Nationals Triple-A team on pace for record low stolen base attempts

When Major League Baseball decided to implement a few rule changes in Triple-A, they forgot to tell the Rochester Red Wings. One of those rules was to increase the sizes of bases. The increase from 15 to 18 inches will make for a shorter distance between bases, potentially leading to a higher success rate on stolen bases. The affiliate of the Washington Nationals is not getting involved.

Out of twenty teams in the Triple-A East, Rochester is the only team who has not attempted a stolen base thus far on the season. Through twelve games, not a single stolen base attempt. Not one.

The Nationals Triple-A affiliate in Rochester has yet to attempt a stolen base on the season.

With a team batting average of .202, and sitting 19th out of 20 in walks taken, the Red Wings haven’t had a lot of opportunities to run. And they haven’t taken the ones they had.

A look at the Red Wings roster and the team really isn’t build for power or speed. Along with their zero stolen base attempts, they have just nine home runs on the season. The Red Wings have more home runs than just two teams in Triple-A East.

Among the players on the roster who might run with success are Luis Garcia, and, well that about sums it up. The average age of the outfield is hovering around 30, Yasmany Tomas and Gerardo Parra aren’t about to go attempting stolen bases.

The infielders aside from Garcia are a bunch of guys who haven’t had much experience at swiping, on the base paths. Ali Castillo stole had a high of 29 swipes, though that came in 2015. Jake Noll isn’t going anywhere, and Carter Kieboom is in the minors to work on hitting, not running.

There again, with a record of 2-10, maybe the opportunities to run haven’t been there for the Red Wings. With a -26 run differential, the Wings have found themselves in a hole too early, too often in the beginning stages of the season.

Regardless of the reason, the Red Wings are on pace for an all-time low in stolen base attempts.