February 24, 2018

Maddon and the Mound

Joe Maddon, manager of the Cubs, discusses the situations where he wants the catcher to visit the mound:

“I get upset in the dugout for two reasons: missed signs, and when the catcher doesn’t go out and talk to the pitcher. When the catcher knows what the right thing to throw was — and the pitcher keeps shaking him off and finally the catcher cedes and the ball is [hit] off the wall,” Maddon said earlier this week. “That hasn’t been discussed enough. That’s when I want the trip.”

“A lot of this rule change has been built around this concept that people have been cheating through technology,” Maddon said. “That’s my least concern. My concern about the trip is that we can communicate exactly what we want to do in the moment. We scout heavily and have an absolute game plan before it begins. And we’re really good at following it, [but] sometimes the guy out there [pitcher] forgets.”

So the Cubs need a new sign the catcher can flash, “The pitch I’m calling is according to the game plan.” If the pitcher shakes him off after that, then they need a mound visit.

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