In regards to Sam Fuld not stopping at first on his last hit Monday night to get the cycle, I found four instances of players in the Day by Day Database who did not stop at second when they needed a double for the cycle. If you stop at first, you’ll be criticized for not playing the game hard, but trying to stretch a double into a triple can be a risky proposition.
On April 18th, 2008, Conor Jackson hit a triple, homer run and single, then did not stop at second as he hit another triple.
On May 6, 2003, Dmitri Young did not stop at second needing a double for the cycle, and picked up a second triple.
On Sept. 23, 1962, Eddie Mathews did the same thing.
On May 13, 1958, Willie Mays did the same thing.
The Willie Mays game is particularly impressive.
Actually, if you get thrown out at third stretching a double into a triple, don’t you still get credit for the double? I’ve seen guys get credit for a single when they got thrown out at second. It wasn’t your batting that got you out, but rather your base running.
rbj » Yes, that is correct. But the out still counts for the team. In other words, it’s often a good strategy to stop at second if there is a small probability of getting thrown out at third, while taking second really helps.