Solving the knuckler

[SteveA]

Perhaps grasping at straws, but two of his losses, and his 2 shortest outings of the year, have come in games where a team was seeing him for the 2nd or 3rd time this year. His stats in the 3 games where a team has seen him before: 15.1 innings, 18 hits, 7 walks. Not nearly as good as his #s when a team is seeing him for the first time this season.

Part of the success of knuckleballers is the unfamiliarity and lack of practice batters have when facing them.

[tntoriole]

Good strategy for a stretch. But if the guy can throw it over consistently your looking at 0-2 counts and no knuckles over the plate.

I would actually start the game taking. Make him prove he can throw it over. Then swing away early once he does.

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I do think there is something to moving up in the box in terms of some of the early vs. last minute break on the knuckler. And I also agree with taking more pitches. In part, the knuckleballer's ability to throw to precise, pinpoint locations is less predictable than pitchers who use a more controllable pitch...i.e. slider or fastball out of the zone. Wright has had success so far because he has been able to do just that, but that could go away in a heartbeat.

[weams]

Don't swing. Don't Swing. Swing.