Two-way player
In sports that require a player to play on offense and defense (such as basketball and ice hockey), a two-way player refers to a player who excels at both. In sports where a player typically specializes on offense or defense (like American football), or on pitching or batting (like baseball), it refers to a player who chooses to do both.
Basketball
[edit]Commonly used in basketball, a two-way player excels at both the offensive side of the game and the defensive side of the game.[1][2]
Some of the best two-way players in the National Basketball Association (NBA) have been awarded the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, Kevin Garnett, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are the only Defensive Player of the Year winners to have also won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) during their careers. Jordan, Olajuwon, and Antetokounmpo won both awards in the same season.[3]
In the Women's National Basketball Association, Yolanda Griffith, Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, Lauren Jackson, Candace Parker, Tamika Catchings, Sylvia Fowles, and A'ja Wilson have won both the WNBA Most Valuable Player Award and the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. Griffith, Swoopes, Leslie, Jackson, and Wilson won both awards in the same year, with Swoopes doing so twice.[4]
Hockey
[edit]In the National Hockey League (NHL), the term two-way forward is used for a forward who handles the defensive aspects of the game as well as the offensive aspects of the game.[5] The best two-way forward is presented with the Frank J. Selke Trophy. The term two-way defenseman is used to describe a defenseman who also makes contributions on offense.[6] Occasionally, a player will be designated as both a defenseman and forward in his career; some recent examples are Nicolas Deslauriers, who was listed as a defenseman in his time in the QMJHL and in his first two professional seasons but as of 2022 is listed as a forward; and Dustin Byfuglien, who began his junior career as a defenseman before being moved up to right wing by the Chicago Blackhawks, then was moved back to defense when he was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers.
Only two players have won both the Hart Trophy (the NHL's MVP award) and the Norris Trophy (the defensive player of the year award): Bobby Orr three times and Chris Pronger once, each time in the same season.[7]
Baseball
[edit]Background
[edit]In Major League Baseball (MLB), there are few true two-way players, as position players generally do not pitch, and most pitchers are poor batters. In the American League especially, the two-way player had mostly ceased to exist, as the designated hitter (DH) rule has allowed a team to have a designated batter bat in place of the pitcher since 1973. This rule was what largely made it possible for two-way player Shohei Ohtani to pitch and bat on separate days. Prior to 2021, pitchers in the National League still had to bat for themselves, but they were usually poor batters. In 2017, the average batting average for pitchers was .124, significantly worse than the league average of .255.[8]
Until Shohei Ohtani in 2021, Babe Ruth (in 1918 and 1919) was the last player to pitch 100 innings and have 200 plate appearances as a batter in the same season.[9] (Bullet Rogan achieved the same feat yearly from 1921 to 1927 seasons in the Negro leagues, which were not considered major leagues at the time.) Two-way players are still common in college baseball, with the John Olerud Award being given to the best two-way player of the season. However, by the major league level, a player is usually better at either pitching or batting, and rarely is given the chance to do both.[10]
Effective with the 2020 season, "two-way player" became an official MLB roster classification. A player qualifies once he reaches the following statistical milestones in either the current or the immediately previous season:[11]
- At least 20 MLB innings pitched.
- Appearing in at least 20 MLB games as a position player or designated hitter, with at least 3 plate appearances in each of the 20 games.
Once the player qualifies, he retains two-way status for the remainder of the current season plus all of the next season. Two-way players do not count against the limit of 13 pitchers (14 for regular-season games after September 1) on a team's active roster instituted in 2020, and also are not subject to restrictions on pitching by position players that were also introduced in 2020.[11]
For the 2020 season only, statistics from either 2018 or 2019 could be used to qualify a player for two-way status. This allowed the Los Angeles Angels to classify Shohei Ohtani, who did not pitch in 2019 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, as a two-way player in 2020.[11]
Recent players
[edit]In 2017, the Tampa Bay Rays selected Brendan McKay, a two-way player, and began developing him as a pitcher and a first baseman;[12] he made his MLB debut as a pitcher and DH during the Rays' 2019 season.[13][14]
Shohei Ohtani, a two-way player as a pitcher and outfielder, moved from Nippon Professional Baseball to MLB in 2018 and became one of the few players to hit and pitch professionally. He has been used as a DH on days when he does not pitch.[15][16] Ohtani was named the 2018 American League Rookie of the Year after becoming the first player since Babe Ruth to hit at least 20 home runs and pitch at least 50 innings in the same season.[17] In 2021, Ohtani became the first player to be selected for the MLB All-Star game as both a pitcher and designated hitter, and he finished the year with 46 home runs and a 158 OPS+ as a hitter and a 3.18 ERA on the mound, winning the AL MVP award unanimously.[18][19][20]
Pitcher Michael Lorenzen, a former two-way player at Cal State Fullerton, amassed 133 at-bats, 31 hits and seven home runs in his seven seasons with the Cincinnati Reds, and he played as an outfielder in 36 games.[21][22] He would stop batting in the Major Leagues after leaving the Reds, pitching for the Los Angeles Angels, Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies, being named an All-Star and pitching a no-hitter in 2023.[23]
Other major-league teams have evaluated prospects as two-way players, including Anthony Gose, Brett Eibner and Trey Ball.[12][24][25]
Notable two-way baseball players
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American football
[edit]In the National Football League (NFL), there are few two-way players, as most offensive players do not play defense nor do defensive players play offense. A major concern is the possibility of injury when a player is overused. In the early years of the NFL, two-way players were more common as part of the one-platoon system, but in modern times, they are a rarity.[33]
Deion Sanders was a starter on defense who occasionally played offense, except for the 1996 season in which he played a considerable amount of offense as a wide receiver.[34]
William Perry, "The Fridge" was a defensive lineman for the Chicago Bears from 1985 to 1993. Perry occasionally played fullback in goal line situations and set the then-record for the heaviest player to score a touchdown at 335 lb (152 kg).
