Royals CF Kyle Isbel + Daniel Epstein (Baseball Prospectus) on Mookie Betts & Brandon Tew on Kansas' unique defense
On this episode Mark Simon is joined by Royals center fielder Kyle Isbel , baseball writer Daniel Epstein , and SIS baseball operations analyst Brandon Tew . Mark and Kyle talk about Kyle's defensive approach, which has helped him to rank 3rd in Defensive Runs Saved the last 2 seasons. Kyle explains how a childhood game got him on an early path to being a top defensive player and what it was like to rob a home run from Bryce Harper and make an incredible play against Marcus Semien . And he shares what kind of tattoo he would want to create to commemorate the kind of defense he plays (2:50). Mark and Daniel discuss Daniel's comprehensive video analysis articles, including ones on Mookie Betts , tagging effectiveness , and how first basemen catch throws , as well as a piece on pitchers introducing the splitter to their repertoire (14:41). Mark and Brandon chat about how Kansas has taken one of its players and turned him into a roving defender, which players could go 1-1 in this year's MLB Draft, and a difference in pitch usage between MLB and NPB pitchers (30:29). Thank you for listening. Please check out Archive.FieldingBible.com for your defensive stats needs, follow us on Twitter at @sis_baseball , and read our work at SportsInfoSolutions.com . You can e-mail us at Mark@sportsinfosolutions.com .