What is a Second Baseman?
Aaron Breslow was curious to see how a text book defined a second baseman. Wiki books online says “The second baseman is an infielder who typically plays halfway to two-thirds of the way between first base and second base. The position is abbreviated as “2B” and is referenced as “4″ for the purposes of official scoring. The second baseman, along with the shortstop, is expected to have the best hands and cover the most range of any of the infielders, although the second baseman is not expected to have as strong an arm as the shortstop, as his throw to first is shorter.” And Wikipedia says “ A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base. Also called second bagger, the second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must be able to make the pivot on a double play. In addition, shortstops and second basemen are usually right-handed as this is preferential for turning a double play. Second base is also known as the keystone sack.” Clearly both sites are correct on the fact that the second baseman needs to be fast and efficient, it’s definitely one of my favorite positions to play in baseball.