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In baseball, a switch-hitter is a batter who is able to hit from both the right and left sides of the plate. In baseball, a switch hitter (or switch-hitter) is a batter who is able to hit from both the right and left sides of the plate. ... This article is about the sport. ... Barry Bonds batting Photo:Agência Brasil In baseball, batting is the act of facing the opposing pitcher and trying to produce offense for ones team. ...

Switch-hitters are commonly taught to switch-hit at a young age, as learning to hit from the other side of the plate is often very difficult (but not impossible) to do after years of hitting exclusively from one side.

Usually, right-handed batters hit better against left-handed pitchers and vice-versa. So, a hitter who is competent from both sides of the plate can be an asset for a team and can cause myriad match-up problems for opposing pitchers and managers. This is usually one of three primary reasons many young players learn to switch-hit.

Secondly, a competent switch-hitter is less likely to be a part-time player. For instance, Rick is a right-handed hitter; Larry is a left-handed hitter. Both Rick and Larry are solid hitters, but they're also both first basemen who have difficulty playing other positions. The manager, knowing their defensive weaknesses, might choose to platoon Rick and Larry at first base. That is, having Rick start games only when the opposing starting pitcher is a left-hander, and only having Larry start games when the opposing starting pitcher is a right-hander. In this case, a first baseman who can hit from both sides of the plate would be a tremendous asset. The platoon system in baseball is a method of designating two players to a single defensive position -- usually one right-handed and one left-handed. ... In baseball or softball, a starting pitcher, often abbreviated as starter, is the pitcher who pitches the first pitch to the first batter of a game. ...

Thirdly, most curveballs, as opposed to screwballs, will break away from the hitter if he's batting on the same side of the pitcher, which is slightly harder to hit than if the ball is breaking towards him. A switch-hitter might hit from the same side a pitcher throws from in rare cases. Usually, it is either due to a pitcher historically dominating him, so the hitter might experiment by batting from the side the pitcher throws from to "throw off" or confuse the pitcher. A second reason might be because the pitcher throws the knuckleball, and the hitter feels that batting from the same side will give him a slight advantage. Of course, the theories on how to properly hit the knuckleball are incredibly varied. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For the hip-hop group from Queensbridge, see Screwball (group). ... Tim Wakefield in his throwing motion, showing his grip of the knuckleball. ...

Regardless of how well a switch-hitter can hit, he invariably hits better from one side as opposed to the other. Many switch-hitters often hit for a higher average from one side of the plate, yet have more power from the other. For instance, New York Yankees great Mickey Mantle always considered himself a better right-handed hitter, but he actually has more home runs batting left-handed. But it could be argued that this claim is misleading as many of Mantle's left-handed home runs were struck at Yankee Stadium, a park notorious for being very friendly to left-handed power hitters due to the short right field porch. Major league affiliations American League (1901–present) East Division (1969–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 23, 32, 37, 44, 49 Name New York Yankees (1913–present) New York Highlanders (1903-1912) Baltimore Orioles (1901-1902) (Also referred to as... Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995) was an American baseball player who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974. ... This page is about the stadium the New York Yankees currently play in. ...

Switch-hitters tend to be overwhelmingly right-handed throwers, but there have been exceptions: Lance Berkman, Dave Collins, Doug Dascenzo, Mitch Webster, Wes Parker, Melky Cabrera, Nick Swisher, David Segui and J. T. Snow (who in the final years of his career hit exclusively left-handed). William Lance Berkman (born February 10, 1976 in Waco, Texas) is a Major League Baseball player for the Houston Astros. ... David S. Collins (born October 20, 1952 in Rapid City, South Dakota) became manager of the Inland Empire 66ers in 2006. ... Douglas Craig Dascenzo (born June 30, 1964, in Cleveland, Ohio) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. ... Mitchell Dean Webster (Born May 16, 1959) in Larned, Kansas, is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder. ... Maurice Wesley Parker (born November 13, 1939 in Evanston, Illinois) is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1964 to 1972. ... Melky Cabrera (born August 11, 1984 in Santo Domingo Oeste, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the New York Yankees. ... Nicholas Thompson Swisher (born January 25, 1980 in Columbus, Ohio) is an outfielder for MLB club Oakland Athletics. ... David Vincent Segui (born July 19, 1966 in Kansas City, Kansas) was primarily a first baseman with the Baltimore Orioles (1990-93 and 2001-04), New York Mets (1994-95), Montreal Expos (1995-97), Seattle Mariners (1998-99), Toronto Blue Jays (1999), Texas Rangers (2000) and Cleveland Indians (2000). ... Jack Thomas J.T. Snow, Jr. ...

Baseball observers might find that the most successful switch hitters are natural left-handed hitters, but throw with their right hand. This is most likely due to the facts that a) since most pitchers are right-handed, a switch hitter who is a natural lefty can bat from his good side for the majority of the time, and b) a switch hitter who throws right-handed will have a strong right arm, so when swinging left-handed, their right arm, and stronger arm, is in front, so they will have a quicker, more powerful swing because the front arm is more important for power in the baseball swing.

