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A fly ball pitcher is a type of baseball pitcher who produces an above-average number of fly balls, typically by keeping his fastball high up in the strike zone and relying on late movement to cause the batter to be unable to make solid contact. This designation is constructed around the ground ball fly ball ratio, whi...
The downside of a fly ball pitcher is that, in a ballpark where the design tends to favor hitters over pitchers (an example being Yankee Stadium), a fly ball pitcher will tend to give up more home runs, resulting in a higher earned run average.
Examples include pitchers Sid Fernandez, Ted Lilly, Chris Young and Marco Estrada.
Sistema Peralta ("Peralta system") is a baseball strategy where the pitching rotation in a 9-inning game is approximately divided amongst three pitchers throwing three innings each (3-3-3). Simply put, "one pitcher every three innings". This system contrasts with the more traditional strategy of having a starting pitch...
The strategy is an adaptation from early research theories proposed by mechanical engineering professor at Princeton University and baseball statistician Earnshaw Cook. For games not enforcing the designated hitter rule, Cook realized that he could start the game with a series of relievers and use a designated batter w...
2010 National League Championship Series (Game 6).
Mexican baseball analyst Tomas Morales pointed out that San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy had used, albeit unaware, a similar version of the system in game 6 of the 2010 National League Championship Series.
In baseball, a pull hitter is a batter who usually hits the ball to the side of the field from which he bats. For example, a right-handed pull hitter, who bats from the left side of the plate, will usually hit the ball to the left side of the field, termed "left field", from the batter's perspective. The opposite of pu...
A long reliever is a relief pitcher in baseball who enters the game if the starting pitcher leaves the game early.
Long relievers often enter in the first three innings of a game when the starting pitcher cannot continue, whether due to ineffective pitching, lack of endurance, rain delays, injury, or ejection. The hope is that the long reliever will be able to get the game under control, and hopefully his team's offense will be abl...
Long relievers are usually players who used to be starters either in the major leagues or in the minors (and still can be a temporary starter if one of the normal starters is injured or otherwise unavailable), but whose teams believe they have better starters available. Sometimes a team's long reliever is a former star...
The quality of long relievers can vary, but when the long reliever is known to be an ineffective former starter, he is often called the "mop up man" or "mop."
A secondary use of a long reliever is in the late extra innings of a tied game, once the team's other, generally more effective, relievers have already been used. While a long reliever is often a team's least effective pitcher, he is still often a far better choice in an extended game than resorting to one of the team'...
Occasionally during the season, a team may find itself with enough rest days to allow it to use a four-man rotation rather than the now standard five. In these situations, a team may choose to keep their "fifth" starter on the roster in the long reliever role. This happens particularly in the post-season, when the fift...
In recent years, teams began experimenting with an "opener", a relief pitcher who starts a game but only pitches for at least the first inning. In this strategy, the opener usually pitches against the opponent's best batters at the start of a game in hopes of throwing them off guard, before giving way to a long relieve...
Generally, most long kickers or extended kickers would accelerate in the penultimate lap or shortly after the bell indicating the last lap has begun. A speed kicker would behave more like an anchor runner in a 4x400 relay, positioning themselves on the shoulder of their opponent and using their burst of speed as late a...
Mo Farah developed a reputation as a strategic runner. His finishing kick was not so much a burst of speed, but his extended ability to repeatedly accelerate just enough to discourage anybody from passing him during an intense final lap or so of his races. His Nike Oregon Project teammate Matthew Centrowitz Jr. employe...
Because of the advantage of having the tool of a kick in a competitor's arsenal, the techniques to train to kick are a common discussion among runners and coaches.
In tennis, a grip is a way of holding the racquet in order to hit shots during a match. The three most commonly used conventional grips are: the Continental (or "Chopper"), the Eastern and the Semi-Western. Most players change grips during a match depending on what shot they are hitting.
In order to understand the grips, it is important to know that the handle of a racquet always consists of 8 sides or, in other words, has an octagonal shape. A square shape would hurt the hand, while a round shape would not give enough friction to gain a firm grip. The eight sides of the handle are called bevels. They ...
Popularized by Fred Perry back in the thirties, the Continental Grip requires no change of grip position, and was therefore considered to make for a faster playing game.
