Siempre me ha gustado realizar un ejercicio de fantas\u00c3\u00ada beisbol\u00c3\u00adstica. Imagino que estoy en un dugout de Grandes Ligas y dispongo de los mejores diez receptores de todos los tiempos. S\u00c3\u00b3lo puedo utilizar uno por episodio.<\/p>\n
Sin embargo a la hora de escoger mi receptor del primer episodio empiezo a escuchar voces y gritos, veo varias im\u00c3\u00a1genes de jugadas en el plato, aparecen muchos otros receptores con m\u00c3\u00a9ritos insoslayables. El \u00c3\u00a1rbitro principal levanta la voz para pedirme la alineaci\u00c3\u00b3n. El impacto descarnado de una pelota taladrando la mascota me trae efluvios de una entrevista de Yogi Berra donde dice que el apodo se lo debe a un compa\u00c3\u00b1ero de equipo que al verlo sentado en suelo de piernas y brazos cruzados lo confundi\u00c3\u00b3 con un practicante de yoga. M\u00c3\u00a1s adelante Berra record\u00c3\u00b3 que todo lo que sab\u00c3\u00ada sobre el arte de llamar juegos, mascotear, lanzar a las bases, relacionarse con los pitchers y hasta su efectividad con el bate, se lo deb\u00c3\u00ada al excelso receptor Bill Dickey, a qui\u00c3\u00a9n los Yanquis contrataron para que instruyera al novato Yogi Berra.<\/p>\n
Volteo hacia el club-house y veo a Mickey Cochrane d\u00c3\u00a1ndole palmadas a Lefty Grove en la espalda, se pone de acuerdo con \u00c3\u00a9l sobre las particularidades de cada bateador. Y le dice a cada momento que piensa que puede ser mejor, que en la medida que se convenza a si mismo de que puede hacer grandes logros, empezar\u00c3\u00a1n a llegar grandes triunfos.<\/p>\n
Lanzo la mirada hacia el bull pen, un catcher de mediana estatura gesticula hacia varios pitchers de los Dodgers de Brooklyn de 1955. Carl Erskine est\u00c3\u00a1 levantando el pi\u00c3\u00a9 izquierdo, luego corre hacia otro mont\u00c3\u00adculo y le muestra a Clem Labine como debe caer luego de lanzar \u00e2\u20ac\u0153As\u00c3\u00ad tengo mejor visi\u00c3\u00b3n de donde tengo que lanzar para agarrar al corredor\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. En dos minutos corre desesperado hasta la banca donde Sandy Koufax ladea la cabeza, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153lo \u00c3\u00banico que debes hacer es poner la pelota alrededor del pecho del catcher, ya ver\u00c3\u00a1s como te convertir\u00c3\u00a1s en un gran pitcher\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. En un papel pegado en el dugout Walter Alston escribi\u00c3\u00b3 Campanella al lado de una C.<\/p>\n
Detr\u00c3\u00a1s del plato Gaby Hartnett se estira en extremo y toma un wild pitch de Charlie Root . Desde el suelo se levanta, toca al bateador y pinta un strike en el guante de Sparky Adams para completar un dobleplay de acrobacia pura.<\/p>\n
Bob Feller hace varias se\u00c3\u00b1as en el mont\u00c3\u00adculo, el espigado receptor se levanta, luego se agacha recostado de la esquina interior del plato. El pr\u00c3\u00b3ximo lanzamiento sale en roletazo que se duerme tras el mont\u00c3\u00adculo, Lou Boudreau toma la pelota y lanza desviado a primera, la pelota se le escapa a Mickey Vernon pero Jim Hegan llega a tiempo de hacer la asistencia y completar el out con Feller.<\/p>\n
El catcher brinca sobre la pelota enterrada a escasos cent\u00c3\u00admetros de la caja de bateo, Gary Carter levanta la mascota para detener la carrera de Steve Rogers, agarra la esf\u00c3\u00a9rica a mano limpia y lanza un bal\u00c3\u00adn al mascot\u00c3\u00adn de Rusty Staub para sacar en el salto a Omar Moreno.<\/p>\n
El slider lleg\u00c3\u00b3 al plato cuando Al Bumbry iba a mitad de camino entre primera y segunda base. Thurman Munson solt\u00c3\u00b3 la pelota casi desde el suelo y Bucky Dent puso fuera al corredor por medio paso.<\/p>\n
A Mark Fidrych se le escap\u00c3\u00b3 una pelota que pas\u00c3\u00b3 a m\u00c3\u00a1s de un metro de la esquina externa del plato. Bill Freehan salt\u00c3\u00b3 desde sus rodillas y detuvo la pelota cual shortstop, el corredor de primera regres\u00c3\u00b3 corriendo a la base.<\/p>\n
El corredor de primera sale con el imparable de Garry Maddox, Tony Scott pomponea la pelota y Jerry Martin dobla por tercera y sigue hacia el plato donde Garry Templeton hace un relevo alto, Ted Simmons salta, agarra la pelota y cae sobre sus pies bloqueando al corredor que se lanza sobre \u00c3\u00a9l pero Simmons resiste y hace el out.<\/p>\n
