Great hitters don't get into the habit of swinging at pitches out of the strike zone. Instead, they force pitchers to throw strikes (i.e., hittable pitches). They also have a good understanding of the importance of the count. Great hitters become more selective when the count moves in their favor (e.g., 2-0, 3-1, etc.). That being said, hitters must adjust this selection based upon the umpire's strike zone and the count. Hitters cannot afford to be nearly as selective with a pitcher's count (e.g., 0-2, 1-2, etc.).
Being selective should not be confused with not being aggressive. Great hitters are very aggressive---but they realize that pitches in the strike zone are the easiest ones to hit. They aggressively look for a pitch in the strike zone and then pounce on it.
During a typical Metro League game, our more selective hitters will be sure to hear comments from the crowd such as "don't be waiting for a walk". Ted Williams, the greatest hitter of his time, was willing to take over 100 walks while playing High School baseball. He did this for two reasons: (1) pitchers had to then give him hittable pitches which he was capable of hammering for hits; and (2) a walk really is as good as a hit when it comes to winning ballgames.
Although I call this the "Ted Williams Story"...nearly every great hitter had the same hitting philosophy. If you are a Chicago White Sox fan, you could just as well call it the "Frank Thomas Story". Setting the steroid issue aside, there is no question that Barry Bonds had the exact same philosophy. In fact, Barry Bonds drew more walks (an amazing 2,558) than any other player in baseball history. He also holds the single season record of 232 walks. He's in good company. Next on the list is Babe Ruth---who holds the American League record for bases on balls during a career (2,042) and a single season (170).
During the Cubs game the other night, Cubs' announcer Bob Brenly mentioned how difficult the Astros' Lance Berkman was making it for Cubs' pitcher Carlos Marmol. Carlos was throwing some hard, nasty sliders--but Berkman wouldn't swing at any of the pitchers that were breaking down and outside the strike zone. Eventually, Berkman walked--despite the fact that Marmol was throwing his best stuff at him. Bob Brenly, a former Major League catcher and World Championship manager, pointed out that the great hitters are the ones who have the ability to hold off and not swing at pitches outside of the zone.
Great pitchers are just the opposite. They often strive to get hitters out with balls. They prefer to get ahead in the count and then get the batter to chase a bad pitch. Their philosophy is that it is much tougher for a batter to hit a ball than it is a strike!
Of course, it is fun to hit the ball. But, as a member of a baseball team, a player's first responsibility is to learn how to help his team win games. This team publishes a statistical leaderboard after each game--and the first statistic analyzed is On Base Percentage...not Batting Average.
So, the next time someone from the crowd yells "don't be waiting for a walk"--an appropriate response is "I'm just waiting for a strike!"
