S Hughes: England's Fielders Stuck On First Base (26 Apr 1996)

England`s fielders stuck on first base

By Simon Hughes

ENCOURAGING cricketers to learn from baseball sounds like sacrilege: traditionalists would surely scoff at the idea that an overhyped version of rounders could teach us anything about our deep and meaningful game.

Keith Fletcher echoed those sentiments when one of cricket`s major sponsors offered the then England manager funds to attend a baseball team`s spring training in Florida. "What do I want to watch that for?" he asked, with the same bewilderment that a Royal Shakespeare Company director might express if he was being packed off to scrutinise rehearsals of Cheers.

Yet you can learn a lot from baseball, as David Lloyd has acknowledged. He is intending to use an American throwing coach with the England players and while watching a major league baseball game on his Caribbean hotel television recently was intrigued by the batsmen`s aggressive posture as they waited for the ball.

"They raise their bats way above their heads in stance, and bend their knees slightly on the point of contact, sort of pouncing on the ball," he said. "I said to John Crawley `hey, that`s how Lara bats.` He tried it and found it helped."

A legion of players brandishing their bats like a policeman`s truncheon is not about to emerge, but England`s preparation could be enhanced by translating baseball methods. It was clear from my day with the New York Mets that our cricketers would do well to emulate their attitude.

Remember that old school tip: "Run one for the throw"? You don`t in baseball. Close fielders` arms are like catapults, whipping the ball into the baseman`s mit from anywhere within a 50-yard radius before the batsman has even got halfway. From the deep, flat relay returns flash to a middle-man who then rapidly ferries it to the desired base. Long loopy throws are confined to the grenade-wielding division of the US Army.

"When you go into English schools you find most boys can kick a ball but very few know how to throw it properly."

There is no doubt top American sportsmen can project a ball further and faster than their English counterparts, so where do they get the power? The explanation is partly cultural. "In the States fathers take their sons outside from an early age to throw a ball around," says Ian Smythe, youth development officer of the British Baseball Federation. "When you go into English schools you find most boys can kick a ball but very few know how to throw it properly."

Well, we`re stuck with that, but can we work within our limitations. "Throwing starts at the feet and ends at the fingertips," says the Mets fielding coach Mike Cubbage. "I pay a lot of attention to footwork, getting the outfielders to take two quick steps into a braced position before they release. Most of their speed comes from strong legs."

Devon Malcolm backs up that theory. His returns from the boundary are fast but the chances of them being wicketkeeperfriendly are neglible. "These guys practise control and accuracy an hour a day," Cubbage goes on. "We constantly simulate match situations hitting the ball into various areas with runners on different bases to evaluate the fielder`s best response."

How often do cricketers practice pick-ups and returns from their precise fielding positions, or make practical studies of their running-between-the wickets? Practically never.

Baseball pitchers are even more meticulous. After loosening up with some long throws, they work strenuously through their repertoire of fast balls, sliders and breakers for over an hour while one of the seven specialist coaches stands by recording everything in a file. Later these notes are transferred to a laptop computer which the team manager regularly consults during the game. He may even run on to the field to impart a vital piece of information to the pitcher.

The last section of their warm-up was focused on contriving pressure. Catches were hit and the player under it subjected to a variety of distractions - abuse, bright lights, threats of financial penalty. The All Blacks practice this too, suddenly interrupting training to pressurise the goal-kicker into converting a penalty while trying to disturb his concentration. Nothing can really mimic the extreme duress of being under a skier in front of 30,000 spectators, but these disciplines can help.

In spite of their heavy workload (around 160 games a season) and a hard ball flying about at high velocity, there is very little incidence of injury in baseball - last September Cal Ripken broke the record of consecutive games with his 2,131st successive appearance for the Baltimore Orioles. Part of this has to do with the impressive physical condition of all the players which puts county teams to shame, but it also relates to carefully evolved methods.

"Throwing is taught to be injury-free," says the pitching coach of the British national team, Gary Roberts. "Even players with $8 million contracts go back to basics with the coaches, checking their technique, making sure they`re not opening up too early or becoming side arm. I watched England in the World Cup and was appalled. No wonder so many of them have shoulder problems."

Last year at a cricket seminar in Taunton, Roberts gave a talk on throwing to about 100 coaches, including Micky Stewart, and offered his help. "I`d love to be involved in cricket but I haven`t had one call. Give me six months with the England team and I could guarentee they`d all be throwing harder and more accurately. I`d even do it for free." Now if that doesn`t make Illy`s ears prick up, what will?

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)