THEN AND NOW

Doing some baseball related activities can somehow help me kill time when there is no live baseball. Opening some packs of baseball cards has been my hobby since I was a kid. It brings so much joy and excitement. Topps heritage is a very popular brand. I usually have some packs every year. However, if you like to get some hits (Autographs or Memorabilia), it’s better to consider others.

I got the Then and Now insert featuring Lou Brock and Mallex Smith, two great players on the card. The design is inspired by 1971 baseball cards, so we see stolen base leaders in 1971 and 2019. MLB teams are more careful about allowing runners to have a green light on stolen bases, the attempts are much less in this era of baseball. In comparison with the HOFer Lou Brock, Mallex Smith has fewer stolen base attempts, but a higher percentage of stolen base successfully.

Name	SB	CS	SB%
Lou Brock (1971)	64	19	77.1%

Name	SB	CS	SB%
Mallex Smith (2019)	46	9	83.6%

But let’s look at the whole career, Mallex Smith’s SB% is 1.3% higher than Lou Brock.

Name	SB	CS	SB%
Lou Brock (1961-1979)	938	307	75.3 %

Name	SB	CS	SB%
Mallex Smith (2016-2019)	118	34	77.6 %

And one thing comes to my mind, is Mallex Smith the fastest runner in the league?
Running to 1^st base, Mallex Smith is very fast, but not the fastest.

Name	90ft running
Adalberto Mondesi (L)	3.7
Byron Buxton	3.74
Adam Engel	3.74
Derek Fisher	3.74
Trea Turner	3.74
Jarrod Dyson	3.75
Garret Hampson	3.75
Tim Locastro	3.75
Adalberto Mondesi (R)	3.75
Mallex Smith	3.75
Charlie Tilson	3.75

A typical lead distance is 6 to 10 feet, however, effective basestealer’s lead distance is usually between 11 and 15, thus, he runs between 75ft and 80ft. In this range, Mallex Smith is one of the fastest runners. When he’s on base, pitchers and catchers have to be really careful, pay 120% attention.

Name	80ft running
Adalberto Mondesi (L)	3.36
Jarrod Dyson	3.39
Tim Locastro	3.4
Mallex Smith	3.4
Byron Buxton	3.41

Name	75ft running
Adalberto Mondesi (L)	3.2
Jarrod Dyson	3.22
Tim Locastro	3.24
Mallex Smith	3.24
Byron Buxton	3.25

The number of stolen bases is decreasing in the league, we will not see a player with 100 stolen bases from as Lou Brock did in a single season. But good base running skills can still make impacts to the game.