THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: The surprising disappearance of the switch-hitter

It was a complete puzzle. 

I covered an international fast-pitch softball tournament a few years ago, and was immediately baffled. 

The elite hitters were amazing, turning on fastballs delivered from just 46 feet and ripping drives to all parts of the field. 

And off the premises entirely. 

I remember being dazzled by the batters’ hand-eye coordination, the bat speed they could generate, and even the ability some specialists had mastered to drop down perfect bunts for base hits. 

It seemed impossible that these guys could hammer hits on pitches that looked like they were delivered almost on top on the plate. 

I mean, 46 feet? 

Seriously? 

A world-class softball pitcher can zip it around 80 miles per hour (a few can top that), which would be the equivalent of a baseball pitcher throwing 100 mph or a bit more — from 60 feet, 6 inches. 

And yet. 

Several of the best fast-pitch hitters in the world had tried careers in baseball, and the results? 

Meh. 

They wind up hitting around .230 in Double-A ball, and go back to finding a day job. 

I couldn’t understand it, so I asked one of the premier bashers from the softball tournament why hitters with such skills couldn’t make it in pro baseball. 

“FEAR,” he said. 

What? 

I didn’t get it.

“Think about it,” he said. “There’s plenty of speed in softball, but there aren’t any pitches that start out aimed at you. 

“In baseball, a right-handed hitter has to deal with a 90 mile-per-hour slider that might be coming right at your head — but then it snaps away, and maybe straight into the strike zone. 

“To succeed as a hitter in baseball, you have to conquer that fear of a pitch fired straight at you. 

“In softball, the pitches intended to get you out either rise, or drop, or might be change-ups — but the nature of the delivery means that pitches don’t break sideways, the way they do in baseball.” 

I asked a few of the really good fast-pitch hitters what they would do if they wanted to start over, and hoped for a career in baseball. 

Most of them gave the same answer. 

They’d learn to be switch-hitters. 

IT MAKES sense. 

Surely, taking any physical fear out of your time in the batter’s box removes one problem. 

One worry is gone if wicked, swerving curves, sliders, sweepers — and whatever new pitches are being invented every season — are bending AWAY from you. 

Whisking away one entire group of difficult pitches would seem to be a sensible approach to hitting. 

And yet. 

Switch-hitters are disappearing, even more dramatically among Americans. 

Recent research for a story in the New York Times makes is clear that the trend is moving relentlessly in one direction. 

“Of the roughly 550 batters to log a plate appearance through the end of June, only 58 were switch hitters, according to Stathead,” the Times reported.  

“It continues a trend from last season, when baseball’s switch hitters plummeted to their lowest numbers in 50 years. 

“Only 26 of those are American-born players, one more than last year, which saw the lowest number among Americans in nearly 60 years. 

“While Latin players are often encouraged to switch hit as children, it has almost become taboo among youth in America.” 

MARINERS manager Scott Servais thinks switch-hitting is the biggest advantage in any sport. 

He has a practical, first-world explanation for the trend — and this one doesn’t have to do with fear. 

“Youth baseball in our country has changed dramatically over the last 15 years,” Servais said.  

“The focus ultimately comes down to college scholarships or getting into pro ball, and the lack of patience in letting those things develop in young players. So, they get on select teams and they’re traveling all over the country, and mom and dad are paying a lot of money to put you in front of all of the top coaches.  

“Why would we ever put you in a situation where you might fail? And you’re going to fail.  

“Switch hitting is really hard. It’s really hard when you’re young. And they’re afraid of failure.” 

CATCHER Cal Raleigh is unsure which side of the plate is his natural side. Raleigh, like Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman, is a switch-hitting catcher with power.  

Cal has always been right-hand dominant in everyday activities, but from his earliest memories in baseball, the slugging catcher could swing the bat from both sides of the plate because his father made him do it that way.  

“Every day I thank the Lord my dad made me a switch hitter,” Raleigh said.  

“Because I see some of this nasty stuff that’s being thrown up there.” 

Listening to Servais or Raleigh, it seems surprising that switch-hitters are disappearing. 

Servais suggests that family pressure is an issue, at least in America, but nobody says switch-hitting makes baseball tougher. 

That would be crazy. 

Still, the trend is going in the wrong direction because kids don’t want to “fail,” even for one at-bat. 

Seems silly, and it hurts players in the long run.

Youth sports have become so competitive in the U.S. that kids feel like every at-bat matters, even on the club level or travel leagues.  

It can be difficult for kids (and coaches) to “give away” at-bats in games to work on player development, such as a right-handed hitter learning to bat left-handed. 

Whether the number of major-league switch hitters begins to increase again, particularly in the United States, will depend on how it is handled in the youth leagues going forward.  

The data isn’t encouraging.  

Out of about 140 of baseball’s best prospects listed on FanGraphs’ preseason list, ranging from Class AAA down to Rookie ball, 34 were switch hitters who had yet to debut.  

Eight were Americans. 

Maybe the numbers will look better for future softball players. 

At least they’ll get home for dinner. 

Email: scameron@cdapress.com 

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens. 

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”