El elevado de foul se precipita sobre la zona m\u00c3\u00a1s pr\u00c3\u00b3xima al terreno, Carlton Fisk suelta la m\u00c3\u00a1scara y corre hacia el palco de terreno se lanza sobre el muro y captura la pelota sobre la primera fila de sillas.<\/p>\n
El corredor de segunda aprovech\u00c3\u00b3 que Iv\u00c3\u00a1n Rodr\u00c3\u00adguez tuvo que lanzarse sobre su cuerpo para detener un wild pitch, Rodr\u00c3\u00adguez se levant\u00c3\u00b3 y lanz\u00c3\u00b3 la pelota en un solo movimiento, la ubicaci\u00c3\u00b3n del disparo oblig\u00c3\u00b3 al \u00c3\u00a1rbitro a levantar el brazo.<\/p>\n
En el entrenamiento primaveral de 1968, Johnny Bench llama dos veces a Jim Maloney y le dice que haga lanzamientos quebrados en vez de su deteriorada recta. Bench le dijo que su recta hab\u00c3\u00ada dejado de ser temible y Maloney lo increp\u00c3\u00b3. Bench le pidi\u00c3\u00b3 la recta, cuando Maloney la lanz\u00c3\u00b3, Bench solt\u00c3\u00b3 la mascota y recibi\u00c3\u00b3 el envi\u00c3\u00b3 a mano limpia. El 30 de abril de 1969 Bench fue el catcher de los Rojos de Cincinnati cuando Maloney lanz\u00c3\u00b3 sin hits ni carreras.<\/p>\n
Al final le entrego la alineaci\u00c3\u00b3n al \u00c3\u00a1rbitro. Me queda mirando \u00e2\u20ac\u0153\u00c2\u00bfQui\u00c3\u00a9n es tu catcher?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Cuando salga a batear o con la m\u00c3\u00a1scara, lo sabr\u00c3\u00a1.<\/p>\n
English Translation<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve always tried of developing an exercise of baseball utopy. I imagine that my working place is an MLB dugout and have ten of the greatest catchers in the history of the game. I can only use one by frame.<\/p>\n At the moment of chosing my first inning catcher I begin to hear shouts and voices, I see some images of plays at home plate, and inevitably it appear other catchers with great merits. The umpire raises his voice to ask me for the line-up card. The impact of of ball hitting the catcher\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mitt brings me traces of a Yogi Berra interview where he says that he owes his nickname to a teammate who saw Berra sat on the ground at a side of the field, with his arms and legs crossed. The guy thought that Berra practiced yoga. Later Berra recalled that everything he knew about calling games, handling the mitt, throwing to the bases, talking to the pitchers and even his skills with the bat; he owed it all to the great Bill Dickey, whom the Yankees hired to instruct the rookie Yogi Berra.<\/p>\n I look to the club-house and see Mickey Cochrane patting Lefty Grove on his back. Cochrane talks to Grove about the details of each batter. And he encourages his pitcher about the idea of being better \u00e2\u20ac\u0153you can do it all. The more you tell yourself you can get great achievements, the sooner will come the great victories\u00e2\u20ac\u009d.<\/p>\n I send my gaze to the bull pen. A regular size catcher makes several gestures to some pitchers of the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers. Carl Erskine is raising his left foot, then the catcher runs to another mound and shows Clem Labine how to fall down after hurling. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153That way I have a better focus of where I have to throw the ball to chase the runner\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. Two minutes later he runs desperately to the bench where Sandy Koufax moves his head, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the only thing you have to do is locate the ball around the catcher\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s chest, and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll see how you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll become a great pitcher.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d In a card that the manager Walter Alston attached to the dugout\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s wall, he wrote \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Campanella\u00e2\u20ac\u009d aside the letter C.