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Running The Bases: 3B

07/01/2010, 12:58am (EDT)

By Matt Lemanczyk

Photo of John Colby, Hauppauge High School. Photo by Ellen Schuerger

As a base runner, standing on 2nd base is exciting. You are in the position to score. There is only one base that stands between you and home plate; 3rd base. Taking the correct approach towards and around 3rd base is crucial when it comes to being safe on a bang-bang play at 3rd base and even home plate. There are three different ways to approach 3rd base. Each way will be determined by how many outs there are. The amount of outs will determine how you need to take your primary lead off of 2nd base and will ultimately effect how you approach 3rd base.

The FIRST WAY to approach 3rd base (from 2nd) is “full steam ahead.” Meaning, you are running in a straight line. This approach is most commonly used when there are no outs. Now, of course with no outs it's easy for you to start thinking score, score, score, but let's not lose sight of how the game of baseball is played. It is a very systematic game with an enormous amount of strategy involved. With no outs, the batter can bunt the runner over to 3rd base, try to hit “behind the runner,” meaning hit a hard ground ball up the middle or to the right side of the infield, or try to drive the runner in. Regardless of what the batter is trying to do, with no outs your primary objective is to reach 3rd base with one out. With a runner on 3rd base and one out, you can score on a sacrifice fly. This is text book baseball, “Get 'em over, get 'em in.” In this situation the primary lead should be taken in the base path between 2nd and 3rd base, after all, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. This will allow you to gain a step or two towards 3rd base by just properly positioning yourself in the base path.

The SECOND WAY to approach 3rd base (from 2nd) is the “question mark turn”. This turn is used at all three bases, as it is the fastest most efficient way to advance around a base on a ball that is hit through the infield. This approach will occur when there are no outs because you are taking your lead in the base path looking to potentially advance to 3rd base. Initially, on a batted groundball in the infield that would advance the runner to 3rd base, you are thinking “full steam ahead,” but once the ball gets through the infield you will need to belly out to the right in order to round 3rd base. This is so that you are running in a straight line from 3rd base to home plate. It's important that you are prepared to belly out because on most batted balls in this situation, the 3rd base coach will act as your eyes. At any given point the 3rd base coach may wave you home, and in return you must know to quickly use the question mark turn to increase the chances of being safe at home plate.

The THIRD WAY to approach 3rd base (from 2nd) is the “hard left cut.” This approach requires you to take a deeper lead off of the base path and run in a straight line toward the 3rd base foul line before cutting left and touching the inside corner of 3rd base on your way to home plate. This situation will occur with one or two outs. The primary lead should be taken back, away from the base path, four to five feet towards leftfield. This is done to pre-round 3rd base. With one or two outs, the batter should be looking to drive the runner in, not to advance the runner to 3rd base. Purposely sacrificing an out when there is one out in order to advance a base runner to 3rd is not smart baseball; with two outs, the sacrifice fly is no longer an option. Knowing this is why you can take a deep primary lead off of 2nd base. Now, when you are advancing on a batted ball and the 3rd base coach is sending you home, you no longer have to worry about bellying out and using the question mark turn. With the deeper primary lead you simply run in a straight line and cut in towards 3rd base when it's time to, two to three feet before reaching 3rd base, in order to set up a straight run to the plate. This approach from 2nd base is the fastest and most efficient way to run the bases and score with one to two outs on the score board.

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Tag(s): Columns Offense Baserunning Matt Lemanczyk Home All News