Posted by: george stanley (saint_george13@yahoo.com) on Sat Jan 5 03:31:59 2008

> George,
>
> I'm sorry to tell you this but your thoughts are all wrong regarding the hitters plan at the plate.
>
> And give me the reason you consider 1-0,2-0,2-1,3-1 good hitters counts.
> Not that they aren't, but I'd like to know why.
>
> Please be specific.
>
> Jimmy


hello jimmy!
i'm guessing you wrote this question before jw posted the pitch count BA's.. the numbers tell you the answer..
let's start at the beginning.. let's assume you are facing a good pitcher (there are pitchers, & there are good (smart) pitchers)..
a good pitcher is one with excellent control who understands he has the ball in his hand & has the ultimate control of the pace of the game & the superior ability to throw the ball right by the hitter whenever he wants to.. accordingly, he must maintain a very quick pace when pitching... why? because this does not allow the hitter enough time to think about what he is trying to do to him... he reduces the hitter to a see-the-ball-swing-at-the-ball hitter.. to pick your nose & scratch your butt between pitches like jose contreras doesn't do your fielders any good either.. instead of being up on their toes & hoping the ball is hit to them, they are back on their heels, & mentally falling asleep between pitches.. not good.
so now the pitcher wants to throw a first pitch strike so he can get ahead of you in the count.. so as a hitter, when you are facing a good smart pitcher, you do not want to stand there & take the first pitch which will most likely be a be a first pitch fb strike... you will fall in the 0-1 hole... if you watch MLB games, there are pitchers who are always 0-1, 1-2 on hitters... these guys win!! pitchers like contreras who are always 2-0,3-1... they get hit!!a good picther ALWAYS wants to stay out of a situation where he HAS come in there with a good pitch.. that's where he loses the advantage & you are most likely to see the pitch you are looking for... it is a simple matter of what you want he does NOT want.. & vice versa.. a good pitcher never relinquishes his aggressiveness & never gives in to the hitter.. so the hitter must do the same..don't back off! NEVER RELINQUISH YOUR AGGRESSIVENESS!! on the first pitch be looking for a good pitch because in all likelihood that is what you will see....ON 2-0, GET READY TO RIP.. DON'T BE BEGGIN FOR BALL 3!! on the whitesox, i saw podsednik & aj pryzinski do that with mind numbing regularity.. at least aj had the humility to step back out of the box & put a stupid-looking sheepish "hmmm.. that-was-a-real-lollipop-i-just-stood-there-&-watched.. maybe-i-should-have-been-dialled-up-for-that-one"... a real brickhead sometimes.
then there are superior pitchers like maddux & santana who can & do drop a 1st pitch curve ball in there for a strike with regularity.. that's when you got trouble.. instead of looking for the fb, you gotta leave it alone & fall in the 0-1 hole, hoping for a fb on the next pitch..or take your chances hitting the pitcher's pitch.. not a good situation.. which is why those guys are so tough.. maddux not so much because his fb is only about 86 MPH now.. but the guys has 335 wins which is a pretty good endorsement for getting hitters out.. work fast, throw 1st pitch strikes. as a hitter, you gotta come out of the dugout swinging vs a good pitcher, cuz he's not gonna get cutesy with you.. he's coming right at you, & you better be ready to defend yourself, or you're gonna get embarrassed..
the best hitters are always aggressive.. that means they are LOOKING to rip in certain situations.. the key words are LOOKING TO RIP.. but not necessarily bound & determined to swing no matter where the pitch is.. that is what seperates the winners from the losers. how many
times does a hitter stand there looking in the catcher's glove & say "geez, i should have been dialled up on that one!!" don't get caught there.. on the hitter's count, be looking to rip!! that is the key.. rather than looking at it afterward & wishing you had been ready.. so many hitters fail themselves by getting caught lookin when they should be ripping & ripping when they should be looking.. they are always on the wrong foot.. see that a lot in MLB...if you look for it, you see it far more often than it should happen, considering the money involved..