Speed or power?
Those qualities need not be mutually exclusive for Cubs center fielder Corey Patterson.
Patterson possesses power, as evidenced by his prodigious two-run homer in the third inning of Wednesday night’s 5-1 victory over San Diego.
But the Cubs would like to further exploit Patterson’s skills on the basepaths.
Rickey Henderson, Lou Brock, Maury Wills, Tim Raines, Vince Coleman, Willie Wilson … those were some of the greatest base-stealers of all time.
But faster than you can say Willie McGee, the sport has morphed into a 21st Century video game, accentuating home run hitters and station-to-station base advancement.
That’s one of the reasons the Cubs hired Coleman as a baserunning instructor this year. Coleman, who stole 752 bases with the Cardinals, Mets, Royals, Mariners, Reds and Tigers over 16 seasons, has been summoned in an effort to improve both base-stealing and overall baserunning techniques.
“There is only one legitimate base-stealer on this team, and that’s Corey Patterson,” Coleman said. “We all know that with a guy of his ability, he can be an impact player. Speaking of myself, I was a catalyst player, and I looked forward to doing that day in and day out. Every day that I took the field, I played as though it was my last.”
Coleman won the 1985 National League Rookie of the Year Award with the Cardinals and had three seasons of 100 steals or more.
“We all know the great job that Kenny Lofton did for the Cubs last year when he came over here,” Coleman said. “He set the tone by getting on base and making things happen because he had speed and he could hit the ball out of the ballpark. Corey Patterson has twice the power that Kenny has, and Corey has twice the speed that I had. Put that combination together, and Corey can definitely go out and dominate a game. We just have to motivate him and push him to the point where he believes in himself.”
Patterson stole second in the seventh inning Wednesday to match his career high of 18, which he set in 2002. He was thrown out trying to steal third minutes later.
The last Cub to have a 20-steal season was Eric Young in 2001, when he stole 31. Patterson says he would like to exploit his speed on the basepaths.
“We’ve been talking about being ready to steal bases, whether it’s second or third base,” he said. “Getting in the right position, making sure you’re not wasting any movements, maybe looking for certain things from the pitcher, seeing if the pitcher is giving away certain things. And we’ve been working on starts and takeoffs.
“[Coleman] definitely knows what he’s talking about because of all the bases he stole in his career. It’s only going to help.”
