What do you guys think?

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Originally posted by ahs_warriors08:
What are the most important tools in baseball? Power, average, defense, speed, and arm strength? Name them in importance.

hitting ability, arm strength ,speed, defense ,power, average.

quote:

Originally posted by wogdoggy:

quote:

Originally posted by ahs_warriors08:
What are the most important tools in baseball? Power, average, defense, speed, and arm strength? Name them in importance.

hitting ability, arm strength ,speed, defense ,power, average.

I'd agree. Some might think that hitting ability and "average" are the same but they are not. Projectability comes into the picture and most often on hitting ability and, to be honest, the size of the player. I recall one young man that had all of this but lacked size. In the end, he went to a JUCO, then to a 4-year school (Played 2) then to the minors and then, MLB. Don't discount size no matter how unfair it is. However, it can be overcome.

I would also mention more and more that arm strength has increased in importance. I can remember when once upon a time players were rated with what they called a "plus" arm. Now they are attaching MPHs to that. Hope this helps.

Agree. The ability to hit a round ball with a round bat with any success will get a player ahead in this game.

quote:

Originally posted by ahs_warriors08:
What are the most important tools in baseball? Power, average, defense, speed, and arm strength? Name them in importance.

I'd say Power, hitting for average, defense, speed, and arm strength.

If you can hit for power you are in scoring position in the batters box. The point of the game is to score runs, and if you are a power hitter you have the ability to drive runs in. Power is a truly game-changing tool.

If you can hit .300 every year, you will always have a job as well If you can hit, you will always be in the lineup.

If you can't hit, you better be able to really pick it, or you won't play at all.

As for running and throwing, they better go with one of the above tools or they will not get you in the lineup, IMO.

quote:

Originally posted by CoachB25:

I'd agree. Some might think that hitting ability and "average" are the same but they are not. Projectability comes into the picture and most often on hitting ability and, to be honest, the size of the player. I recall one young man that had all of this but lacked size. In the end, he went to a JUCO, then to a 4-year school (Played 2) then to the minors and then, MLB. Don't discount size no matter how unfair it is. However, it can be overcome.

I would also mention more and more that arm strength has increased in importance. I can remember when once upon a time players were rated with what they called a "plus" arm. Now they are attaching MPHs to that. Hope this helps.

Coach, I disagree that hitting ability and "average" are different. If you can hit, you will hit for a high average. IMO the ability to hit is not projectable the way that power is. If you can hit, you can hit, no matter your size or age.

When I played with and against Dustin Pedroia in high school, he stuck out as a hitter just like he does now. It didn't matter that he was 5'7", he could rake.

Sure, there are guys who developed into good hitters over time, but the odds are highly against it.

I can only think of a few guys off the top of my head that my Dad scouted who were not great with the bat as amateurs but developed that to the point where their bat was playable at the major league level.

As for power, I believe it is very projectable because kids do get bigger and stronger over time. Players very often need to learn how to hit with power, especially when the wood bat comes into play.

When it comes to arm strength, I love it. If you can throw it is a great tool to have, but again, if you can't do anything else tools wise, it will be tough to get in a lineup.

I really don't think it has increased in importance, though. Just because some showcases clock guys throwing in the outfield doesn't mean that it has all of sudden become a more important tool of he game. The bottom line is, you can throw 100mph from the outfield or from the hole at shortstop, but if you can't hit or really field it well, your arm strength becomes negligible unless you are on the mound.

Beemax,

I agree with the ability to field thing. Do you believe it is a gift or that people can be taught to be a GREAT fielder? I guess a question on those same lines, can a very good infielder be taught to be a very good outfielder if they have never played it before? I know you are a Professional player and I'm sure you've seen it happen many times in your career. What would you say the percentages are in terms of success for that situation? Have you ever seen it done in reverse, IOW, outfielder to infielder?

quote:

Originally posted by powertoallfields:
Beemax,

I agree with the ability to field thing. Do you believe it is a gift or that people can be taught to be a GREAT fielder? I guess a question on those same lines, can a very good infielder be taught to be a very good outfielder if they have never played it before? I know you are a Professional player and I'm sure you've seen it happen many times in your career. What would you say the percentages are in terms of success for that situation? Have you ever seen it done in reverse, IOW, outfielder to infielder?

I know that I have become a much better fielder the more I have worked at it. The more ground balls you take, the softer your hands will become, and so on. Same goes with taking fly balls and working on your routes in the outfield. I have seen guys make themselves into good infielders or outfielders with lots of hard work.

In a way you can do the same thing with hitting (in terms of hard work), but from my experiences, it is much much tougher to MAKE yourself into a good hitter if you were a poor hitter before. Hitting is the toughest thing to do in sport in my book.

As for an good infielder becoming a good outfielder, I have seen it done before and feel that it is a pretty natural transition. Many centerfielders started out as shortstops in high school or college because they were such good athletes. Many corner infielders have turned into corner outfielders as well.

The reverse is more rare, IMO because fielding a ground ball is tougher than catching a fly ball. You need quicker reaction time, better footwork, etc to come into the infield from the outfield. Every once in a while teams will put guys over at first base, but IMO the transition to infield from outfield is tougher.