Hit and run (baseball)

A hit and run is a high risk, high reward offensive strategy used in baseball. It uses a stolen base attempt to try to place the defending infielders out of position for an attempted base hit.

The hit and run was introduced to baseball by Ned Hanlon, who was often referred to as "The Father of Modern Baseball", at the beginning of the 1894 season of the National League, as part of what came to be called "inside baseball". Hanlon was manager of the Baltimore Orioles at the time. His team developed the hit and run along with other tactics during spring training at Macon, Georgia. After its implementation in the season's series opener against the New York Giants, the opposing manager objected to its use; however, it was deemed acceptable.

The hit and run relies on the positioning of the defensive players in the infield. The first and third basemen normally stand near the foul lines, generally near the inside of their bases, set slightly back to allow more time to react to sharply hit balls. However, if the runner is on first, the first baseman stands closer to the base to prevent steals by means of pickoff attempts by the pitcher; consequently, such positioning produces a bigger gap between second and first basemen. The second baseman and shortstop stand on opposite sides of second base, covering the areas between first and second, and second and third, respectively. Second base itself is not directly covered, as the pitcher can field batted balls in this direction.

In normal play, if the ball is hit into the infield, one of the infielders will run toward the ball while another runs toward the base that is no longer covered. For instance, if the ball is hit toward the second baseman, he will run toward the ball while the shortstop runs to cover second base. This allows the fielding player to throw the ball to the player covering the base to attempt a put out.

However, during a stolen base attempt, the normal gameplay and positioning is altered. In the typical case, a baserunner on first base will start running toward second, causing the middle infielders to move toward that base in order to tag the runner when the ball is thrown to them from the pitcher or catcher. This reaction places the infielders out of position for a hit ball, with gaps opening at midway points between first and second and second and third.

The hit and run takes advantage of this difference by having the baserunner attempt to steal as soon as the pitch is thrown; the batter then attempts to hit the ball into one of the resulting gaps in the infield defense.

The name "hit and run" is therefore a potential misnomer in that the chronological order of the offensive play is "run and hit," with the runner beginning the steal attempt before the batter makes contact, although in a logical sense it is accurate in that the batter's swing occurs while the runner's steal attempt is ongoing, such that any contact ("hit") will occur simultaneously with ("and") the steal attempt ("run").

Ideally, the ball will be hit into a gap and travel into the outfield, allowing the runners plenty of time to reach the bases. Even if the ball is hit toward a fielder's initial position before the fielder has had time to move away from it, however, the fielder may have turned to run toward the base in order to cover the baserunner. In normal play the fielders would face the batter, allowing them to react in any direction, but after they have turned toward the base this becomes much more difficult. Their momentum in this direction adds to this problem.