when to put on a hit and run
Hit and run (baseball) The hit and run relies on the positioning of the defensive players in the infield. The first and third basemen normally stand near the foul lines, generally near the inside of their bases, set slightly back to allow more time to react to sharply hit balls. However, if the runner is on first, the first baseman stands closer to the base to prevent steals by means of pick-off attempts by the pitcher; consequently, such positioning produces a bigger gap between second and first basemen. The second baseman and shortstop stand on opposite sides of second base, covering the areas between first and second, and second and third, respectively. Second base itself is not directly covered, as the pitcher can field batted balls in this direction.
Inside-the-park home run Of the 154,483 home runs hit between 1951 and 2000, 975 (about 1 in every 158) were inside-the-park. The percentage has dwindled since the increase in emphasis on power hitting which began in the 1920s.