Expert: Tom Schott - 5/14/2009

Question
What does the admonition to "take two and hit to left"  mean and where did it originate? I  have always assumed it means assume it means watch the first two pitches carefully but why hit to left field? My dad recently died  and he often said this as it applied to life.He was former semi-pro player.  thanks.

Answer
I found a little more information after sending the note below. This website has a little more information, but still no clue as to the origin of the term.

http://www.jonathangantt.com/2008/06/take-two-and-hit-to-right.html


Donna,

I looked this up in Paul Dickson's =Baseball Dictionary.= He says the term is "traditional instruction to a struggling hitter." With no further information on the origin of the term. There's another difference, too. The phrase he gives is "Take two and hit to right." So apparently where the ball is hit is optional.

In any event, this doesn't sound like very good advice to give to a guy who is struggling. Why would he want to automatically take two pitches before swinging.

Sorry I could not shed more light.