If You're Gonna Give 'Em Up, Make Sure They're Solo Jobs.

The enigmatic title "If You're Gonnna Give 'Em Up, Make Sure They're Solo Jobs" is a piece of advice that every pitcher should subscribe to. It refers to a pitching philosophy that revolves around keeping runners off base. In practice, it means that every pitcher is going to give up home runs, but the best ones can minimize damage and not give up as many long balls with runners on base.

I am reminded of this adage as I am watching the Orioles vs. Rays tonight on MASN. Matt Garza is on the mound for the Rays and has given up 4 home runs through 5 innings. He is also only losing 4-2. The Orioles pitcher has given up 2 home runs as well. It is not hard to imagine that this score could be much worse for both teams had those home runs not been solo shots. So, in practice, a pitcher must learn when to attack hitters and when to be careful. Of course, a pitcher must always "attack." However, early in the game and early an inning, the worst thing a pitcher can do is walk a batter. Walks and poorly placed pitches that lead to base hits are obvious things to avoid. However, this is never more true than early in those situations. With less than two outs, walking batters create more problems for the pitcher; especially if the next batter hits one out of the park.

With that in mind, if there are runners on and the game is getting into the last three or four innings, a pitcher must be careful to execute every pitch as perfectly as possible to prevent a late inning scoring onslaught. In fact, when facing a tough hitter with runners on, a good pitcher will "not give in" to a hitter by giving him a good pitch to hit. He will non-intentionally intentionally walk the batter to get a weaker hitter. He will make perfect pitches down and or just below the knees on the edges of the plate. These pitches will be so tough to hit that there is very little chance for a hitter to do damage with them. Keep in mind that this is an advanced technique that requires a very high command of ones pitches and of the strike zone. However, if executed correctly, a good pitcher can avoid giving up a mult-run hit or home run to a good hitter by making the hitter either swing at the pitcher's best pitches or be patient enough to take the walk.

The score of the game will dictate whether this strategy is a viable option. Obviously, if the score is within one run, a solo bomb is as devastating as any other home run. You would want at least a 2 run lead to begin considering putting more runners on base to get to weaker hitters.

Regardless of the situation and score however, if you are going to give up homeruns, it will always be better that they are solo shots. The less runs that score the better your ERA and your teams chance to win will be.

Until Next Time!