest part of that play was the 3b coach getting involved, why was he in the basepath, the 3b even tagged him just in case.