pitching and first base

Question
Hello,

My son is very tall (6'4") and in his Junior year of high school. He has played first base since little league and is very quick, very fit, has tremendous reach and his fielding is very strong. His batting is consistent as a clutch hitter. He has just this past summer started training to pitch and this week he made the Varsity High School team as a relief pitcher. My question relates to his role on the team. The starting first baseman is a left handed Sophomore. All last year we watched this first baseman make errors, perform poorly at the plate and now he has taken what we feel would have been a starting position from a Junior. How do we look at this situation? As an opportunity for pitching experience or a lost opportunity to play the position he excels at? Are lefty players really that valuable at first base that a better right handed player would sit out?

Answer
Hi Tom,

Believe it or not, situations like these come up every year.  Without knowing more about the specific team, their depth of players, etc.  it would be difficult to determine if this is a good or bad decision for the team.  However, in the end, it really does not matter.  The coach believes it is and that is all that matters.  Getting upset or resenting the fact that he is not playing first base will not help him in any way.  It could be the coach is actually looking out for your son by helping him key directly on his pitching and giving him appropriate time to rest between starts.  Baseball pitching puts tremendous strain on the arm and body and pitchers need to rest more than position players.  Players who both pitch and play another position are at a much greater risk for muscle fatigue and injuries.  

Therefore, I would try to make the best out of this situation and go along with the coach's decision and really have your son enjoy the novelty of playing a new position.  Pitching can be fun and even more exciting than playing a regular position because you have so much control of the game while pitching.

Now, if your son decides that he really wants to play first base as opposed to pitching, I would suggest he delay that decision until the end of this season.  He can always play first base on his summer league or winter ball teams.  I would recommend if he wants to go back to first for the varsity to bring up the issue with his coach after this season.  This should give him enough time to decide which position he really likes playing and shows the coach he was willing to give pitching a try.

Regarding your question about left handed first baseman.  Yes, there are some advantages to a person being left handed as opposed to a right hander.  In addition, left handed players are a bit more limited in the positions they can play in comparison and so there will always be a little more emphasis in placing them at 1st base or the outfield.  However, performance on the field should always be the main determination.  When this does not occur and there is a wide level of difference, it negatively impacts the team as the players become aware of it.  Here, the coach may feel the other player is poised to improve his game as he was just a freshman this past year.  He may be gambling a little with this decision, but no one will know if it is a good idea until after the season.  Either way, your son will do best to keep a positive attitude and embrace the new position.  This will make it so he will be less likely to look upon his high school career with regret because he knew he gave it a good effort.  

Best,
Jack Elliott
http://www.baseballtrainingtechniques.com