The Eastern forehand grip is primarily used for flatter groundstrokes. In order to execute a proper Eastern forehand grip, players need both index knuckle and heel pad to rest on bevel #3. An easy way to implement this is to place the palm flat against the strings and slide down to the handle and grab, in order to achi...
The Semi-Western grip is an "advanced" form that most players either change to on purpose or naturally find through practice. This grip closes the racket face more upon contact, allowing for more topspin but is still able to generate pace. This grip is the most popular on tour and is used by several greats, such as Raf...
The Western grip is one of the more extreme forehand grips used to generate topspin. This grip closes the racket face more than semi-western and was originally used by Rafael Nadal growing up. This grip is great for maximizing margin and hitting deep, loopy balls. Notable players using this grip are Karen Khachanov and...
The Hawaiian grip is the most extreme forehand grip used to generate heavy topspin. Because of the extreme wrist position, it is not recommended to use because it may cause wrist pain and other joint problems. The nature of the grip is to generate topspin because of the closed racket face. This means that it is harder ...
The Two-Handed Forehand Grip (F: Bevel #2 + B: Bevel #6).
The basic Two-Handed Forehand grip, is obtained by holding the racquet in a regular Continental grip, then placing the left hand above holding it in a left-handed Semi-Western Forehand grip. This places the reference bevels of the two hands exactly opposite each other. Holding the racquet using two hands for the foreha...
The Eastern Backhand grip is obtained when placing the hand such that the base knuckle of the index finger and heel of the hand are right on bevel #1. This grip allows for significant spin and control. The opposite face of the racket is used compared to the Eastern forehand. For someone who uses a Western forehand grip...
The Semi-Western backhand grip, is used by placing the hand such that the base knuckle of the index finger is right on bevel #8. Compared to the Continental grip, the blade has rotated 90 degrees clockwise. This forces the wrist in an uncomfortable twist but allows for the greatest possible spin.
This is basically equivalent to the Semi-Western forehand grip. The same face of the racquet as in the forehand is used to strike the ball. No need to change grips if the forehand is played with a Semi-Western grip.
The Two-Handed Backhand Grip (F: Bevel #2 + B: Bevel #6).
The basic Two-Handed Backhand grip is obtained by holding the racquet in a regular Continental grip, then placing the left hand above holding it in a left-handed Semi-Western Forehand grip. This places the reference bevels of the two hands exactly opposite each other. Holding the racquet using two hands for the backhan...
A different face of the racquet than in the forehand is used to strike the ball.
The backhand can be executed with either one or both hands. three of the top 100 ranked women used a one-handed grip. Twenty-four of the top 100 ranked men used a one-handed grip, down from almost 50 a decade earlier.
For most of the 20th century the backhand was performed with one hand, using either a backhand Eastern or Continental grip. In modern tennis, there are a few professional players who use a Western one-hand backhand. This shot is held in a similar manner to the Eastern forehand. It has much more topspin potential than t...
The two-handed backhand is most commonly used with the forehand hand holding the racquet with a Continental grip and the non-dominant hand holding the racquet with a Semi-western forehand grip. While this is by far the most common way to hit a two-handed backhand, there are players who use different ways of holding the...
The player long considered to have had the best backhand of all time, Don Budge, had a very powerful one-handed stroke in the 1930s and 1940s that imparted topspin onto the ball. Ken Rosewall, a one-handed backhand, used a tremendously accurate slice backhand with underspin through the 1950s and 1960s. The one-handed b...
The grip for the serve depends on the type of serve. At professional levels, the continental grip is used to hit all serves. Some players turn the grip more, towards the Eastern backhand grip (bevel #1), to maximize spin during a kick serve.
To impart slice onto a serve, the server tosses the ball a little to the right of their body (if they are right-handed) and cuts the ball diagonally to create side and topspin. For a right-hander, the slice serve curves to the left and down in the court. This pulls players out wide or jams them into their body to set u...
There is also the kick serve, widely used for the second serve because of its great margin, ability to drop into the court, and for offsetting opponents because of its spin. For most, the topspin serve is hit by using a Continental forehand grip (bevel #2) and some use an Eastern backhand grip (bevel #1) to generate mo...