Troy Brown, well-regarded for his special-teams skills and as a wide receiver,[35] played significant time at cornerback when starters were injured during the 2004 season. His three interceptions ranked second among Patriots players that season.[36] He also played cornerback in an emergency role during the 2005 and 2006 seasons.
Patrick Ricard played both as a fullback and a defensive lineman in 2017.[37]
At the college level, some players play on both sides of the ball.[38] While he was at UCLA (2013–2015), linebacker Myles Jack also played running back, and he won both the Pac-12 Conference Offensive and Defensive Freshman Player of the Year awards.[39] In the mid-1980s, Gordie Lockbaum was a notable two-way player—he twice finished in the top five in Heisman Trophy balloting, and later was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame.[40]
Association football
[edit]![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/The_big_4-0.jpg/200px-The_big_4-0.jpg)
Box-to-box midfielders are a prominent example of two-way players in association football. Box-to-box midfielders are hard-working and have good all-round abilities, which makes them skilled at both defending and attacking; these players can therefore track back to their own box to block shots or to make tackles and interceptions, and also carry the ball forward or run to the opponents' box to try to score.[43][44] Some notable examples of box-to-box midfielders are Lothar Matthäus, Clarence Seedorf, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Steven Gerrard, Johan Neeskens, Sócrates, Patrick Vieira, Bryan Robson and Roy Keane.[45]
In recent times, full-backs have become two-way players, with the traditionally defensive position taking on a more attacking role than was the case traditionally, with full-backs often overlapping with wingers down the flank; wingerless formations, such as the diamond 4–4–2 formation, require the full-back to cover considerable ground up and down the flank.[46]
![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Alan_Tate.jpg/170px-Alan_Tate.jpg)
Two-way players who are skilled at playing both goalkeeper and outfielder are very rare at the higher levels of play. One of few who've started different matches as outfielder and goalkeeper was David Webb, who started one match in 1971 for Chelsea F.C. as goalkeeper, and none at higher levels can consistently switch between starting as a goalkeeper and an outfielder.
In the event that a team loses all its regular goalkeepers to injuries or red cards, outfielders have occasionally switched mid-match to the goalkeeper role for the rest of the match, but the player's switch is not typically normalised in later matches.
Regular goalkeepers are not prohibited from participating in outfield activity while being goalkeeper, though this is normally considered risky. Examples include dribbling in defence, taking penalty kicks or free kicks, or if a team is 1 goal behind near the end of a match while a corner kick or free kick is awarded, the keeper can run up to the offence to attempt a last-minute goal.
See also
[edit]- All-rounder, a cricketer who is skilled at batting and bowling
Notes
[edit]- ^ Recordkeeping was poor during Day's career; league historians claim he won as many as 300 games.[29][30]
- ^ Nishizawa was primarily a pitcher from 1937 to 1943, and primarily a position player from 1946 onward.
- ^ Akira Noguchi was primarily a pitcher in 1936–1937 and primarily a position player from 1942 onward.
- ^ Biographer Kyle P. McNary estimates that Radcliffe had a .303 batting average, 4,000 hits and 400 homers in 36 years in the game.[31]
- ^ Historian Phil Dixon puts Rogan's lifetime totals against all competition, including semipro and Army teams, at more than 350 games won, 2000 strikeouts, 2500 hits, 350 home runs, and 500 stolen bases.[32]
- ^ Smith also played two seasons with the Nankai Hawks of the NPB (in 1972–1973), but primarily as a position player; he only pitched 1/3 of an inning.
References
[edit]- ^ Schuhmann, John (August 16, 2017). "Taking stock of best of best two-way players in NBA today". NBA.com. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
- ^ Paine, Neil (July 11, 2016). "Farewell To Tim Duncan, The Greatest Two-Way Player In Modern NBA History". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved February 24, 2020.
- ^ Krishnamurthy, Aaditya (December 1, 2021). "Michael Jordan Is The Only Player In NBA History To Win Defensive Player Of The Year While Averaging 35+ Points Per Game". Yardbarker. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ "Most Valuable Player". WNBA.com. September 7, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
- ^ Prewitt, Alex (October 2, 2019). "Double Duty: The Value of a Two-Way Forward in Today's NHL".
