The Defense Thread, 2017

[Rick_Schu]

Looked like there was some back-and-forth between Mr Jones and the sawx fans. LOVE IT!  

[OFFNY]

o

 

(vs. RED SOX, 5/02)

 

Triple plays are strange (and rare) enough.

The one that the Orioles managed to finagle in tonight's game was almost beyond belief. 

It was stranger than the triple play that the Orioles ran themselves into at Yankee Stadium in 2013 into when LA-2 and myself were watching from the upper deck.

 

 

 

o

[Moshagge3]

7 minutes ago, OFFNY said:

o

 

(vs. RED SOX, 5/02)

 

Triple plays are strange (and rare) enough.

The one that the Orioles managed to finagle in tonight's game was almost beyond belief. 

It was stranger than the triple play that the Orioles ran themselves into at Yankee Stadium in 2013 into when LA-2 and myself were watching from the upper deck.

 

 

 

o

It was a carbon copy of the Orioles' last triple play in 2000, although in that one Melvin Mora let it fall on purpose.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2000-09-02/sports/0009020316_1_orioles-mora-triple-play

[Frobby]

Adam Jones made a couple of nice running catches in this game, but he let Betts' hit get over his head for a two-run double to give Boston a three-run cushion in the 7th.     It was a very difficult play, but it looked to me like Jones misjudged how hard the ball was hit and never got quite to full speed going back on the ball, and also took a route that was slightly to the left of where he needed to be.     It would have been a 4-5 star catch, but it was catchable IMO.

Earlier in the inning, Hart made two nice plays on comebackers, getting a lead runner at 2B with a quick, accurate throw, and nailing a runner at the plate by getting quickly off the mound and making a good throw to Caleb, who made a good tag.   

[Frobby]

Game 26, May 3

- JJ Hardy had a ball skip through his legs on a bad hop for an error, and later air mailed a throw to the plate trying to nail a runner.

- Manny made a throwing error that I didn't see. 

- Caleb Joseph had a passed ball.

- Bleier and Schoop turned a very slick 1-4-3 double play.    

- There was a crazy play where Davis ranged way over towards 2B to field a grounder, made an ill-advised throw, that went past Davis, and whoever backed up the play tried to catch Betts off the base and his throw ricocheted off Betts' knee.      

[LA2]

On May 2, 2017 at 10:05 PM, Frobby said:

Adam Jones made a couple of nice running catches in this game, but he let Betts' hit get over his head for a two-run double to give Boston a three-run cushion in the 7th.     It was a very difficult play, but it looked to me like Jones misjudged how hard the ball was hit and never got quite to full speed going back on the ball, and also took a route that was slightly to the left of where he needed to be.     It would have been a 4-5 star catch, but it was catchable IMO.

Earlier in the inning, Hart made two nice plays on comebackers, getting a lead runner at 2B with a quick, accurate throw, and nailing a runner at the plate by getting quickly off the mound and making a good throw to Caleb, who made a good tag.   

I agree that Adam misjudged the ball and got a very late jump on it. Noticed that the announcers covered for him, saying he was playing deep enough, it was just hit too far, just beyond his leap.

[Frobby]

Game 27, May 4

- In the .7th, the Sox got two infield hits, one that Hart couldn't handle and one that Schoop couldn't handle.    But after a walk loaded the bases, Rickard made a nice lunging catch deep in the corner to extract the O's from the inning.   I think he misjudged the ball a little and made the catch a little tougher than it had to be, but the bottom line is, he made it.   

- Hardy and Schoop turned a nice 6-4-3 DP, with an especially strong throw from Schoop.  

- There was some kind of rundown play where Davis didn't throw home and a run scored.    I don't know the details.   

[Frobby]

Thanks for the description of the rundown play.     Sounds bad.  

[Frobby]

Game 28, May 5

I only saw the 9th inning.    With runners on 1st and 2nd, a potential DP grounder was hit to Hardy, but he bobbled the ball while transferring it to his throwing hand, recovering just in time for his throw to 2B to beat the runner by an eyelash.    With runners now at 1st and 3rd, a possible DP ball was hit to Schoop, but his throw to Hardy was a little late and low.   The runner at 2B was called out, though I'm not sure Hardy was on the base when the ball got there, and then Hardy couldn't get the ball out of his glove to try to complete the DP, and a run scored.   I think the second play was more on Schoop than Hardy, but it was still surprising to see him have trouble getting the ball out of his glove on consecutive plays.   

[BohKnowsBmore]

Is it just me or has AJ been getting to a lot of balls out there in center?

Trying to figure out how to use the statcast data...

[backwardsk]

Machado had a play to get the first run out at home, but double clutched and had to settle for the force at first.

[25 Nuggets]

46 minutes ago, BohKnowsBmore said:

Is it just me or has AJ been getting to a lot of balls out there in center?

Trying to figure out how to use the statcast data...

He's playing deeper from what I've read.

Basically when he plays deeper CF, he does better.  This isn't the first year that's happened.

[BohKnowsBmore]

11 minutes ago, 25 Nuggets said:

He's playing deeper from what I've read.

Basically when he plays deeper CF, he does better.  This isn't the first year that's happened.

FWIW, he's already passed his 2016 rWAR in 2017 (a lot of that being defense-led) and is more than a third of the way to his 2016 fWAR total.

[Frobby]

Game 29, May 6

Not much to note in this game.   Mancini badly misjudged a fly ball to LF, then missed it on a dive to play it into a double.    Nothing else worth mentioning.     

[Frobby]

Game 31, May 8

- Hardy, playing the shift, made a diving stop of a Wieters grounder and threw him out from his knees.   

- Hardy also made a good throw from deep in the hole.    

- And he also ran down a long pop fly in LF, going 97 feet or, as Mike Bordick put it, "almost the length of a football field."    Apparently Mike doesn't know that a football field is 100 yards, not 100 feet.   

 - Manny had trouble getting a ball out of his glove and the O's narrowly missed a double play.   

- Manny also air mailed a throw but Davis leaped to glove it and tagged Rendon on his helmet as he went by.   

- Jones narrowly missed catching a double near the wall.   Looked to me like he could have caught it but it was a good effort.   

- Rickard couldn't catch Wieters' double in the 9th, and nearly tripped retrieving the ball.  Again a ball that might have been caught.

- On the last play of the game, with Lind on 3rd and Turner on 2nd, the batter hit a grounder to Davis, who stepped on the bag and saw that Turner had headed to 3rd but Lind hadn't headed home.    Davis ran right at Turner, threw to Hardy at 2B when Turner headed that way, Hardy chased him towards 3rd but then saw Lind was about 1/3 of the way down the line and ran towards him instead.    Lind pretty much stood there helpless as Hardy tagged him for the final out.