Infielders' saga a moving story
Late in his playing career, an injury to a teammate forced Red Sox third base coach Dale Sveum to venture into baseball territory he'd never explored before -- the other side of the infield.
Sveum, playing shortstop for the Milwuakee Brewers in 1987, traveled several feet to his left to play second base early in the year. And just as suddenly, the game he had played for most of his life looked foreign.
"It was like, `Whoa,' " said Sveum, who also coaches Red Sox infielders. "Everything was different over there. The ball is coming from the other side, pitches I thought were missing outside I'm told were strikes, and seeing the ball off the bat is different."
But it's a challenge that veteran Red Sox infielders Mark Bellhorn and Ricky Gutierrez are used to.
The Sox will take all the versatile players they can get, epecially with Gold Glove second baseman Pokey Reese on the disabled list with a strained abdominal muscle and shortstop Nomar Garciaparra's Achilles' woes.
"To the naked eye, or the guy on the street, there's a lot infielders have to go through when they change positions," Sveum said.
The difference can be stark, like the distance of a throw from second base to first compared with a throw from third to first.
Others are minute.
"If you're at shortstop, you have to go get the ball and you can get more aggressive," Bellhorn said.
It's a mind-set he can't take while patrolling his natural position, second base, where he said players are taught to be less aggressive.
Meanwhile, playing third base has more challenges, such as worrying about bunts. Reaction time is also more precious at the hot corner.
"There isn't many places to go at third," Bellhorn said. "You have to somehow catch it and get rid of it. And it's easy to get caught off guard by bunt plays."
When the Sox acquired middle infielder Gutierrez from the Triple A Iowa Cubs last week, general manager Theo Epstein trumpeted the veteran's ability to play multiple positions.
"I think you have to take ground balls during batting practice at every position," Gutierrez said. "That's really all you can do."
When he's not in the starting lineup, Gutierrez said he regularly takes ground balls all over the infield just in case he's pressed into action.
"I've been doing this for so long, so I don't need to work at it as much," he said. "But it's still important to take ground balls at different positions."
Since arriving in Boston, Gutierrez has already spelled Garciaparra at shortstop and Reese at second base.
"It's a big difference," Gutierrez said about the positions. "The balls hit to you might have a different spin and a different bounce. At shortstop, on a ball over the bag, you can see first base and make the throw. At second, you have to stop and turn."
The difference is a split second, which can also be the difference in getting an out.
Bellhorn, who has split time at third and second during his Major League career, said the unfamiliarity of a new position shows up mostly on the first step.
"Every game, you have to remember where to go and what to do," said Bellhorn, who has 73 starts at second base, 10 at third, and 1 at shortstop this season. "It's hard to have to remind yourself before every pitch."
Sveum said there is no substitute for the experience that Bellhorn and Gutierrez have gathered when it comes to switching positions.
"You can't just hit fungoes at them because it's the same bounce," Sveum said. "You don't have the luxury on working with high choppers, or balls off the end of the bat."
For those taking on new positions on the spot, like third baseman Bill Mueller, who was pressed into action at second base against the Orioles last week, the transition can be brutal.
"You just don't tell them too much," Bellhorn said about doling out advice to new position switchers. "If you do that, they might say, `I'll do this, or I'll do that' and then forget the biggest things like catching and throwing the ball."