Switch-hitters are also very rare among pitchers; notable switch-hitting pitchers include Mordecai Brown, Vida Blue, Norm Charlton, Sid Monge and Johnny Vander Meer, J.C. Romero, Kyle Snyder, Wandy Rodriguez, Troy Patton, Tim Dillard, Tyler Johnson, Carlos Zambrano. The pitcher Joaquín Andújar was the rare switch hitter who hit righty against righties yet lefty against lefties. {{Infobox baseball player | name=Mordecai Peter Centennial Three Finger Brown | image name= none | birthdate=October 19, 1876 | birthplace=Nyesville, Indiana | dead=dead | deathdate=February 14, 1948 | deathplace=Terre Haute, Indiana | debutdate=April 19, 1903 | debutteam=St. ... Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. ... Norman Wood Charlton III (born January 6, 1963 in Fort Polk, Louisiana) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds (1988-1992, 2000), Seattle Mariners (1993, 1995-1997, 2001), Philadelphia Phillies (1995), Baltimore Orioles (1998), Atlanta Braves (1998), and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1999). ... Isidro Pedroza Sid Monge (born April 11, 1951, in Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico) was a Major League Baseball relief pitcher with a ten-year career from 1975 to 1984. ... John Samuel Vander Meer born November 2, 1914 - October 6, 1997 in Prospect Park, New Jersey was a Major League Baseball pitcher. ... Juan Carlos Romero (born June 6, 1976 in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico) is a Major League Baseball left-handed specialist with the Boston Red Sox. ... For the Iraq war resister, see List of Iraq War Resisters. ... Wandy E. Rodriguez, MLB baseball player. ... Troy J. Patton (born September 3, 1985 in Magnolia, Texas) is a professional baseball player for the Houston Astros. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Tyler Johnson (born June 7, 1981), is an American baseball player born in Columbia, MO. Johnson spent most of the 2006 season with the Cardinals minor league team, the Memphis Redbirds, but appeared in 56 games and pitched 36. ... Carlos Alberto Zambrano (born June 1, 1981 in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela) is a right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who has played for the Chicago Cubs since 2001. ... Pitcher Joaquín Andújar, with the Astros Joaquín Andújar [an-DOO-har] (born December 21, 1952 in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic) is a former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher who played for the Houston Astros (1976-81, 1988), St. ...

Cricket

The switch-hit has also made its way into cricket via England's Kevin Pietersen who first used the technique against New Zealand in a ODI. As a result Pietersen scored two switch-hit sixes on his way to an unbeaten century. The shot has generated much debate in the cricket world with some heralding it an outstanding display of skill and others arguing that if the batsman changes stance he gains an unfair advantage over the bowler.^[1] On June 17 the MCC deemed that the switch-hit was legal under the laws of the game and that Pietersen was free to continue to use the shot at his own discretion.^[2] This article is about the sport. ... Kevin Peter Pietersen MBE (born 27 June 1980 in Pietermaritzburg, Natal, South Africa) is an English cricketer. ... ODI has various meanings, including: One-day International cricket match Open Data-Link Interface - an implementation of the OSI model data link layer. ... Lords 2005 The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), founded in 1787, is a private members club and was the original governing body of cricket in England and across the world. ...

Criticisms

It is rare for a switch hitter, even a great, Hall of Fame-caliber switch hitter, to post similar numbers (average, OBP, and SLG,) from each side of the plate, which has led some to question whether switch-hitting is such an advantage after all. Some managers believe they are a necessary evil, essentially taking the position that switch-hitters are entirely different hitters from one side of the plate from the other and thus have different strengths and weaknesses. The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, located at 62 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, is a semi-official museum operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of baseball-related... Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball measuring the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters, respectively. ... In baseball statistics, on base percentage (OBP) (sometimes referred to as on base average (OBA)) is a measure of how often a batter gets to first base for any reason other than a fielding error or a fielders choice. ... In baseball statistics, slugging average (SLG) is a measure of the power of a hitter. ...

There have been a few young switch-hitters who have been called up to the majors that were convinced (or told) to bat exclusively from one side of the plate, as switch-hitting can make an already complex task like hitting a baseball needlessly more complex. Mike Schmidt, the Philadelphia Phillies' Hall of Fame third baseman, is such an example. But on the other hand, the St. Louis Cardinals' Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith, originally a right-handed hitter, taught himself to bat left-handed in his late teens, and, although known as a defensive wizard, eventually became a .300 hitter. Michael Jack Schmidt (born September 27, 1949 in Dayton, Ohio) is a former American professional baseball player who played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies. ... Major league affiliations National League (1883–present) East Division (1969–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 1, 14, 20, 32, 36, 42 Name Philadelphia Phillies (1884–present) Philadelphia Quakers (1883-1889) (Also referred to as Blue Jays 1943-1945 despite formal name remaining Phillies) Other nicknames The Phils, The Phightin Phils... The position of the third baseman “Third base” redirects here. ... Major league affiliations National League (1892–present) Central Division (1994–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 1, 2, 6, 9, 14, 17, 20, 42, 42, 45, 85 Name St. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Osborne Earl Ozzie Smith (born December 26, 1954, in Mobile, Alabama) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop who was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002. ...

References

1. ^ http://www.setanta.com/en/Sport/News/Other-sports/2008/06/16/Cricket-MCC-to-investigate-KP/?facets/sport-space/great-britain-locale/cricket/
2. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/7456149.stm