Left-handed specialist
In baseball, a left-handed specialist (also known as lefty specialist) is a relief pitcher who throws left-handed and specializes in pitching to left-handed batters, weak right-handed batters, or switch-hitters who bat poorly right-handed.[1] Because baseball practices permanent substitution, these pitchers frequently pitch to a very small number of batters in any given game (often only one), and rarely pitch to strictly right-handed batters. Most Major League Baseball teams have several left-handed pitchers on their rosters, at least one of whom is a left-handed specialist. A left-handed specialist is sometimes called a LOOGY (or Lefty One-Out GuY), a term which can be used pejoratively (coined by John Sickels[2]).[3]
The pitcher generally has an advantage when his handedness is the same as the batter's, and the batter has an advantage when they are opposite.[4] This is because a right-handed pitcher's curveball breaks to the left, from his own point of view, which causes it to cross the plate with its lateral movement away from a right-handed batter but towards a left-handed batter (and vice-versa for a left-handed pitcher), and because batters generally find it easier to hit a ball that is over the plate. Furthermore, since most pitchers are right-handed, left-handed batters generally have less experience with left-handed pitchers.
A left-handed pitcher may also be brought in to face a switch-hitter who generally bats left-handed, forcing the batter to shift to his less-effective right-handed stance.
Because left-handed specialists face few batters, they pitch a relatively small number of innings during a season. This can prolong the pitcher's career; for example, Jesse Orosco, who increasingly became a left-handed specialist late in his career, pitched in Major League Baseball for 25 seasons and retired at age 46.
[edit] Notable lefty specialists
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The inclusion or exclusion of items from this list, or length of this list, is disputed. Please discuss this issue on the talk page. January 2012 |
- Craig Breslow[5]
- Randy Choate[6]
- Pedro Feliciano[7]
- Tony Fossas[8]
- Casey Fossum[9]
- Buddy Groom[8]
- Rick Honeycutt[10]
- Ray King[11]
- Boone Logan[12]
- Trever Miller[13]
- Mike Myers[14]
- Hideki Okajima[15]
- Jesse Orosco[16]
- Dennys Reyes[17]
- Arthur Rhodes[8]
- Scott Schoeneweis[18]
- Taylor Tankersley[19]
[edit] References
- ^ Zimniuch, Fran (2010). Fireman: The Evolution of the Closer in Baseball. Chicago: Triumph Books. pp. 168. ISBN 978-1-60078-312-8.
- ^ "Checking the Numbers". Baseball Prospectus. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=8840. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ "Glossary". Baseball Prospectus. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/glossary/index.php?search=loogy. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ "The advantage of batting left-handed". Hardballtimes.com. http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/the-advantage-of-batting-left-handed/. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ Slusser, Susan (May 21, 2009). "A's get a lefty for the bullpen". SFGate. http://articles.sfgate.com/2009-05-21/sports/17202019_1_mark-ellis-brad-ziegler-handed. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ ".". http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70916F7355E0C778DDDAA0894D9404482. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
- ^ ".". http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/06/sports/06mets.html?ref=sports. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ a b c Deconstructing Major League Baseball ... – Google Books. Books.google.com. http://books.google.com/books?id=Ch11RiQRj5sC&pg=PA32&dq=%22left-handed+specialist%22+jesse+orosco&hl=en&ei=Q0VjTabpBcP38AaIv7X9Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22left-handed%20specialist%22%20jesse%20orosco&f=false. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ Marty Noble. "Mets reach deals with Sanchez, Reed". MLB.com. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090119&content_id=3750496&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ ".". http://articles.latimes.com/1990-10-16/sports/sp-2442_1_world-series. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ The Boston Red Sox Fan Book: Revised .... http://books.google.com/books?id=kGBRtW8Co8QC&pg=PA91&dq=%22left-handed+specialist%22+ray+king&hl=en&ei=90RjTZHfEIH58Abi5fmsDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ "New York Yankees reliever Boone Logan ready for his opportunity against the Rangers in the ALCS". espn. October 15, 2010. http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/columns/story?id=5669894. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ Smith, Cameron (November 20, 2008). "Baseball Insider – Cardinals To Sign Trever Miller". Washington Post. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/baseball-insider/2008/11/cardinals_trever_miller.html. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ The Boston Red Sox Fan Book: Revised to Include the 2004 Championship Season. 2005. http://books.google.com/books?id=kGBRtW8Co8QC&pg=PA84&dq=%22left-handed+specialist%22+mike+my&hl=en&ei=EEVjTYbBJc-p8AagnZiLDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&sqi=2&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBQ. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ Curry, Jack (February 27, 2007). "Red Sox Bring in a Friendly Face to Greet Matsui". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/27/sports/baseball/27redsox.html?ref=sports.
- ^ Deconstructing Major League Baseball, 1991–2004: how statistics illuminate individual and team performances. 2006. http://books.google.com/books?id=Ch11RiQRj5sC&pg=PA32&dq=%22left-handed+specialist%22+jesse+orosco&hl=en&ei=Q0VjTabpBcP38AaIv7X9Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ ".". http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20060929&content_id=1689697&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb. Retrieved March 27, 2011.
- ^ Steve Gilbert. "D-backs deal for reliever Schoeneweis". MLB.com. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081212&content_id=3715816&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
- ^ "Taylor Tankersley". ESPN. January 2, 2010. http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/tag/_/name/taylor-tankersley. Retrieved February 22, 2011.
[edit] External links
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