Word: mcgugan
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With last year's heavy hitters gone, Harvard has had to rely on an aggressive hit-and-run type offense to get its runs, and as lead-off hitter, McGugan has set the pace throughout the season. Leading the team with a 330 average, McGugan has stolen 27 bases in 31 games. He has two home runs, and is third in runs batted in with...
...lead-off hitter I give the opposing players their first impression of our team. If I can get on base, then steal a base, their pitcher is in trouble immediately. He'll start to worry about other things, and lose his concentration," McGugan said. Last Saturday he led off both games against Yale with base hits...
...McGugan has a Command of the finer points of base running that is rare even in the major leagues. The most important factor in base stealing is reading the pitcher's pick-off move, and McGugan concentrates on one particular spot of the pitcher's body. A right-handed pitcher cannot throw to first without lifting his back heel, while a left-hander has to move his back shoulder towards third...
...McGugan tries to steal when the pitcher is throwing a curve because the ball takes longer to reach the plate and is harder for the catcher to handle. Even when the catcher's throw beats him, McGugan often avoids the tag by sliding to the part of the bag that is furthest from where the infielder receives the ball. In 29 attempts, McGugan has only been thrown out twice...
Another important maneuver in this year's offense is the hit-and-run play McGugan and the second batter in the line-up, Toby Harvey, use signals to tell each other what they are going to do on each pitch. On a properly executed hit-and-run, McGugan starts to steal to draw the second baseman out of position, and then continues to third when Harvey hits the ball through the opening created on the right side of the infield...