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FGC GAME

Worst baseball program in the state and not likely to get better any time soon. Living in SW FL, I can tell you that FGCU is fielding a far superior baseball program than Miami. They are really working on building great basketball and baseball teams. This is a school that just opened its doors shortly before we moved here from Houston in 1998.
 
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Number1CanesFan said:
You are right. Bunting isn't hard. Yet so many at all levels of baseball do it wrong. I'm realizing that I had really good coaches in high school and college.

First of all, I can't believe this coaching staff hasn't corrected this problem. If you watch all the guys that are supposed to be sacrifice bunting, you'll see each guy with a slightly different approach. Some have the bat flat. Some are kneeling with a knee on the ground. Some trying to bunt for a hit when their supposed to be sacrificing. All of those are wrong. That's problem #1. Every guy should be bunting with the same approach.

Here's how I was taught and I was a power hitting 1st baseman.

1. Square around early. Your going to sacrifice so there's no need to try to trick the defense.

2. Your posture should be athletic similar to what a middle linebacker in football stands right before the snap of the football. Drop your back foot towards the plate and rotate your hips slightly towards the pitcher. Bend from the waste and on the balls of your feet.

3. Hold the bat out in front of the plate at a 45 degree angle. 90% of players do this wrong. You bunt with the bat at this angle to insure the ball goes downward and not a popup even on a high pitch. This bat angle should NEVER EVER change. You start at the top of the strike zone. You should never try to bunt a ball above your hands on a sacrifice because it's a ball and you have a greater chance of popping it up. The only things that changs when the pitch is on the way is to lower his
Your arms in conjunction with the legs adjusting to the level of the pitch but not changing the angle of the bat. That angle must remain. I see 99% of the guys doing this wrong.

4. When bunting you are a catcher not a hitter!!!! Catch the ball with the bat. DON'T HIT OR PUSH AT THE BALL. CATCH IT!!!! This gives you total control of the direction and pace of the bunt.

This video is basically how I was taught many years ago. Check it out.


Another one from one of the best bunters ever Juan Pierre.


I think Morris needs to show these videos to his players before every practice and game.
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You are correct. I hate the way we try to bunt. Flat bats on a knee for the most part.

You stay athletic with a 45 degree angle because the bat naturally starts to flatten as the pitch approaches.

There are a number of other fundamental flaws, but too many people just want to blame tuition and scholarships. It is what it is. And it is a shame Lovelady can’t get a shot. He’s a legit coach and recruits like a maniac. He was the HC at Wright St while I was a head coach in Central Ohio. Everyone respected Lovelady. He had Wright St better than OSU.
 
holycane said:
Worst baseball program in the state and not likely to get better any time soon. Living in SW FL, I can tell you that FGCU is fielding a far superior baseball program than Miami. They are really working on building great basketball and baseball teams. This is a school that just opened its doors shortly before we moved here from Houston in 1998.
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This is silly. Miami has an outstanding pitching staff and the hitters are young, but the right types of players are being recruited.

Florida Gulf Coast is a low-major program that benefits from their location and the plethora of under-recruited arms in the area. They cannot have sustained success with their model, let alone compete anywhere near the level of a Miami.

Our fans are a bit spoiled right now, and while the mistakes are maddening, this program is absolutely moving in the right direction. They have the best weekend staff in the ACC for crying out loud and they have two potential stars as true freshmen not even a part of that.
 
Lance Roffers said:
This is silly. Miami has an outstanding pitching staff and the hitters are young, but the right types of players are being recruited.

Florida Gulf Coast is a low-major program that benefits from their location and the plethora of under-recruited arms in the area. They cannot have sustained success with their model, let alone compete anywhere near the level of a Miami.