The statistic used to track penalties was traditionally called "Penalty Infraction Minutes" (PIM), although the alternate term "penalty minutes" has become common in recent years. It represents the total assessed length of penalties each player or team has accrued.
The first codified rules of hockey, known as the Halifax Rules, were brought to Montreal by James Creighton, who organized the first indoor hockey game in 1875. Two years later, the "Montreal Gazette" documented the first set of "Montreal Rules", which noted that "charging from behind, tripping, collaring, kicking or s...
It was not until 1904 that players were ruled off the ice for infractions. At that time, a referee could assess a two-, three- or five-minute penalty, depending on the severity of the foul. By 1914, all penalties were five minutes in length, reduced to three minutes two years later, and the offending player was given a...
Both the NHL and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) recognize the common penalty degrees of minor and major penalties, as well as the more severe misconduct, game misconduct, and match penalties.
A team with a numerical advantage in players will go on a power play. If they score a goal during this time, the penalty will end and the offending player may return to the ice. In hockey's formative years, teams were shorthanded for the entire length of a minor penalty. The NHL changed this rule following the 1955–56 ...
In some cases, a referee can impose a double or triple minor. The infraction is counted as two or three separate minor penalties. If a team scores a power play goal during such a penalty, only the current block of two minutes being counted down is cancelled; the penalty clock is then reset to the next lowest interval o...
Starting with the 2019-20 season, NHL referees are required to use on-ice video review for all major (non-fighting) penalties in order to either confirm the call or reduce the call to a minor penalty.
Under IIHF rules, every major penalty carries an automatic game misconduct penalty; in other competitions, earning three major penalties in a game results in a game misconduct penalty, though a number of infractions that result in a major penalty automatically impose a game misconduct as well.
Infractions that often call for a major penalty include spearing, fighting, butt-ending, charging, and boarding.
Misconduct penalties are usually called to temporarily take a player off the ice and allow tempers to cool. They are sometimes also assessed in conjunction with fighting majors, giving the offending player(s) the opportunity to calm down as they sit out their ten minutes.
IIHF rules state that if the player gets another misconduct penalty, (s)he risks a game misconduct penalty and is ejected.
In most leagues, the referee has the discretion to call a game misconduct on a player charged with boarding due to the likelihood of injury to the boarded player. However, in the NHL, if a boarded player suffers a head or facial injury (a concussion risk), the offending player receives an automatic game misconduct.
Any player who is dismissed twice for stick infractions, boarding or checking from behind, or dismissed three times for any reason, in a single NHL regular season incurs an automatic one-match ban, and further discipline is possible for subsequent ejections. For each subsequent game misconduct penalty, the automatic su...
Examples of a game misconduct penalty include getting out of the penalty box before the penalty time is served, trying to join or attempt to break up a fight [third man in] or earning a second misconduct penalty in the same game.
A player who receives a match penalty is ejected. A match penalty is imposed for deliberately injuring another player as well as attempting to injure another player. Many other penalties automatically become match penalties if injuries actually occur: under NHL rules, "butt-ending, goalies using blocking glove to the f...
NHL referees are required to use on-ice video review for all match penalties in order to either confirm the call or reduce the call to a minor penalty.
In NCAA hockey, a similar penalty called a game disqualification results in automatic suspension for the number of games equal to the number of game disqualification penalties the player has been assessed in that season.
For statistical purposes, match penalty is counted as ten minutes in NHL and as twenty-five minutes under the IIHF rules.
Apart from their use as a penalty, penalty shots also form the shootout that is used to resolve ties in many leagues and tournaments.
Similar to a game misconduct in severity, gross misconduct penalties have been eliminated from the NHL rulebook. It was imposed for an action of extreme unsportsmanlike conduct, such as abuse of officials or spectators, and could be assessed to any team official in addition to a player. Infractions which garnered a gro...
However, this penalty is still in effect in Canadian hockey. "A Gross Misconduct penalty shall be assessed [to] any player or team official who conducts herself in such a manner as to make a travesty of the game."
