Counsell on the run
Second baseman leads National League in steals

Sandy Burgin
MLB.com
May 1, 2005

SAN DIEGO -- As most baseball fans know, Craig Counsell has been involved in two World Series winning rallies. He scored the winning run for the Marlins in the 1997 World Series, and in 2001, he got a single off Mariano Rivera before Luis Gonzalez's series-ending hit won it for the D-Backs.

Those are two of his lasting impressions.

But stealing bases?

In his first eight Major League seasons, Counsell stole just 32 bases. He was caught 21 times.

Last year, at age 34, Counsell set a career-high mark of 17 stolen bases for the Brewers. He was caught just four times.

A look at the National League's top base stealers on Sunday shows Counsell No. 1 with eight. He has been caught just once.

What gives?

"I think the biggest thing is that coaches have given me the freedom to do it," said Counsell. "They said, 'If you feel like you can steal a base, go ahead and do it.'

"It is something that I've done as I've gotten older, but I think it's more because you get comfortable learning how to do it and knowing when to do it and having the freedom to do it."

"I don't think anybody has put him in this position before," said D-Backs manager Bob Melvin. "For the most part, he's got a green light. We have a lot of trust in him. He is very aware of the game and knows when he is able to run and when he isn't."

"In Milwaukee, we had a team that didn't score many runs," said Counsell. "We just wanted to create offense and get in scoring position. And we had Scott Podsednik, who led the Major Leagues [in steals] last year."

Counsell has been leading off for the D-Backs this season, but he hasn't always been at the top of the order in his career.

"I've led off, but not on a full-time basis like this," said Counsell. "So that doesn't make things too much different. Of course, with this lineup, when Gonzo and Troy [Glaus] get up there, you don't want to be stealing bases too much. Still, those guys would rather have you in scoring position than standing on first."

"He's always done very well here in whatever role he's had," said Melvin. "I've never had any reservations about him leading off. He knows how to play the game and he's been great in that spot, with an over .400 on-base percentage. He's done everything we could ask for from that spot."

Counsell led Sunday's game off with a walk, and he drew a couple of throws from San Diego starter Woody Williams. With one out, he scored on a double by Gonzalez to right field, serving as the catalyst for a two-run first inning.

Counsell was involved in a difficult play on Saturday. He was on third base in the first inning after leading off with a double. Gonzalez hit a short fly down the left-field line. Padres left fielder Ryan Klesko raced in and caught the ball while falling to the turf. Counsell didn't tag up. If he had tagged up, he might have scored when Klesko fell to the ground.

Counsell offered an explanation on Sunday.

"I think it was one of the balls that, as a base runner, you get stuck in between," said Counsell. "It really wasn't deep enough to tag on. So you want to make sure you score if he doesn't catch it. And then he ends up catching it and diving for it. You're caught in between.

"Even if he catches it and doesn't bobble it, I might have had a tough time scoring. You have two choices and have to pick one, and I picked that he wouldn't catch it."