GOOD SKILL BUNTING
Bruce, Walker outsmarts defense — but don’t get too used to it
Jay Bruce spent much of his final spring training with the Reds trying to add bunting to his arsenal. Bruce said he bunted roughly 100 balls a day during that 2016 camp, but the experiment didn’t work.
“I really didn’t get any better at it,” the Mets outfielder said.
So it might have come as a shock to many when Bruce executed a perfect bunt single against the shift on Thursday in Miami. Two nights later, teammate Neil Walker also bunted for a single against the Marlins. It’s too early to say the bunt is back in vogue for the Mets, but it also might become another weapon opponents will be forced to respect.
Make no mistake, a team that set a franchise record with 218 home runs last season will still mostly live and die with the long ball, but the little ball, when used prudently, can add seasoning to the steak.
“I have always been a pretty good bunter, but just never really got a lot of opportunities to do it,” Walker said. “You look for situations. We hadn’t gotten a hit for five innings, so sometimes you take what the defense is giving you. I looked down to third base and the guy was a couple of steps from the back grass. You just say it would be a good time to take a shot at it.”
In Bruce’s case, the Mets were down four runs in a game they eventually won in 16 innings. Bruce said it wasn’t until he came to the plate and studied the Marlins’ over-shifted defensive alignment and realized the Mets needed base runners that he decided to bunt down the third-base line.
Bruce’s attempts at bunting in spring training last year had caught opponents’ attention such that teams began shifting to the right side with three infielders, but keeping the third baseman in on the grass near the bag. Bruce said Cubs manager Joe Maddon started using that alignment against him. It eventually led to Bruce abandoning the bunt.
“I think if the situation arises where [a bunt] makes complete sense, I’ll take a chance from time to time,” Bruce said. “But I don’t think it’s necessarily part of my game. But when it’s there and it’s kind of staring me in the face, I will try it.”
Manager Terry Collins is on board with the idea of his players — even his sluggers — bunting, as
long as the situation doesn’t call for an extra-base hit. “These guys get paid to hit the ball over the fence,” Collins said. “The first time I ever used the shift was against Ken Griffey [Jr.]. I would rather have him bunt than hit a homer, so I am sure the other teams feel the same way.
“There are certain times in the game where, ‘Hey, look let’s get a guy on, because if we get somebody on and can do some damage, you’ve got a chance you can take the lead or build the lead or catch up.’ There’s places for it, but the guys have got to want to do it, too.”
Bruce has no illusions about defensive shifts against him disappearing anytime soon, even if he bunts more often.
“It makes sense to [shift], and my biggest thing is I tell myself if I hit the ball like I’m supposed to, the shift won’t really matter,” Bruce said. “It’s swinging at the right pitches, having your swing working the correct way, I think kind of takes care of all that stuff.”