What are platoons? Two players share a position. There are several types. Three examples are:
- old & declining player paired with a young inexperienced prospect.
- strong batter & poor fielder paired with a weak batter & excellent fielder.
- left handed batter paired with right handed batter.
This article focuses on the third example.
What is platoon advantage? A left handed batter hits best against right handed pitchers (opposite handed pitchers), while a right handed batter hits best against left-handed pitchers. Two possible reasons that batters hit best against opposite handed pitchers:
- Batters have a better view of the approaching baseball.