Welcome to another edition of the five things I did this week (or don’t like). There must be something in the water of the entire league over the past seven days, because while this column always highlights the pleasant weirdness I caught, they are not often so pleasant or weird. This week, rarity abounds. Some runners are hit by throwing balls, wild acrobatics, appearanceless passes and even hitting. The hot team and the cold team clash, the mistakes become more complicated and quickly get into a difficult situation. So keep an eye on the first base runners and let's get started – after I get used to it, I want to thank Ringer's Zach Lowe, who provides this column format for basketball.
1. Impurity foundation
Jarren Duran has a slow start to the 2025 season. Although most of the problems appear in the disk, everything seems to be a little broken. This unfortunate incident occurred on the base epworm last Thursday. Duran leads the bottom of the 10th inning with a single game. This made him a victory, and he immediately began planning theft of a second base to get into the scoring position. Nick Sandlin checked him:
Then he checked him again:
That's two disconnects; Sandrin is unlikely to try again. Last year, Duran stole 34 bases. He burned quickly. He scored 5-5 this season and has already won this game. The second base is as good as him. So the Blue Jays took extreme measures to call for one of the fewest games in modern baseball, a court:
OK, now this is ridiculous. Two throws and a pitch, even on a competitive pitch to throw Rafael Devers? Jays can't afford to pay more attention to Duran. And you know the wisdom of the classic – after they try to sell, you can steal. So, of course, Duran is riding on the next court. This is a situation, as you can imagine. No leftover disconnect, right on mounds, run in tie games, first of all the elite base stealers. Just one question:
Yes, “basically undisputed” is not exactly the same as “undisputed”. Of course, Jays has limited work, but that's not that they just want to acknowledge the base. The lack of available unraveling means Duran has a big jump, but Tyler Heineman is still allowed to abandon, that's the beauty. It's not a speed – Statcast has Heineman who is solid but not excellent arms, and the throw is just around his normal silk thread. But what a beautiful transfer:
You can see the technology at work here. Heineman began to rise from his squat when he saw Duran’s movement. He grabbed the ball that had both feet moved to the throwing position, which made him move and fire at one move. While his throw is on the right side of the base, all that is done is to move Bo Bichette to the perfect position to apply the tag:
As far as I'm concerned, Duran did nothing wrong here. But when you're in a downturn, things like this always seem to happen. Currently you need less than 100% of the stuff, and the way another team executes is perfect. The situation that is almost always in your favor is trapped in “almost”. Duran will figure things out-but now, luck isn't around him.
2. Dodge ball movement
You've seen it like this a thousand times. The batsman – Jorge Polanco, in this case – hit a weak tapper and was tagged out:
Of course, I didn't put the tag in that clip, and that's because things are going to get a little crazy. Polanco didn't want to do one there, and he quickly noticed something. First, Jake Burger is on fair territory, not across bases. Two, the burger was a little distracted and checked the runners in second place when he closed on Polanco. Third, there is no fine for attempts and failures. So he pressed the spin button:
This really shouldn't work. The wild players have been playing games all the time. But a little distraction, a perfectly coordinated rotation, and a little luck make it work. The burger never fully appreciates the importance of ensuring labels, so he looks back when it is out of place, and BAM:
So many things to keep Polanco safe there. The burger must try to keep the label outside his body, rather than keeping the torso in Polanco and first. He had to look away before Polanco began to spin. Otherwise, he will be able to make adjustments. Anyway, rotation does not automatically succeed. Check the distance close to him again:
The Rangers challenged, and Bruce Bochy was a little annoyed with the referee, but the result was no doubt. Polanco did not leave the base to avoid labels. He avoided a tag exist base. You have to mark a man or base to do one there, and Rangers don't. Just because it looks different from your average game doesn't mean it's illegal.
Why don't we see rotational movements often? Because they don't work. Start doing this often, first basemen never fall. This technique can only work because no one expects it. The next time Polanco tries to spin, he might put on gloves on his chest and “come” for his efforts. But this happened, which led to a game. Two hitters later, a base hit scored, giving the Mariners a 3-1 advantage. I'm sure Polanco wants to get to the ground, but he'll take what he can get.
3. Give 110%
Oh, do you like rotation? Do you want more basketball-style baseball games? I'm with you. So, what about the leg pass?