In leagues which play with a shorthanded overtime (with only three or four attackers on the ice), should a team be penalized with only three players on the ice, an additional skater is added to the other team instead, until a five-on-three is produced. If a penalty in this situation expires without a goal being scored,...
While goaltenders can be assessed penalties, a goaltender cannot go to the penalty box and the penalty must be instead served by another player from their team who was on the ice at the time of the infraction (the PIM will be charged to the goaltender). If the goaltender receives either (a) three major penalties (NHL R...
While a team is short-handed, they are permitted to ice the puck as they wish, without having the icing infraction called against them. This allows short-handed teams to relieve pressure more easily when defending with fewer skaters than their opponents. This exemption does not apply to teams whose opponents have pulle...
In a situation where there are fewer than five minutes remaining in play (the final five minutes of regulation time or the five minutes of regular season overtime), should unequal simultaneous penalties be assessed (a minor or double-minor penalty against one team and a major or match penalty against the other), then i...
In addition, under most leagues' "fight instigator" rules, a player penalized as a fight instigator in the final five minutes (or during overtime) is charged with a game misconduct penalty and further disciplinary action. This is intended to discourage "revenge" fights started by badly-losing teams.
In the NHL, infractions that result in penalties include:
Other leagues typically assess penalties for additional infractions. For example, most adult social leagues and women's hockey leagues ban all body checking (a penalty for roughing or illegal check is called), and in most amateur leagues, any head contact whatsoever results in a penalty. If a player pulls down another ...
Coaches or players may occasionally opt to commit an infraction on purpose. In some cases, it is hoped that the infraction can be concealed from the officials, avoiding a penalty. Gordie Howe was one player renowned for his ability to commit infractions without being called.
Hockey players that opt to commit an infraction despite the punishment do so in order to degrade the opposing team's morale or momentum, or boost their own. This is most common with fighting, because the likely coincidental penalties do not result in a hindrance for their team. Hockey players also sometimes commit infr...
It is also not uncommon to see players "dive" or make a borderline hit appear to be a penalty by embellishing or exaggerating their reaction to it; this, however, is a penalty in itself, although it is inconsistently enforced.
Another common reason to commit an infraction is as last resort when an opposing player has a scoring opportunity, when a penalty kill is the preferable alternative to the scoring opportunity. These are referred to on most broadcasts as "good penalties".
The NHL keeps individual statistics on the penalties each player accrues through the penalties in minutes statistic (abbreviated "PIM"). Players renowned for their fighting or for being dirty players will usually lead their team in PIM and have such statistics highlighted by the media.
The record for the most penalty minutes in one season is held by Dave Schultz of the Philadelphia Flyers, with 472 in the 1974–75 NHL season. The record for most penalty minutes in a career is held by Tiger Williams, who had 3,966 over 14 years. The active penalty minute leader is Zdeno Chara from the Washington Capita...
The most penalties in a single game occurred in a fight-filled match between the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers on March 5, 2004, when 419 penalty minutes were handed out. Statistically, a game misconduct counts as 10 penalty minutes, in addition to other penalties handed out. In rare cases (as a result of mul...
Centers are required to cover much of the ice in all three zones. Where the center tends to play in the offensive zone is usually a matter of coaching and personal preference. Centers are responsible for keeping the flow of the game moving, and generally handle, and pass the puck more than any other position player. Be...
Because the range of offensive styles teams like to use, exactly how centers are used in the offensive zone is as varied as the players themselves. Generally the center's role on offense is to move the offense through himself, setting up other players, and providing support for puck battles. They roam around most areas...
When a centre's winger is being attacked along the boards, the centre can take position behind the net to receive the pressured winger's pass. Behind the net is a natural place for some centres to play. It is a very difficult position to defend because it forces the opposing defensemen to leave the front of the net. It...
Many centres use their mobility and freedom to take advantage of the slot area, the area in between the faceoff dots, about 5 to 15 feet from the goal. The slot area is notorious goal-scoring territory because of its proximity to the net and the difficulty the opposing team has in defending it. Many centres like this a...
Additionally, without the puck, the centre can choose to occupy this space looking for deflections of long shots or rebounds. Aside from some larger centres who focus on scoring off rebounds, centres rarely set up directly in front of the net itself because in case of a turnover, it is much harder to get back in positi...
