Welcome to Behind the Plate With DJ, a weekly look at what is going on in the world of baseball. This series will weigh in on the interesting, the controversial, and the downright cool. The play of the week could be an incredible play or an unusual one. If something made you scratch your head, you will probably find it here. So sit back, relax, and let’s take a look at the week that was.

Red Hot Indians

The Indians were in a tie with the Royals atop the AL Central after a 9-4 loss to those very same Royals on June 15. They were up by as many as 3.5 games just five days before, but they lost four out of five games to end up in this tie.

That is when the Indians got hot. It all started on a night when Cody Allen blew a save against the White Sox with 1 out in the 9th. Carlos Santana led off the bottom of the 9th for the Indians having gone 0 for 3 with two strikeouts. He quickly faced an 0-2 count and was on the brink of his third strikeout of the game when he hit a drive to deep center field to win it in walk-off fashion.

The Indians would go on a 14-game winning streak that culminated in a 19-inning 2-1 win in Toronto on July 1. Santana was again the hero, leading off the top of the 19th inning with a home run to right-center field. Trevor Bauer came out for his fifth inning of relief to lock down the win that put the Indians seven games ahead of the Royals.

The Indians would lose the last two games of the series against the Blue Jays, including a 17-1 defeat on the 3rd. They bounced right back against the Tigers with a pair of wins, including 12-1 on the 5th that put them 7.5 games over the Tigers and 8 over the Royals.

The Indians have staked their claim on the AL Central and they have the second best record in the American League.

DH? We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ DH

The Giants, who were 6 games if front of the Dodgers coming into the game in Oakland on June 30, decided to eschew the use of a designated hitter. Instead, they let Madison Bumgarner hit for himself, something that is almost unheard of in an American League ballpark.

The last time that a pitcher hit for himself was when the Rays’ Andy Sonnanstine had to bat for himself because of a lineup card snafu. The last starting pitcher to hit for himself intentionally was Ken Brett of the White Sox in 1976.

So how did Bumgarner do? He went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored. That double led off the third inning and sparked a 6-run rally that propelled the Giants to a 12-6 win. He also pitched 6.1 innings, giving up 4 earned runs and struck out 4 to pick up his ninth win of the season.

So how did that compare to Billy Butler, the Athletics designated hitter? Butler also went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored. Butler’s double came with one out in the fourth inning, and when he came around to score, it cut the Giants’ lead down to 8-2.

The win stopped a skid in which they had lost four out of the last five games and started a stretch where they won four out of six games. Having Bumgarner hit seems to be just what the Giants needed to add a spark before the All-Star Break.

Victory Lap

David Ortiz announced before the season that this will be his last. Apparently, he wants to go out with a bang. Ortiz currently has the third best batting average in all of baseball (.337), the best on-base percentage (.429), slugging percentage (.670), and OPS (1.100). He has the most doubles (34), fourth most total bases (187), and third most RBI (66).

Those are some pretty amazing numbers for a 40-year-old in his 20th season. If he keeps hitting at this rate, he is going to put up some of the best numbers in his illustrious career. Ortiz was just named to his 9th All-Star team, and it was not just to celebrate his career.

Ortiz is leaving the game on his terms, and he is leaving all of us in awe in the process.

Advanced Stat of the Week

Every week, Behind the Plate will look at an advanced stat that is being used in baseball. These stats give a better idea on what value a player gives a team. This week’s stat is Route Efficiency.

Route Efficiency is a measure of how much ground a fielder covers compared to the optimal route. The optimal route is a straight line from where the fielder started to where he fielded the ball. It is calculated by dividing the optimal route by the distance covered and multiplying by 100. This gives a percentage value.

The goal of the defender is usually to get their Route Efficiency as close to 100% as possible. Lower values is an indication that the fielder traveled farther than he needed to in order to make the play.

Outfielders will sometimes take a route that is less than 100% intentionally. When there is a runner on base that is tagging, outfielders try to take a route that takes them behind the ball and come forward to make the catch in order to make a strong, accurate throw.

Last season, the Route Efficiency leaders had an average between 93% and 94% (minimum of 50 events). Mac Williamson of the Giants made a great catch on Tuesday, traveling 96.4 feet and had a Route Efficiency of 98.2.

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Last season, Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen had a catch on a play where his Route Efficiency was 99.1%, almost perfect.

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Play of the Week

This week’s play of the week is another base running play. Billy Hamilton scores all the way from second base on a passed ball as John Lackey does not cover home in time. Hamilton also stole three bases in that game as the Reds beat the Cubs at Wrigley.

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