With Tyler Wade running, it would be a tough game anyway, but Nico Hoerner didn't have a straight game. He brought allegations to the ball from his initial position, trying to find a standard bare-handed obstacle, but when all his momentum was heading towards the plate, his angle was impossible when he reached the ball:
For most outdoor players, the drama will be there. Too bad, too pathetic to throw, but at least the runner stayed in the first place. But Hoerner might smell an amazing defender, so he improvises:
It's too late? Yes, it turns out that it's hard to get too much power on the whole leg. Wade is booking. When you throw your legs away, you can't throw them, so Hoerner's throw is late. But that didn't make the coordination less impressive:
If the catcher runs there, it would be one of the best defensive games of the year. Instead, it's just another order: “Tyler Wade singles over second baseman Nico Hoerner on the ground.” But you have to respect that effort. Hoerner is one of the best second base defenders in the game, and his creativity is second to none.
4. Pitcher practice exercises
For whatever reason, my early baseball viewing was over-indexed on Minnesota twins. They played some partition series and I've been following Al Central Tilts after all the freedoms last year. They have played with the Mets, and I like to listen to the Mets stalls. They unveiled the statue of Joe Mauer – why wouldn't I watch that game? But every time I watch the twins game, I see a pitcher sailing:
This is the first throwing mistake I remember seeing twin pitchers make this year, and it's a llo call. I know Bobby Witt Jr. He knows he will throw the ball first rather than go all out. He just missed it. Witt scored in the next game, kept in third on turnovers, and got a decisive run with a 2-1 royal.
After seeing a throw error, you will not be able to stop seeing them. Louis Varland pulled a little wired a bit (side note, I like his reaction here):
In the next series, chaos reigns. Justin Topa flew one of the easiest shots he'll try all year round:
The next inning, Jorge Alcala tried to do too much when facing a great game:
This year, it's six throw errors on twin pitchers. No other team has more than three pitchers errors. Moreover, the slope has even spread to the actual wilderness. Have you ever seen a second baseman forget that he was playing baseball instead of dodging? Now you have:
It was a difficult start for the twins. After the late season crash in 2024, they are catching up to where they left, which is already below .500. It should be clear that this season is far from over. We give the twins an almost 40% chance of entering the playoffs, ranking second in the AL Central. It's April! There is plenty of time to turn it around. But it was a hasty, hasty start for the Minneapolis year, and the weird pitcher seats swept the team didn’t help.
5. Strike Zone Box in Houston
I have a love/hate relationship with the strike zone box on TV. It makes the game easier to access without a doubt, and following cat and mouse games and pitch types of cat and mouse games are much easier when you can see where the ball crosses the plate. But they broke the immersion and got rid of my beautiful appreciation of the balls that exploded in flight. Where is the ball eventually? I stopped looking because my eyes were focused on the white box.
Over the years, broadcasts have tried different approaches that have reduced attention from strike zones. They make the lines thinner and lighter, and even make the area of the area obscure, rather than not drawing the lines at all. However, I love the efforts of Astros Radio to find happy mediums in the Strike Zone Box, and I hope more teams can emulate this approach. Here is the Angel Broadcast of the Josh Hader slider last Sunday:
It was a nice court, right on the outside edge, but when the point rises, I lost track and intersected with the strike zone line. It's just a deal we've reached on baseball broadcasts – you'll see where the court is, but it'll be distracting. But see how Houston broadcasts show:
Removing some boxes completely changed my view of the court. Now, I can still see the edges of the strike zone, but the stimulation of online coverage doesn't pull me away from the action in the same way. Less visual chaos means easier time after the course, and there is still enough strike zone dividing to understand that the pitch surrounds the edge, which is a close-up move that close.
The soft color scheme of the minimalist area also helped keep me playing. The sweeper cuts a (in) corner of the Mike Trout, but has fewer lines, and less distractions can be reduced even if the ball intersects the graphics on the screen. The stacked box cracked. This makes the game's introduction less obvious to me at least:
I'm sure everyone has a different taste. I know that fans who love the strike zone box and can’t imagine having no one world. I sympathize with their arguments because baseball without strike zone boxes is a tougher sport, and casual observers are reluctant to align with the nuances of the game and the shape of each court. But I hope more broadcasts choose this less intrusive box. I got rid of every Astros game of thinking, the highest compliment I could think of for their broadcast team. Great work, Space City Family Network.
