Cross Dominance

[Edgy MD]

The Mets have seven pitchers (including inactive guys) who bat the opposite way from how they throw.

[list:2wicam66]deGrom: L/R
Edgin: R/L
Henderson: L/R
Matz: R/L
Reed: L/R
Syndergaard: L/R
Wheeler: L/R[/list:u:2wicam66]
Time was, of course, when this was discouraged — or in the case of Dwight Gooden, forbidden. Now it's a big chunk of the staff. Edgin and Matz even represent the rarest bird of them all—a righty batter/lefty thrower, at a disadvantage both on offense and defense.

A disadvantage except for pitchers of course.

[bmfc1]

For some reason, in North Carolina it's confusing which bathroom they can use.

[dinosaur jesus]

Koufax was a righty batter/lefty thrower. I think it was so his pitching hand wasn't the top hand on the bat.

[RealityChuck]

Edgy MD wrote: A disadvantage except for pitchers of course.

Not always.

[seawolf17]

There was at least one other Met, and I'm trying to remember without looking it up. Mark Carreon, maybe?

[Benjamin Grimm]

Jesse Orosco.

[Centerfield]

Rickey Henderson.

[Edgy MD]

RealityChuck wrote: Edgy MD wrote: A disadvantage except for pitchers of course. Not always.

Certainly Cle was disadvantage, but overcame it.

Of course nobody did that more with that dominance set than Rickey, but with his build and skills, had he thrown righthanded, rather than being the fifth or sixth best leftfielder ever, he possibly could have been by far the best second baseman.

[Ceetar]

I'm always curious how this comes about.

With the relievers especially I assume they bat whatever is natural and just happened to learn to pitch with the non-dominant hand. Or maybe it's completely unrelated. As top-flight athletes in high school they probably tried switch-hitting and just stuck with the side that they felt most comfortable?