<\/p>\n Behind home-plate Gaby Hartnett stretches completely and takes a Charlie Root\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s wild pitch. He gets up from the ground, touches the batter and paints a strike in the glove of Sparky Adams to complete an acrobatic doubleplay.<\/p>\n Bob Feller makes some signs at the mound, the tall catcher stands up, then bends down leaned on the inner corner of home-plate. The next delivery becomes a grounder that stops behind the mound, Lou Boudreau takes the ball but throws it out of focus to first base. Mickey Vernon can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take the ball, but Jim Hegan arrives on time to get the ball and complete the out with Feller.<\/p>\n The catcher jumps over the ball sunk few inches away from the batter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s box. Gary Carter raises his mitt to stop Steve Rogers run, grabs the ball barehanded and sends a bullit to Rusty Staub\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mitt to put Omar Moreno out in the jump.<\/p>\n The slider came to home-plate when Al Bumbry had run half way between first and second base. Thurman Munson released the ball almost from the ground and Bucky Dent put the runner out for half a step.<\/p>\n Mark Fidrych slipped the ball in the wind up and it passed more than three feet away from the home-plate\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s outer corner. Bill Freehan jumped from his knees and stopped the ball like a short stop, the first base runner went back there desperately.<\/p>\n The first base runner launches with the Garry Maddox hit, Tony Scott can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t control the ball and Jerry Martin touches third base and keeps running to the plate where Garry Templeton makes a high relief throw. Ted Simmons leaps, catches the ball and falls down on his feet to block the runner who collides with him, but Simmons holds the ball and makes the out.<\/p>\n A foul fly comes down over the seat boxes section closest to the field. Carlton Fisk takes off his mask, runs to the seat boxes, jumps over the short wall and catches the ball on the first row of seats.<\/p>\n The runner on second base tried to take profit of Iv\u00c3\u00a1n Rodr\u00c3\u00adguez sliding on his body to stop a wild pitch. Rodr\u00c3\u00adguez got up and threw the ball to second base in one movement. The ball positioning provoked that the umpire raised his arm to call the out.<\/p>\n In the 1968 spring training, Johnny Bench calls twice Jim Maloney and tells him to try to throw offspeed deliveries instead of his fastball. Bench told Maloney that his fastball wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t threatening anymore but Maloney didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like it. Bench ended asking for a fastball. When Maloney threw it Bench took off the mitt and received the ball barehanded. On April 30th, 1969, Bench was the Cincinnati Reds catcher when Maloney hurled a no-hitter.<\/p>\n At the end I give the line up card to the chief umpire. He keeps staring at me: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Who is your catcher?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll know about him when he takes a bat and goes to the batting box.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n Alfonso’s work has been featured in Venezuela\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s daily newspaper, El Nacional and in the magazine Gente en Ambiente, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s collaborated on several articles for newspapers, including the daily paper Tal Cual. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also written three books and biographies for SABR\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s BioProject.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Siempre me ha gustado realizar un ejercicio de fantas\u00c3\u00ada beisbol\u00c3\u00adstica. Imagino que estoy en un dugout de Grandes Ligas y dispongo de los mejores diez receptores de todos los tiempos. S\u00c3\u00b3lo puedo utilizar uno por episodio. Sin embargo a la hora de escoger mi receptor del primer episodio empiezo a escuchar voces y gritos, veo […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t