Mookie's routes

[ToeKneeArmAss]

I've noticed several times already this season that Mookie's routes haven't been very efficient.

In particular, on balls hit over his right shoulder, he seems to be taking very curved routes - starting right at first and then turning to get back to the ball.

And tonight he turned the wrong way on a ball that was smoked by Miller, but managed to get turned around to make the catch. We used to call that "making the routine look spectacular" (though to be fair Miller's drive wouldn't have been a "routine" play).

He seems to make up for his lack of OF experience with his athleticism - but I'd like to see him learn to take better routes. He's got one of the best OFers I've ever seen at that standing to his right.

Is that StatCast data or whatever it's called publicly available for analysis of route efficiency?

 

[whatittakes]

Can we really be surprised? Mookie Betts has played right field at any level only 12 times prior to this season, omly 8 of those being full games.

just because RF and CF are similar doesn't mean they're the same, and the difference is likely to manifest in bad routes, especially at first. I'm no outfielder, but seems to me from the baseball I've watched that a lot of bad routes are a result of bad reads, and a player playing a new outfield position can be expected to struggle at first reading a flyball right off the bat in realtime. So even if what you're saying is correct, I wouldn't read very much into it at this point.

 

[Sprowl]

I agree that Mookie's first step is as likely as not to be in the wrong direction, and as a consequence he makes routine plays look difficult -- and then he catches the ball with full flare. He's a lot of fun to watch, but it doesn't look like he's a natural in RF. As a third position, it appears to be a non-optimal use of Mookie's talents.

 

[ToeKneeArmAss]

For the record I think it's incredible how successfully Mookie has transitioned from career infielder to highly serviceable major league outfielder. I suspect that CF was an easier first step in that transition given his athleticism. While it's true that in CF you'll occasionally get fooled by a depth misread on a right-at-you liner, you don't get the heavy slices that you have to read in the corner OF positions.

He's such a great all-around player that I fully expect him to continue to grow into the position. But given how big RF is at Fenway it's not like you're underleveraging JBJ's fielding by putting him over there - particularly if my hypothesis is right that Mookie might be more comfortable in the middle.

 

[ToeKneeArmAss]

Better read/route and we win last night in regulation.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

I'm no outfielder, but seems to me from the baseball I've watched that a lot of bad routes are a result of bad reads, and a player playing a new outfield position can be expected to struggle at first reading a flyball right off the bat in realtime. So even if what you're saying is correct, I wouldn't read very much into it at this point.

You don't have to be an outfielder to know that reads can be a lot tougher at the corners given that you can't see pitch location like you can from CF. Red Sox fans were spoiled with having Nixon (before his quad problems), Drew, and Victorino in right for 15 years, who all had great first steps and made the position look easy. One of the toughest reads there is, it's when a high line drive is coming at you which could be caught on the fly if you break backwards on contact, but a "green" outfielder is likely going to get frozen and have the ball go over their head. We saw that with Betts last night.

 

[joe dokes]

You don't have to be an outfielder to know that reads can be a lot tougher at the corners given that you can't see pitch location like you can from CF. Red Sox fans were spoiled with having Nixon (before his quad problems), Drew, and Victorino in right for 15 years, who all had great first steps and made the position look easy. One of the toughest reads there is, it's when a high line drive is coming at you which could be caught on the fly if you break backwards on contact, but a "green" outfielder is likely going to get frozen and have the ball go over their head. We saw that with Betts last night.

I think every OF I've ever heard talk about it said CF is easier than the corners in terms of the initial read. (There are other aspects that are not easier)

 

[smastroyin]

You don't have to be an outfielder to know that reads can be a lot tougher at the corners given that you can't see pitch location like you can from CF. Red Sox fans were spoiled with having Nixon (before his quad problems), Drew, and Victorino in right for 15 years, who all had great first steps and made the position look easy. One of the toughest reads there is, it's when a high line drive is coming at you which could be caught on the fly if you break backwards on contact, but a "green" outfielder is likely going to get frozen and have the ball go over their head. We saw that with Betts last night.

Hey even Nixon did it in the inning that shall not be recounted.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

Hey even Nixon did it in the inning that shall not be recounted.

True, and that was one of the injuries I was alluding to (though it was his back at the time). Grady decided to keep a crippled Nixon, who was the last out of the top of the 8th, in right rather than using either Kapler or Jackson as a defensive replacement late in that game. Just one of many brilliant decisions in that game.