Our fans are a bit spoiled right now, and while the mistakes are maddening, this program is absolutely moving in the right direction. They have the best weekend staff in the ACC for crying out loud and they have two potential stars as true freshmen not even a part of that.
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We probably have the best pitching staff in the ACC which is why they keep us in games. I disagree that the fans are spoiled. We are just frustrated that we are seeing the same issues in game 24 that we've seen at the beginning of the season. This teams seems to be lacking in fundamentals. That doesn't require talent. They are the worst fielding team in the ACC (statistical fact), yet probably one of it's most talented defensively. Offensively, can't execute basic bunts, put themselves in bad hitting counts with runners in scoring position by not even getting the bat off of their shoulder. Saw it again last night. Runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out and the batter didn't even swing until he had 2 strikes. I could understand striking out with 3 good swings, but taking strikes with runners in scoring position is one of the cardinal sins of baseball. There is no excuse. It's not a youth thing. It's a mentality.

Is the coaching staff not making these things clear to the players or are they simply not listening. Either way there is a disconnect.

This team could have won 3-5 of the games they lost if they just simply executed what the situation was given to them.
 
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Lance is going all in as a full time sunshine pumper.

The fans aren’t spoiled. We might have been spoiled in the 2000’s. But we’re not spoiled today. We haven’t won a title in nearly two decades. We haven’t had a legitimate title contender since 2008. Quit acting like we’re just having a down year. The program has done nothing in the last decade to make us spoiled.

And what is the indicator that we’re moving in the right direction? One highly rated recruiting class? Because we’re sure not seeing much in the way of development on the field.
 
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Jaromir Jagr said:
Uh, what? I can’t think of a more obvious bunting situation than down 1, 9th inning, runners on first and second with no one out. And Hunter &$#%ing Tackett at the plate.
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In that situation I agree it makes some sense (it didn't work and seems like it almost never does), but unceremoniously giving away outs is what **** Morose will be remembered for.
 
Senior Hunter Tackett ranks eighth in the category with a .368 average in ACC play.

Better ask him to put down a bunt with no outs, and two runners on base though.
 
rokulika said:
Senior Hunter Tackett ranks eighth in the category with a .368 average in ACC play.

Better ask him to put down a bunt with no outs, and two runners on base though.
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Why would you only look at his stats in ACC play? He's a .278 singles hitter. We let the team swing away for eight innings in that game and had zero runs. Bunting was the only call.

Morris has plenty to be held accountable for, but every coach in America bunts in that situation with that personnel.
 
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Jaromir Jagr said:
Why would you only look at his stats in ACC play? He's a .278 singles hitter. We let the team swing away for eight innings in that game and had zero runs. Bunting was the only call.

Morris has plenty to be held accountable for, but every coach in America bunts in that situation with that personnel.
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If you think there is value in sabermetrics (and I personally do), then bunting is a terrible option in most situations. I hate giving away outs. Might be against tradition, but the numbers don't lie. Same as stats for going for it on 4th and 2 or less. Stats show going for it is better than punting, but old school football says to play it safe and not too risk field position. As a famous Cane once said, "Momentum is huge." Punting and bunting kill momentum. To help you remember, here's a little rhyme:

"Punt and Bunt if you're a ©unt."
 
**** this team is bad. Back on the WEZ I always started all the Canes Baseball threads with an OMAHA!!!!!!!!!! on the end.

This team couldn't buy tickets to Omaha, smh

Until we get some power arms and quit recruiting guys that are going pro we will be the same under Morris Jr.
 
TimeB0mb said:
If you think there is value in sabermetrics (and I personally do), then bunting is a terrible option in most situations. I hate giving away outs. Might be against tradition, but the numbers don't lie. Same as stats for going for it on 4th and 2 or less. Stats show going for it is better than punting, but old school football says to play it safe and not too risk field position. As a famous Cane once said, "Momentum is huge." Punting and bunting kill momentum. To help you remember, here's a little rhyme:

"Punt and Bunt if you're a ©unt."
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Up by two, 30 seconds left, 4th and 2 at our own 30. I'll be the &^%$ who punts it away. Same with 1st and 2nd, no outs, down one, top 9 in college baseball with a singles hitter up to bat. The situation matters.

