The Fake Pickoff Play

[Kitt]

Hey baseball fans? Please ask yourselves and every baseball fan in earshot, or by telephone or on the internet this question. Have you ever seen that herky-jerky pitchers play of a fake to third and then the quick fake to first result in an out?

I haven't. That play seems like nothing more than an ecxuse for the pitcher to take a breather.

[Brian]

I've seen it work sometimes but that's rare. It's called "The Sutcliffe Move."

When I saw a Padres game at Edison Field at Anaheim in 1999 where it worked against the Angels. Pitcher Mark Petkovsek did the Sutfliffe Move but the ball inadvertantly came right out of his hand and rolled onto the infield allowing the Padres to score what would be the winning run. One of the most bizarre plays I've seen to win a game.

[Kitt]

Originally posted by Brian
I've seen it work sometimes but that's rare. It's called "The Sutcliffe Move."

Can you remember when? I mean, maybe I'm forgetting, but, I don't recall ever seeing it work. To work it would have to either catch the guy at third sleeping, or, more the idea is to trick the guy on first to get faked out and start running for second or fall asleep by not going back to first before the pick-off throw comes back at ya'.

Speaking of Sutcliffe: I watched him throw over to first, when Rickey Henderson was on first base, something like twenty times in a row. Finally, Sutcliffe tossed up a pitch, and Rickey, who was taking a walking lead, stole second base as if he was playing against an amature. It was a beautiful thing to watch.

[Brian]

I can't remember any specific game or year but I'm positive I've seen it work at least once since I've been watching the Padres religously since 1998. That's about 840 games.

[Kitt]

Originally posted by Brian
I can't remember any specific game or year but I'm positive I've seen it work at least once since I've been watching the Padres religously since 1998. That's about 840 games.

That's what I figure my ratio is too. You'd think we'd remember what we were doing that day like one of those famous days that everyone remembers what they were doing when...

[Janice]

Lou says that last season, on the Red Sox last West Coast swing, playing Seattle...the Seattle pitcher executed the play and picked off the Sox runner on first. He thinks it was Mark Belhorn.

Lou says it's very rare and "could only happen to the Red Sox".

[Kitt]

Sometime during the middle of the night (jesus, I can't believe I'm prompted to think about this stuff in the middle of the night. lol) I remembered that I had seen that play work TWICE in one game! It was strange to say the least. I think it was a Giants game. So, the Red Sox were not involved that time anyway Whoo hoo!.