During the third inning of last Fridays night's game between the Phillies and the Mets, Jose Reyes was shaken up after diving head first into second base and jamming his head into Chase Utley's knee. He walked it off and was OK, this time.
Why do players insist on diving into a base when a traditional feet first slide would suffice? I'm sure Utley wasn't complaining. Given the choice I'm quite sure he would prefer Reyes head plowing into his knee than one of Reyes' spikes.
It has been documented time and again that a head first dive does not increase ones chances of being safe. But we do know that it increases the chance of injury. Players have been told this but they continue to dive every chance they get. Perhaps it's the "Sports Center" effect? I'll admit, a dive looks a lot cooler than a feet first slide. But is the game about self promotion or about winning championships?
When a player gets himself hurt diving into a bag, the team and the fans are the ones who suffer when the player is not available to play. Also, to a certain extent the networks who underwrite our national pastime lose when a start player is injured during a premier national telecast.
The solution to this problem is easy. During the next collective bargaining negotiation, put a clause in the contract that says that a player injured while diving head first into a base will not be paid for any games missed during his his injury. If that were the case, watch how quick Jose Reyes calls up one of the players from the 60's and hires him to coach him on a feet first slide. Which player making 12 million a year will dive into a bag knowing that stunt will cost him about $370,000? Is 5 seconds on Sports Center worth $74k per second???
Players like Reyes are more than happy to take a chance when they have nothing to lose. Let them chance their own money and see if the still want to dive.
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2 months ago
Interesting take. I'm not an advocate of sliding into first base coming from the batters box, as it has been proven to slow a player down even though they think it's speedier.
The only times to slide head-first are back to first on a pick-off attempt as it takes the first baseman longer to reach low and the runner can get his left hand to the back corner of the base before being tagged, and also sliding into second actually, as the runner can touch the back corner of the bag with his hand quicker than by foot.
Definitely a more dangerous move though, and it will be interesting to see if it changes in time. You also have to remember a lot of these current players grew up watching Rickey Henderson do it constantly, and it became the cool thing to do in little league, even when totally unnecessary.
2 months ago
i think its ironic that the probable allstar shortstop and 2nd baseman collided..
about 1 month ago
I dont get your reasoning for docking players for getting injured in a headfirst slide. The players do lose a lot when they get injured: playing time. Losing playing time means that the players' stats will take a hit, thus affecting their future earning power somewhat. And if the player is repeatedly injured, he becomes labeled "injury prone" which will further decrease their earning power in the future. Should players be docked pay because they are tired and want a day off? In this situation, the team, fans and networks are not able to see the player play.
It is true that players can become injured sliding head-first into a base, but players get injured in all kind of ways, both on a off the field. Sliding feet-first can lead to jamming a foot or spraining an ankle. Jimmy Rollins missed 3 weeks because he slid into second feet first. Players have been injured falling over their pets, while tanning in a tanning bed, catching fly balls (Alfonso Soriano), and in a million other ways. Injuries are a part of the game.
Sliding head-first has some advantages that sliding feet-first does not provide the runner. Sliding head-first allows the runner to contort their bodies to avoid the tag while reaching for the bag with another hand. If the ball beats the runner, a runner sliding in head-first has a better chance of being called safe than a runner sliding in feet-first.
And the last point I will make is this, players slide head-first because they are comfortable doing so. Asking a player to change they way they do things from the comfortable to the uncomfortable will lead to more injuries. Jose Reyes was asked to change his running style and that lead to him injuring his hamstrings, quads and ankles more frequently. What happens if in landing on his sliding leg wrong he breaks his ankle? Let the players play the way they are comfortable playing. It has served them well so far. Im sure if the coaches, GMs, or owners really cared that much, they would changed it by now.
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