Double or Nothing

I’ll say this for writers in The Athletic—they’re not afraid of coming off dumb. For example, take Jayson Stark, who on December 3 wrote a column, “The gapper is dead: Who killed the double and triple — and what can MLB do about it?” According to Stark, analytics have dictated a switch in outfield defense. Everyone plays deeper, which reduces the number of extra base hits, that plus far more athletic outfielders. To help prove his point, Stark notes a precipitous decline in the rate of doubles since 1992 and triples since, well, forever. The answer to the problem? Draw a line in the outfield that outfielders would have to be standing at when a ball is hit. Sounds dumb to me. Even worse, at no point in his article does Stark note another, even greater, affect of analytics on baseball, that the expected result of every at-bat should be a homerun or a walk at the risk of a strikeout. Once that idea becomes standard operating procedure, doubles and triples become an afterthought at best, stolen bases something even less. With this mindset, the baseball establishment emphasizes power above all else. I wonder what kind of careers Lou Brock and Rickey Henderson would have today, or Dustin Pedroia. Albie Pearson or Freddie Patek, both 5’5”? Forget about it. I continue to believe female ballplayers could easily play at the level of Pedroia, but will be ignored for a perceived lack of power. Did I mention Pedroia has more than a few HOF supporters? Once upon a time (think before the computer), players were encouraged to “think two” the second they hit the ball. Think Kirby Puckett, who hit 39 doubles at the age of 35. Players without power contributed by going from first to third or stealing bases, the latter of which explains Maury Wills and Patek, who had 385 stolen bases over a fourteen-year career. Those days are gone. And drawing a line in the grass won’t bring them back.