Jay Bruce

[RBA]

He seems to be having a little problem with fielding the ball cleanly? Is this due to an injury? Is his mind wandering? Focusing? Or has he forgotten how to field? Or just bad hops? Bad luck? Other?

[HotCorner]

It's the lights. Er ... the sun. Eh maybe gophers are creating havoc in the OF?

[reds1869]

To me he often looks like he is concentrating on making a perfect throw before he has fielded the ball cleanly. He has a great arm and he knows it; hopefully he realizes he can't utilize it if the ball skips past him.

[RedsManRick]

Originally Posted by reds1869

To me he often looks like he is concentrating on making a perfect throw before he has fielded the ball cleanly. He has a great arm and he knows it; hopefully he realizes he can't utilize it if the ball skips past him.

That's what I thought yesterday. Looked like he started to pick his head up early, presumably to make the throw.

[REDblooded]

Making a great throw for a put out can be just as exciting as hitting a home run...

When you're running up on a ball knowing that there's a chance you'll be making a throw on a close play your mind is more focused on the throw than fielding the ball cleanly... It's just a mental lapse that's easy to make under those conditions...

Much like a hitter swinging for the fences on a hanging breaking ball and not squaring it up.

[Caveat Emperor]

Originally Posted by RBA

Is this due to an injury? Is his mind wandering? Focusing? Or has he forgotten how to field? Or just bad hops? Bad luck? Other?

He found Adam Dunn's lounge chair in a storage locker by the cages.

[remdog]

IIRC, wasn't yesterday his first day back from a couple of days off with an inner ear problem? I've had that happen to me and it can affect your balance. Perhaps he was a still a bit unbalanced in his rush to pick the ball and make the throw.

Rem

[reds1869]

Originally Posted by remdog

IIRC, wasn't yesterday his first day back from a couple of days off with an inner ear problem? I've had that happen to me and it can affect your balance. Perhaps he was a still a bit unbalanced in his rush to pick the ball and make the throw.

Rem

Very true. I suffer from frequent balance and dizziness issues and the effects usually linger longer than most people realize.

[Larkin Fan]

Originally Posted by remdog

IIRC, wasn't yesterday his first day back from a couple of days off with an inner ear problem? I've had that happen to me and it can affect your balance. Perhaps he was a still a bit unbalanced in his rush to pick the ball and make the throw.

Rem

This is the most likely explanation. And from watching the game last night and the plays in question, he didn't seem to be too sure of himself balance wise. Inner ear problems are tricky and bending over while on the run to pick up a ball and throw is the perfect way to set a balance issue in motion.

[signalhome]

Originally Posted by remdog

IIRC, wasn't yesterday his first day back from a couple of days off with an inner ear problem? I've had that happen to me and it can affect your balance. Perhaps he was a still a bit unbalanced in his rush to pick the ball and make the throw.

Rem

Excellent point that I hadn't considered.

[GADawg]

while we're talking about this I'm wondering what's up with Joey's throws? I don't remember him having any trouble making accurate throws but of late it seems he's struggling. glad to see him get the night off btw...it usually seems to get him going again.

[dougdirt]

Originally Posted by GADawg

while we're talking about this I'm wondering what's up with Joey's throws? I don't remember him having any trouble making accurate throws but of late it seems he's struggling. glad to see him get the night off btw...it usually seems to get him going again.

Joey has always been a terrible thrower of the baseball. His arm is stronger than a typical first baseman, but his accuracy is rough and always has been.

[Johnny Footstool]

Originally Posted by reds1869

Very true. I suffer from frequent balance and dizziness issues and the effects usually linger longer than most people realize.

Me, too. And yeah, the effects can linger.

[cincrazy]

Originally Posted by reds1869

To me he often looks like he is concentrating on making a perfect throw before he has fielded the ball cleanly. He has a great arm and he knows it; hopefully he realizes he can't utilize it if the ball skips past him.

This. I was at one of the games in Pittsburgh where he let a ball get by him, and you could clearly see him gearing up to throw to third base and not even paying attention to fielding the ball cleanly. Simply a matter of focus, that I'd imagine he'll clean up in time.

[Tony Cloninger]

When Will Jay Bruce start fielding good again?