Some centres will play the halfboards. This position is especially important to a centre on some powerplay sets. Again it gives the centre a clear view of the ice surface and many different options. From here he may choose to pass back to a defenceman on the point, go down the boards to a winger behind the net, or driv...
Powerplay sets are also quite varied, so the centre's role can range a lot. Many times though the centre will choose to operate in the slot area or on the halfboards. The halfboard position here is made easier to play because the centre has more time to look over the ice surface, and is not pressured by the defenders a...
The centre's role in the Neutral zone on the attacking side if he/she possesses the puck, is to bring the puck into the offensive zone by carrying or dumping the puck in. Although any player may carry the puck into the zone, centres are most often counted on because of their speed, quickness, and ability to stickhandle...
On dump ins, the centre's role is to provide support to the wingers as they battle for possession in the corners, and hunt for loose pucks.
Many different strategies have been devised to defend the neutral zone. Often successfully defending the neutral zone leads to fewer opportunities for the opposing team to have offensive possessions.
Here the centre will mainly focus on skating and shadowing opposing puck carriers to try to force turnovers. They are responsible for the middle of the ice, and try to cut off long passing lanes to attacking players. If the defending team successfully does force a turnover, the centre is most often responsible for turn...
The neutral zone trap, pentagon trap, 1-2-2 trap, or zero-forecheck.
When playing the trap, the centre typically spearheads the defence by placing himself/herself in the middle of the ice between the red line and blue line in defensive position. This forces the puck carrier to either side board where the centre and puck side winger close him in, "trapping" him/her between the two defend...
When employing the left wing lock strategy, the centre's role is typically to shadow the puck carrier or provide token pressure in the opposing team's zone to force them to try to pass the puck up ice into the lock. This is a much older strategy and is less commonly employed at elite levels, however it was most recentl...
Unlike their offensive responsibilities, the centre's defensive responsibilities are relatively straightforward. Again the centre must be able to use their skating ability to cover vast portions of the ice, and is responsible for the greatest percentage of ice in their own zone than of any position.
The centre's first and foremost responsibility is defending the slot area from opposing forwards. This is the most difficult area of the ice to defend because of its proximity to the net and its being situated in the middle of the ice. The centre is not only responsible for the opposing centre, but other forwards who v...
The perimeter is an advantageous position for the defence, the boards act as an extra defender and the defending team often will try to enclose a puck carrier between the boards and two or more defenders to force turnovers. The centre's general responsibility is to provide support to other players that engage opposing ...
A quick break is sometimes used to take advantage of the opponent's sloppy transition game. In this set, the defenceman directly passes to the centre curling at the faceoff dot. The centre can then carry the puck out himself/herself or try to pass to the streaking weakside winger up the ice.
The penalty killing unit normally consists of two forwards and two defencemen. The centre's role does not differ appreciably from any other forward, though they are almost always included on the penalty killing unit for the purpose of taking the faceoff. Depending on what formation the penalty kill uses, the centre alo...
The centre should always be prepared for a quick break-out pass by the opposing team. The centre is expected to play the deepest in the offensive zone but also the first of the forwards to backcheck. On the backcheck, the centre should take the first opposing player not covered (usually "the third man back").
It is generally the centre's job to handle faceoffs for their team. Centres employ many different tactics to win faceoffs that take advantage their strength or swiftness.
Faceoff techniques and preferences vary widely from player to player depending on that player's skill at taking faceoffs, speed, strength, and agility. Although faceoff techniques differ greatly, it is almost universal now that the centre reverses his lower hand and takes the faceoff on his backhand in order to gain mo...
Bigger, heavier, and stronger centres may prefer to use strength tactics such as tying up the opposing centre and winning the puck with his feet or overpowering the opponent by ripping the puck away using sheer strength. Smaller, quicker centres may employ swiftness tactics such as trying to contact the puck before his...
Faceoffs are critical to a team's success on offence or defence. To this end, centres that may be deficient in other areas, especially offensively, can still have value to a team if they are excellent faceoff takers. Journeyman NHL centre Yanic Perreault was offensively limited for much of his career, yet was able to s...
Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to the blue line in ice hockey which represents the boundary of the offensive zo...