What's the point of the intentional walk in baseball?

[crimzy]

I understand the strategy of putting a guy on base to (a) fill an open base so you can work on the double play or get a force out, or (b) to get to a favorable matchup. But why do they have to stand up and walk intentionally? I mean, why not just plunk the batter to put him on? Or why not let him step into the box and throw him junk? At least then he would not know what was going on and may go for a bad ball. Can anyone explain?

 

[rs1831]

Because they could make a mistake that the batter could hit.

 

[crimzy]

Originally Posted by rs1831
Because they could make a mistake that the batter could hit.

I think that it would be pretty easy for major league pitchers to throw bad pitches.

 

[seasalt101]

Originally Posted by crimzy
I think that it would be pretty easy for major league pitchers to throw bad pitches.
ok man on second att park bonds at the plate and you have a 1 run game there are 2 outs what do you do?...tobin

 

[reefer545]

Because then they have a force out on first. That is the normal reasoning for this.

 

[crimzy]

Originally Posted by seasalt101
ok man on second att park bonds at the plate and you have a 1 run game there are 2 outs what do you do?...tobin
I plunk him in his huge noggin. No way to miss and maybe you shake him up a bit for his next at bat.

 

[lion_crazz]

Originally Posted by crimzy
I plunk him in his huge noggin. No way to miss and maybe you shake him up a bit for his next at bat.
And then you start a fight, anger the batter/manager/league, and get yourself in trouble for intentionally hitting someone.
No way to mess up with the intentional walk. Plain and simple.

 

[gregghia]

If you throw to the batter even if you intentionally try to miss or if you get lazy or some guys get mental imagine if you throw something good to the batter and he creams it... or worse what if you throw a wild pitch and both guys advance ie pass ball. If you plunk him in the head it starts a fight or retaliation and playing mad will cause you to lose the game if you get out of control. I agree having to throw 4 balls way outside seems like a formality but I have seen batters get faked out. Seem slike you might want them just to say hey go ahead and walk.
But its tradition... imagine if they just skipped the 4 pitches, what next. After a guy hits a home run he doesn't run the bases just goes right back and sits down. Thats a formality too!

 

[ruaround]

typically the intentional walk is to get a better match up ~or~ get around a power hitter... the batter may not swing at a pitch he intentionally steps out of the box to hit...

 

[team2jndd]

The poinnt of having the catcher stand up to catch it is so that the ball will be out of the batter's reach. They are only throwing at about 60 mph for the most part so if they mess up the throw... goodbye baseball. Many people have gotten hits while intentionally walking. The same goes for throwing junk. If you try to throw a curveball in the dirt and hang it... goodbye baseball. Also, if you do throw a terrible pitch and get him swinging at it somehow... what if it gets past the catcher? Unless all the bases are open thats a free base to anybody on. Every team at every level does it so, if it was really that pointless I think they would catch on...

 

[lovethesea]

Originally Posted by crimzy
I plunk him in his huge noggin. No way to miss and maybe you shake him up a bit for his next at bat.

OH, you SOOO beat me to that one

They are very irritating. On both sides. We see it daily with Albert. Makes us nuts. If you are such a great overpaid pitcher then you should be able to bring it in .........

 

[team2jndd]

anybody catch the mets game tonight??? if you did... the mets pitcher was intentionally walking somebody and threw the ball over the catchers head. The runner on second got to third. The announcers said something along the lines of, people wonder why we actually have to go through the intentional walk instead of just waving them over to the base. This is why.

 

[vpotts28]

The point of the intentional walk , usually is to have a force out at a base. Usually it will happen if someone got a double, leaving first base vacant. Its a heck of alot easier to have a force at first, second, or third. It also allows a team to get around a powerhitter without jeopardizing a lead. Though when they do it to Bonds it usually bites them in the rear.

 

[pontius]

the catcher gets up for the walk so that free swingers like Vlad Guerrero will know not to swing at it. I'm almost sure I saw him swing at an intentional ball one time. it's crazy how good he is considering that he'll swing at almost anything.