Hitters trying to pull every pitch has become too common in recent years. Home runs are the flashy play, so that’s what a lot of players go for today—starting with the development of their swing. However, two baseball legends that were the biggest news in the sport last week have shown that it’s important to hit the ball to all fields.
Ichiro Suzuki retired after recording 4,367 hits in 27 seasons at the professional level (3,089 in the MLB). And Albert Pujols hit the 3,000-hit mark over the weekend. The two greats obviously have different body types, plate approaches, methods, and swings, but their spray charts are relatively similar.
I got a ton of requests for this…. A time lapse for every hit of Ichiro's @mlb career. pic.twitter.com/w8uhzlSnp0
— Daren Willman (@darenw) May 6, 2018
Congratulations to Albert Pujols on 3000 Hits. Let's take a look at what 3000 hits looks like over time… Amazing! pic.twitter.com/rb7ka9viZZ
— Daren Willman (@darenw) May 5, 2018
Being able to turn on the ball and pull and inside pitch is important. Just look at some of Pujols’ monster shots to left field. But Ichiro and Pujols didn’t get to 3,000 hits with a .300 average by pulling everything. This is just another reminder that hitting the ball up the middle or to the opposite field is a good thing.
And who wouldn’t want their spray chart to look like these?
Wow!
Pujols has that one about 600 feet away lol.