The problem wasn't the bunt. We didn't bunt. We hit into a double play. If we had bunted we might have actually scored. The sabermetric theory of swinging away ended the threat.
 
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FYI, first and second, no outs, there is a 63.6% chance of scoring. Second and third, one out, there is a 68.6% chance of scoring. We needed one run to keep the game going. Bunting was the right call, even with super trendy modern analytics.
 
Jaromir Jagr said:
FYI, first and second, no outs, there is a 63.6% chance of scoring. Second and third, one out, there is a 68.6% chance of scoring. We needed one run to keep the game going. Bunting was the right call, even with super trendy modern analytics.
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Your numbers are correct for trying to score one run, but the chances of scoring multiple runs in an inning goes down significantly when you give up an out to advance the runners. You are betting on 1) that a player knows how to bunt properly 2) that the pitching rotation is deep enough to go into extra innings. I have no faith in either (and the kid loses confidence in himself since his coach doesn't trust him to hit). You asked a poster why the batter's average against ACC play was used instead of overall. I think the ACC, in general, has better arms that FGCU and if a batter is hitting nearly .400 against ACC pitching, it's just bad strategy to ask him to bunt against FGCU. Also- metal bats. Ball moves fast off metal bats, making double plays less likely. Asking a singles hitter to hit a single in that situation is not asking too much. Sometimes it doesn't work, but statistically you have a MUCH better chance of winning the game (different than scoring just one run) if you let the player swing away in the 9th with no outs and 2 on.
 
TimeB0mb said:
Your numbers are correct for trying to score one run, but the chances of scoring multiple runs in an inning goes down significantly when you give up an out to advance the runners. You are betting on 1) that a player knows how to bunt properly 2) that the pitching rotation is deep enough to go into extra innings. I have no faith in either (and the kid loses confidence in himself since his coach doesn't trust him to hit). You asked a poster why the batter's average against ACC play was used instead of overall. I think the ACC, in general, has better arms that FGCU and if a batter is hitting nearly .400 against ACC pitching, it's just bad strategy to ask him to bunt against FGCU. Also- metal bats. Ball moves fast off metal bats, making double plays less likely. Asking a singles hitter to hit a single in that situation is not asking too much. Sometimes it doesn't work, but statistically you have a MUCH better chance of winning the game (different than scoring just one run) if you let the player swing away in the 9th with no outs and 2 on.
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Again, you're trying to apply aggregate data to every possible scenario. 1st and 2nd, no outs, 3rd inning, Pat Burrell at the plate? He's swinging. Hunter Freaking Tackett in the 9th? You'd better find a way to get that bunt down so that we don't have to watch you swing.

Here's what's funny about people trying to apply stats: you pick out one little tidbit in your favor while ignoring the big picture. In 2017, Tackett batted .212 (22-for-104). In 2018 he is hitting .259 (15-for-58). But you guys want to look at the extremely small ACC sample size and proclaim that we have the right guy at the plate to swing the bat. He hits against better ACC arms? Awesome. Then why is he 1-for-20 (literally) in non-ACC games?

FYI - the runs expected in each situation goes from 1.50 runs (1st/2nd no outs) to 1.40 runs (2nd/3rd 1 out). So pump the brakes on the MUCH better chance to win stuff. The scenarios are practically identical. And when you have a team that can't hit, you try to put runners in scoring position and hope for a blooper, error, or sac fly as opposed to letting jags swing away and hit into double plays.

I love this line: "the kid loses confidence in himself since his coach doesn't trust him to hit". No, it's his .228 career average that has taken away his confidence. Better learn to bunt, kid. You're heading into your last two months as an athlete, and we would like for you to contribute in some way before you put that degree to work.
 
More on Hunter Tackett's domination of ACC pitching:

He batted .545 against Notre Dame. Six of his 14 ACC hits were in that one series. Not exactly lighting up the "better arms in the ACC" like some want us to believe. Notre Dame is worse than FAU, FGCU, UCF, etc.
 
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