4/14-4/20 Week in Pirates' Shifts

・SHIFTED
Date: April 14

Pitcher: Charlie Morton (RHP)

Batter: Devin Mesoraco (RHB)
Fielder: Neil Walker (2B)
Situation: Bases Empty, 1 out
Count: 1-2
Pitch Type: 75-MPH Knuckle Curve

Neil Walker and the Bucs shifted perfectly. Spray Chat says Mesoraco tends to pull the baseball. There are no GIF or videos of this play because MLB.tv doesn't have the entire video of this game.

Date: April 14-15

Pitcher: Mark Melancon (RHP)

Batter: Devin Mesoraco (RHB)
Fielder: Neil Walker (2B)
Situation: Runner on 2nd, 2 outs
Count: 3-0
Pitch Type: 91-MPH Cutter

Here's an example of the shift against Mesoraco. Second baseman Walker fielded a high-chopper in the right side of the second base bag. I think it's a combination of shifts and traditional positioning. Since the runner was on second, Walker needed to hold him.

Date: April 15

Pitcher: Jeanmar Gomez (RHP)

Batter: Jay Bruce (LHB)
Fielder: Gaby Sanchez (1B)
Situation: Runners on 1st and 2nd, 2 outs
Count: 0-1
Pitch Type: 89-MPH Sinker

Nothing special on this play, but Pirates used the Bruce shift. Let's take a look at the image below.

Gaby Sanchez played deep. Waker on the outfield grass. You can see Jordy Mercer at the upper left of the image.

ROOT showed Mercer's positioning before the first pitch of this Bruce's at bat. Mercer stood alone on the catcher-second-center line. So, where's Pedro Alvarez? I guess Pedro positioned around the normal spot to prevent a base stealing.

Is this the shift at work? Jay Bruce BA when pulling grounder- 2011- .220 2012 .133 2013 .106 2014 0 for 10
— Mark Simon (@msimonespn) April 14, 2014

Date: April 20

Pitcher: Jason Grilli (RHP)

Batter: Khris Davis (RHB)
Fielder: Clint Barmes (SS)
Situation: Bases Empty, 2 outs
Count: 0-2
Pitch Type: 95-MPH Four-seam

Final #shifted is... from Sunday's tough loss. Unfortunately, infield shifts didn't work on Ryan Braun's HR and the Easter brawl.

26-year-old slugger Khris Davis pulled a 95-MPH fastball to Mr. Smooth's territory.

Pirates infielders played very deep. Barmes probably can cover both his left side and right side, and Walker has a chance to grab a single to center.

Date: April 20

Pitcher: Jeanmar Gomez (RHP)

Batter: Khris Davis (RHB)
Fielder: -
Situation: Bases Empty, no outs
Count: 0-1
Pitch Type: 86-MPH Slider

Davis crushed Gomez's slider in 14th. You can see the difference in Walker's positioning.


・Just Missed

Date: April 15

Pitcher: Justin Wilson (LHP)

Batter: Joey Votto (LHB)
Fielder: Jordy Mercer (SS)
Situation: Bases Empty, no outs
Count: 2-2
Pitch Type: 94-MPH four-seam

Shifts don't always work. Joey Votto broke the shift with a broken bat single. If this was a BP, Justin Wilson "won" the battle...but a hit is a hit. This is baseball.

LINKS
・Why Does the 2014 MLB Season Suddenly Feel Like 1968?

・Examining how shifts help team defense

・Washington Nationals will utilize many more defensive shifts this season

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Data courtesy of BrooksBaseball.net, TexasLeaguers.com, and BaseballSavant.com