For most hitters, getting the bunt signal is pure torture. They simply can’t understand why the coach wants them to lay down a bunt and waste their hitting talents when the next pitch could be the one that they hit deep.
But if you’ve ever looked at the statistics of scoring runs, you know that bunting is an essential skill practiced and used abundantly by winning teams. If you have any doubts about the benefits of bunting, take a look at these:
1. Bunting can disturb a pitcher’s rhythm. Have you ever been in a game where a pitcher looked like he was in a “zone?” He may have been striking out batters left and right and no one was having any success against him.
Well, bunting can interrupt a pitcher’s mental state by making him have to also concentrate on fielding. Often this small interruption can trigger negative results in pitchers such as a loss in control. Simple, but effective.
2. Bunting can be used to get out of a hitting slump. Slumps happen to the best hitters in the game. But the length of the slump can be drastically reduced by bunting. Any single hit (even a bunt) is often enough to restore confidence and break a slump.
3. Bunting can force a defense to shift their position. When an opposing defense knows that they are facing a team of good bunters, they are forced to play in different positions.
The third and first basemen play up and the middle infielders step up to cover bases. As their positions are changed, this creates more holes for hits to find their way through the infield.
4. Bunting can increase your batting average (a lot). The difference between hitting .200 and. 300 is a single hit in every 10 at-bats. If a third baseman is playing back, there is no reason not to make him pay. Drop it down and enjoy the gift that he gave you.
5. Bunting can promote teamwork. Baseball is much more of an individualized sport than many other team sports. Many batters approach the plate just thinking about getting a hit rather than trying to get on base or moving a runner over. Bunting can be used to make a team start thinking as a unit with the common goal of
6. Bunting can be used to move runners and score runs. Statistics have shown that a baserunner is 58% more likely to score from 2 nd base than 1st base and 26% more likely to score from 3rd base than 2nd base. Use this statistic in your favor and score more runs.
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