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The average MLB hitter hit groundballs 46.0% to the pull side, 40.4% up the middle and 13.6% to the opposite field in 2018. The closest candidates were utility man Ian Desmond and OF Delino DeShields, who still favored pulled grounders over the opposite field variety by a relative 50%. There wasn’t a single batter in 2018 who hit more opposite field groundballs than pull groundballs. An interesting dynamic at play is that all MLB hitters exhibit this tendency. The decision to apply an infield shift is predicated on if the batter displays a reliable bias towards hitting the ball to the pull side of the infield. The central point is that the shift is any formation with three infielders on one side of second base. However, for the sake of sorting data, all of these variations will be grouped into one “shift” bucket.
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Others would position the third baseman closer to the third base bag. Some feature the shortstop playing directly behind the second base bag with the second baseman playing closer to the infield. There are a variety of takes on this format. The third baseman moves into the shortstop position and the remaining left side of the infield is left vacant. Luckily, Baseball Savant and Statcast provide a formal definition, asserting that any formation placing three fielders on one side of second base is a shift.īased on Savant’s criteria, an infield shift against a left-handed hitter would look similar to the picture above, with the shortstop moving into the second baseman’s position, and the second baseman playing a hybrid infield/outfield role that guards against pulled ground balls. However, for as much as the subject is discussed, not much time is spent discussing what meets the criteria of a “shift”. The first baseman and second baseman generally cover the right side of the bag (from the catcher’s perspective), while the third baseman and shortstop cover the left side. Most baseball fans will be familiar with the standard infield alignment, which features two players on either side of the second base bag in a roughly symmetrical formation. (All subsequent data was procured from the amazing search functionality on Baseball Savant). For instance, how much does the shift affect batting average on pulled groundballs? What is the threshold on pulled grounders for when a team should shift? And how much does the shift actually affect the stat lines of some of the game’s most prominent players? These are all pertinent questions in understanding the scope of the shift’s impact and should be relevant to both casual fans and hardcore fantasy managers alike. This article isn’t intended to push an agenda on the debate, but rather to lay the foundation so fans better understand how the infield shift impacts the game. Moreover, the use of the shift is resulting in a surge of easy groundball outs, which, along with the increasing incidence of strikeouts and walks, is contributing to an increasingly homogenous and potentially boring product on the field. Certain player skill sets are getting squeezed out of the game before they even have a chance to adjust. Both situations simply involve the defense positioning its players in the best manner possible to react to the talent on offense and game situation.Īt the same time, the rapidly growing deployment of the shift is producing distortive effects on how the game is played in a very short amount of time. On one hand, the shift is a simple matter of defensive strategy, akin to when a football defense stacks the box against a good running back on first down or goes into a prevent defense on 3rd and long.
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There are potentially viable arguments for both sides of the debate. The tenor of the dialogue has even turned acrimonious at times, with some calling for restrictions on shifting or an outright ban.
#WHERE DOES THE SHORTSTOP STAND ON THE FIELD TORRENT#
In recent years the increasing prominence of the infield shift has launched a torrent of discussion among fans, pundits and players alike regarding its usefulness and place in the game.