THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball

WERE known for their great baserunning.  Look at the current roster, ain’t no way to get good baserunning out of that. Their best baserunner for the last half decade is no longer with the team.  Their current fastest player, Peter Bourjos, hasn’t yet learned how to get on base.

Hunter’s not a dumb guy, and for his first two years ran the bases well.  But for whatever reason he’s turned into an idiot on the bases this year.

The Orioles announcers got all the criticisms in using the short time it takes to head to a commercial:

And what is up with Torii Hunter running into outs? He did it at Camden Yards trying to steal third, and now he runs into an out with the play in front of him.

I was going to say - his boneheaded play earlier this season (stealing 3rd) was done against the Orioles as well.

Agreed that Hunter didn’t use to pull this nonsense.  I don’t know what’s going on his head anymore.

As a Twins fan, I can say that Hunter would make some boneheaded base running plays during his tenure with the Twins.

But - it seems as though this is extra stupid.

Part of it seems to be him having trouble coming to grips with his age.  At 35, he’s no longer has good speed, though at least he’s hitting better than he did in his prime age years.  He still has value as a middle of the order hitter.  He can make things happen with the bat, he needs to come to grips with this the way he did about not playing center field anymore.

But another part of it is just not paying attention to the game situation.  Don’t make the final out at third.  Sure, if the ball was hit to deep RF and the rightfielder made the throw of his life, you can forgive the baserunner for trying.  But on a medium-hit ball to left, with a good defensive LF?  No, you don’t even try, ever.

It must be something in the water out here.  The Dodgers have had their similar share of boneheaded base running plays too (Bowa, Kemp, Loney).