Broken Bat - Discussion Forum: Golden Glove

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Post ID	Date & Time	Game Date	Function

#20052	06/13/2015 11:57:57 pm
Crazy Li Joined: 01/25/2015 Posts: 879 Inactive	People say fly balls are easy because of speed. A line drive gets to you very quickly. OF pop flies take a good while and give you some time to get in position if you learn how to read them. It can be tough with stuff like wind causing them to drift, yeah... but still a slower hit ball. I found line drives to be the hardest balls to catch because of how quickly they get on you. You don't have much time to react. Grounders are variable depending on speed. Slow rollers are obviously much easier to deal with than hard-hit grounders... but you might have to charge at the slow ones (that has nothing to do with cleanly fielding it though, just making the actual out). They don't put emphasis on the "hot corner" for no reason. A smoking line drive at 100+ MPH is no joke.

#20060	06/14/2015 1:10:36 pm
Rock777 Joined: 09/21/2014 Posts: 9597 Haverhill Halflings III.1	Sure it is. I played 3B for years. Line drives are by far the easiest play in the game. When's the last time you actually saw someone miss a line drive hit right at them? Fly balls are like pop-ups with a lot more variability in where they come down. I can't see how anyone could put a pop-up down as harder than a fly ball... Certainly not slower speed than a pop-up. I'd also say the slow rolling grounders are more difficult for the exact reason you stated (at least from 2B). the throw from 2B is difficult enough for a righty because you have to throw across the body. When you have to charge the ball it becomes an even more difficult throw. A hard hit is usually only going to bounce once which means its easier to judge, plus the throw is easier. Updated Sunday, June 14 2015 @ 1:16:09 pm PDT

#20062	06/14/2015 1:17:51 pm
Rock777 Joined: 09/21/2014 Posts: 9597 Haverhill Halflings III.1	@Brewnoe - I'd give it to the guy with fewer errors. DP don't mean much for a 1B given most of them are just catching the throw. But personally I'd vote for fielding percentage over DPs for 2B and SS too. Updated Sunday, June 14 2015 @ 1:19:06 pm PDT

#20072	06/15/2015 2:06:35 pm
Crazy Li Joined: 01/25/2015 Posts: 879 Inactive	I'll admit I've never played 3B so maybe that's why my perspective is different, but line drives hurt. When's the last time I saw someone fail to field a line drive hit right at them? I see it all the time... with pitchers. They're so close to the plate and not as well-trained in fielding as a 3B would be that I see all to often that they actually get hit with the ball rather than catch it successfully. Granted I think even a pitcher catches the ball more often than getting hit or dodging it entirely... but I still see a decent chunk of liners not caught in this case. It's really more about reflexes than skill in that situation. You put your glove up to protect yourself while also awkwardly trying to get out of the way and hope for the best. I've also seen many a pitcher reach up for a looping liner that's hit over his head and mess up the play for the IF behind him trying to make the play. I imagine that modern 3B are very well trained in catching line drives because they're so dangerous. Again, they come at faster than any pitcher's fastball... potentially 120MPH or more. That to me sounds like entirely reflexes and self-preservation. Pop-ups or fly balls give you a lot more time to react, measure and think. I never really found difficulty catching fly balls in the OF in what little I've tried it. The only time I really see them missed when they're legitimately in the OF's zone is when there's a lot of wind that alters the path of the ball. I really can't see what's so hard about fielding a ball traveling high in the air at a relatively slow rate to your general vicinity.

#20075	06/15/2015 6:30:52 pm
afreespirit Joined: 09/17/2011 Posts: 305 Inactive	Outfield fly balls are generally routine. They stay up in the air and the flight path is very predictable. The difficulty is related to the distance the OF has to cover to make the catch. Then there are potential variables such as weather and lighting. A steady breeze is easy to account for while strong gusts are unpredictable. You can lose the ball in a bank of lights. Twilight, especially if you are facing west can be bad. And low hanging grey clouds with wind and rain are really bad.

#20086	06/16/2015 11:54:39 am
admin Joined: 01/27/2010 Posts: 4985 Administrator	Clearly, I think the formula needs to adjust according to position. Steve

#20095	06/16/2015 2:18:49 pm
Rock777 Joined: 09/21/2014 Posts: 9597 Haverhill Halflings III.1	Pitchers are an exception. They stand a lot closer to the plate and are doing a funny dance before the ball is hit. Line drives back to the pitcher can be very dangerous. For fielders, they only hurt if you catch them wrong. Your supposed to catch in the web. As long as you catch the ball right they don't hurt at all. At the lower levels (little league and Babe Ruth) its still common for kids to catch wrong, so yeah they hurt a lot when your a kid. By the time your playing high school ball your generally going to be catching the ball in the web most of the time. You might get a hard grounder in the mitt if it has a funny bounce, but line drives are pretty straight forward.

#20097	06/16/2015 2:20:56 pm
Rock777 Joined: 09/21/2014 Posts: 9597 Haverhill Halflings III.1	@afreespirit - I was particularly bad at judging fly balls, so I found them difficult. But in general I agree, for an OF its all about range. I'd cast my vote for the CF making diving catches (that weren't just for show).

#20301	06/21/2015 2:16:07 pm
admin Joined: 01/27/2010 Posts: 4985 Administrator	Started thinking that we could use DRS - Defensive Runs Saved to determine Gold Glove winners, but when I looked into it...the calculations are almost impossible with the current statistics we maintain. Think we need to change the current formula in several ways: 1. Take into account number of games played. 2. Have different formula for each position. 3. Still have limit on number of games played at that position. Steve

#29346	01/22/2016 9:37:00 am
wuggla Joined: 05/10/2013 Posts: 1059 Colorado Springs Vultures VI.28	Out Fielders. Use points. This is for LF/CF/RF."ONLY" G=Games: min 100 F%=Fielding: this will decide! DP=double plays: are hard for out fielders 3 points. OA=Outfield Assist: get 2 point. PO=ponchout: +1 FA=field attempt: +1 E=error: -1 Tie breaking is F% Note if still tied Inn played. Games then DP then OA then PO then FA if still tied then team F% !!!!!EXAMPLE!!!!!! 160 :G = qualify .989 :F% = qualify 2 :DP = +10 points 14 :OA = +28 points 438 :PO = +438 points 455 :FA = +455 points !!! 931 !!! points for this player then subtract 5 :E = - 5 points !!! 926 final points !!! if a tie in points player with best F% if still tie then Inn Played at that position????