A Stolen Base

It was great to finally see all aspects of a baseball game come together for the Mets. Yesterday’s game featured some timely hitting, a number of runs and a good pitching performance. El Duque looked sharp in the game and was definitely on top of it.

What was most enjoyable, for me, as a fan, was watching Orlando Hernandez at bat and on the bases. I have certainly seen pitchers get their share of hits, and I have even seen some pitchers occasionally steal a base. It was fun, however, to see the stolen base.

I do have mixed reactions about it though. It is fun watching pitchers who take pride in their batting. Some pitchers work on hitting. In the National League, the pitchers should not just figure on giving up and being an automatic out. They are one of the nine players in the lineup and when the pitcher is up, or on the base, the pitcher needs to play as a hitter.

The other side, however, is the pitcher is paid to pitch. You do not want to see a pitcher get injured, or even exhaust himself on the bases. The pitcher needs to keep himself healthy.

Based on that comment, it might sound like I support the Designated Hitter rule. I DO NOT! The fact is pitchers should take pride in all aspects of the game. The fact is, there is so much more strategy when the pitcher hits and for me, as a fan, the game is so much more enjoyable.

I am glad I got to see El Duque hit. I am glad I got to see the stolen base.

All in all, it was a fun game to watch and I was glad to see all aspects of the Mets’ game come together.