The bat waggle is by far the preferred strategy to keep unfastened on the plate. Presumably that’s as a result of ready for a pitch is likely one of the few conditions when it’s socially acceptable to waggle one thing. Life simply doesn’t provide that many alternatives to waggle. Also, it’s a two-fer. It doesn’t simply preserve you unfastened; it additionally retains your bat unfastened. It’s all nicely and good when you’re physique’s able to hit, however good luck attempting to catch as much as a Justin Verlander fastball with a decent bat. (Fun Fact: It seems that bats — you already know, the precise winged creatures — have their very own waggle.)
But even after you waggle your bat, these final couple seconds are tough. You’re locked into your batting stance, and now you’re simply ready there on the mercy of the pitcher (and the pitch clock). You’ve received to do one thing to take care of assault readiness. Some gamers bounce the bat off their shoulder, or bounce just a little bit deeper into their crouch just a few occasions. They rock forwards and backwards, elevate and decrease their fingers, or grind the toe of their cleat into the grime. Some even be sure their pelvis is unfastened. Like, actually unfastened. Like, very, extraordinarily, presumably even dangerously unfastened.
That’s a completely totally different sort of waggle.
Fortunately, J.D. Davis’ pelvis will not be our focus in the present day. Today we’re speaking about Marcus Semien. He’s the sort of participant who’s simple to root for. A sixth-round decide in 2011, he was a Fringe Five fixture all through 2013. After a 2014 commerce to the A’s, we received to look at him slowly determine issues out on the huge league degree, first at shortstop, then on the plate, till finally he’d grown right into a star proper earlier than our eyes. This piece, written simply after the Oakland commerce, captures the percentages Semien overcame. It’s additionally value studying only for the prospect to benefit from the erstwhile Managing Editor of FanGraphs and present Player Personnel Manager for the Toronto Blue Jays referring to somebody as “Dan Szymbuttface.”
On Wednesday, with Semien on the plate in opposition to the Mariners, I noticed him in an entire new gentle. Take a take a look at his pre-pitch ritual:
It’s a very simple factor to overlook, so I wouldn’t be shocked when you didn’t catch it. I don’t know what number of occasions I’ve watched Semien hit over the past 10 years, and I by no means seen it till this week. Here’s the identical video, however this time we’re zoomed in on his decrease half. I don’t understand how else to place this: Marcus Semien’s legs are extraordinarily stressed.
There are a variety of doable explanations for what’s happening right here. The almost certainly one is that Semien is having a tiny little dance celebration and all people’s invited. It’s additionally doable that that is simply his manner of staying unfastened, however that looks as if a little bit of a stretch.
By my rely, Semien lifted one heel or one other 12 occasions within the final three seconds earlier than this pitch. To be clear, I didn’t cherry-pick a very antsy clip. This was the primary one which got here up after I ran a search. Josh Harrison is pitching within the eighth inning of a 10-run recreation, so the stakes couldn’t presumably be decrease. This is simply what Semien does whereas he’s ready for the pitch.
If you’re questioning whether or not Semien has at all times performed this, the reply is a convincing: Sort of. He’s at all times been twitchy on this explicit manner, however the tic has grown extra pronounced over time. The reply to a bigger, extra existential query is: Yes, I did spend completely an excessive amount of time grinding by way of tape in order that I might doc the arc that Semien’s heel-tapping journey has described.
That’s the earliest footage I might discover of Semien’s batting stance. It’s from his junior yr at Cal Berkeley, in 2011. The 20-year-old Semien ever so barely lifts his again heel a few times earlier than the pitch. His entrance foot doesn’t transfer in any respect. That’s the start. It’s a far cry from his present pre-pitch routine, whereby it sort of seems like he’s attempting to enter the Konami Code along with his toes.
The subsequent video I might discover is from Semien’s look within the Arizona Fall League in 2013, proper earlier than his first cup of espresso with the White Sox. As you may see, his entrance foot is now concerned too.
It’s not simply that each toes have joined the celebration. He’s additionally elevated the frequency sufficient that, had been you inclined towards conspiracy theories, you would possibly hypothesize that Semien was sending a message in Morse code. However, he’s nonetheless lifting his heels a lot lower than he does in the present day, and the impact isn’t discovering its manner up the kinetic chain simply but.
In 2014, Semien received his first common enjoying time within the majors. He additionally took an enormous step again (when it comes to taking small steps that go nowhere). His toes are a lot quieter because the pitch is coming:
This clip is fairly consultant of 2014 Marcus Semien: He’d solely elevate his heel just a few occasions, and typically solely the fitting heel. He had jumped a variety of ranges by this level. If I needed to guess, I’d say a coach someplace alongside the road instructed him to be quieter within the batter’s field. Cutting down on pointless actions is the blanket prescription for no matter’s ailing a younger hitter. (I might additionally advocate this video, additionally from 2014, of an inside-the-park dwelling run for the Charlotte Knights. It’s not germane, however Semien hits the ball so arduous that the crack of the bat makes somebody within the crowd scream in fright.)
And that’s just about how issues stayed. Semien’s toes had been practically as quiet in 2015, although he went again to lifting his heels nearer to 4 or 5 occasions earlier than the pitch. In 2016, he sometimes included a little bit of sway into his stance, however his toes stayed at their similar, moderately-happy degree. In 2018, he ditched the sway, and in 2019, as he grew to become a breakout star, his toes had been quieter than ever.
It looks like he’s attempting so arduous to carry it in, and he utterly succeeds… till that final second when the pitch is lastly on its manner and he simply can’t assist it anymore. It’s sort of like while you’re hanging out with pals and also you consider a very horrible pun. You can deceive your self all you need, however finally the dialog will begin to transfer on, and you already know you’ll must blurt it out earlier than the second passes.
Things received extra attention-grabbing in 2020. The faucets began coming quicker and extra incessantly, till Semien was as much as the 10-12 we see earlier than most pitches in the present day. Last season, he added the ultimate piece: He began elevating his heels extra dramatically and turning his knee inward as he did so, which introduced his hips into the method as nicely. Here’s the primary pitch from the at-bat the place I lastly seen his peripatetic stance.
I used to have this previous desk lamp with a inexperienced glass shade, the type attorneys at all times appear to have of their workplaces in films. It was an amazing lamp. Then someday, nothing occurred after I pulled the chain. It simply didn’t activate. But it did activate after I pulled it a second time, so I didn’t actually fear about it. From that day on, it took two pulls to activate the lamp. I don’t know what was breaking contained in the chain mechanism, however each occasionally the lamp would require one further pull to activate. This went on for a yr or two, however the variety of pulls elevated so progressively that I by no means actually seen it. I simply received used to pulling it actually quick, nonetheless many occasions it took. Then someday, I went to activate the lamp whereas a pal was visiting, and about 10 seconds into the method I spotted that I appeared utterly insane, tugging on a lamp chain 50 occasions in a row.
The identify for that phenomenon is normalization of deviance, and I believe it’s what’s happening with Semien’s batting stance. What began as a tiny idiosyncrasy has now grown into one thing fairly noticeable. I might think about that Semien is aware of he’s doing this, and possibly even that he’s doing it deliberately. It might simply be nervous power, or a strategy to keep unfastened or balanced. It may be a concession to an inherent restlessness; the small motion he permits himself with a view to stave off some bigger, extra disruptive motion. For the remainder of us, it’s simply one other enjoyable factor to look at when there’s a Rangers recreation on. It appears innocent sufficient, and it definitely hasn’t stored Semien from placing collectively an amazing profession and a very good begin to the 2023 season. But now that I’ve seen it, I can’t unsee it.
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