- ^ Macfarlane, Steve (August 27, 2016). "Ranking the 10 Best 2-Way Defensemen in the NHL for 2016-17 Season". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ "Pronger Named MVP and Top Defenseman". Los Angeles Times. June 16, 2000. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
- ^ "2017 MLB Team Position Performance by BA".
- ^ a b Kram, Zach (March 27, 2018). "Lessons From a Legend, 100 Years Later". The Ringer.
- ^ Miller, Doug (December 6, 2017). "Ex-two-way prospects assess Ohtani's future". MLB.com. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
- ^ a b c "Rule changes announced for 2020 season". MLB.com. February 12, 2020. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ a b Justice, Richard (May 24, 2018). "Shohei Ohtani clearing path for 2-way players". MLB.com. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ Topkin, Marc (June 29, 2019). "What a debut for Rays rookie Brendan McKay in 5-2 win". TampaBay.com.
- ^ "Ex-Blackhawk star Brendan McKay goes 0 for 4 in hitting debut with Rays". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. July 1, 2019.
- ^ DiGiovanna, Mike (February 14, 2018). "Angels' two-way player Ohtani will pitch and be a DH, but he won't be allowed to slide head-first". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
- ^ Miller, Sam (April 3, 2018). "Should Shohei Ohtani stay a two-way player? Exactly 100 years ago, the Red Sox faced the same question with Babe Ruth". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ Schoenfield, David (November 13, 2018). "Angels' Shohei Ohtani beats Yankees' duo to win AL Rookie of the Year". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 2, 2019.
- ^ "46 HRs, 100 RBIs: Shohei caps dream season". Rhett Bollinger. October 3, 2021. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
- ^ "A 2-time and a 2-way MVP in Bryce, Ohtani". mlb.com. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
- ^ "Register Players Encyclopedia - Baseball-Reference.com". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
- ^ a b Kram, Zach (September 17, 2019). "The Reds Are Refining the Optimal Approach for a Two-Way Player". The Ringer.
- ^ "Michael Lorenzen Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ "New Phillie Michael Lorenzen talks being a two-way player, greatness of Shohei Ohtani". Phillies Nation. Tim Kelly. August 9, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ^ "Ball getting new life as two-way prospect". MiLB.com. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ "Texas Rangers: How Rangers landed Anthony Gose, a two-way player who plays outfield and pitcher | SportsDay". Sportsday.dallasnews.com. December 6, 2017. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e "Tracking the history of baseball's two-way players". WNCT. June 19, 2022.
- ^ a b Jaffe, Jay (April 6, 2018). "Shohei Ohtani and Beyond: a History of Double-Duty Players". Fangraphs.
- ^ a b c d Castrovince, Anthony (February 5, 2022). "Negro Leagues had their own two-way stars". MLB.com.
- ^ McNeil, William (2000). Baseball's Other All-Stars: The Greatest Players from the Negro Leagues. McFarland Publishing. p. 67. ISBN 0-7864-0784-0.
- ^ James, Michael (1995). "Hall of a shame: Fame finds Leon Day too late for legend to walk through shrine". New York Daily News. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
- ^ McNary, Kyle P. Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe: 36 Years of Pitching & Catching in Baseball's Negro Leagues (Minneapolis: McNary Publishing, 1994).
- ^ Dixon, Phil S. (2002). The Monarchs 1920–1938. Sioux Falls: Mariah Press. ISBN 1-893250-08-3, p. 212.
- ^ Santorosa, Tony (March 8, 2012). "NFL's Best Two-Way Players of All Time". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ "Deion Sanders Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ "Troy Brown | The Patriots Hall of Fame". www.patriotshalloffame.com. June 8, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
- ^ "2004 New England Patriots Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
- ^ Hensley, Jamison (August 23, 2017). "Patrick Ricard looking to become NFL's sixth two-way player of the past decade". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ Greenawalt, Tyler (November 17, 2015). "Two-way players make a resurgence in college football". NCAA.com. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
- ^ Foster, Chris (December 2, 2013). "UCLA's Myles Jack is chosen Pac-12 freshman of the year — twice over". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ "College Football Hall of Fame: Gordie Lockbaum". National Football Foundation. Retrieved April 16, 2007.
- ^ "Steven Gerrard completes decade at Liverpool". The Times. Archived from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
- ^ Bull, JJ (March 30, 2020). "Retro Premier League review: Why 2008/09 was Steven Gerrard's peak season". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on December 30, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
- ^ "Box to box Bowyer". London: BBC Sport. April 29, 2002. Retrieved June 21, 2008.
- ^ Cox, Michael (June 4, 2014). "In praise of the box-to-box midfielder". ESPN FC. Retrieved October 31, 2014.
- ^ The Best Box-to-Box Midfielders of All-Time
- ^ Pleat, David (June 6, 2007). "Fleet-of-foot full-backs carry key to effective attacking". The Guardian. London. Retrieved December 11, 2008. David Pleat explains in a Guardian article how full-backs aid football teams when attacking.
External links
[edit]- Duncan, Mike. "Shohei Ohtani, The Bambino, and Bullet Joe," The Hardball Times (April 11, 2018).
- Jaffe, Jay. "Shohei Ohtani and Beyond: a History of Double-Duty Players," FanGraphs (April 6, 2018).