Studying Arenado, Baez, Lindor and more with Dai Dai Otaka

On this episode of the Sports Info Solutions Baseball Podcast, Mark Simon (@MarkASimonSays) talks with college baseball infielder Dai Dai Otaka (@dai_squared) about studying defensive excellence using a combination of video and in-depth statistical analysis (what we like to do!). Dai Dai first fills us in on his interests and his successful time as a starter at second base and shortstop at Yale, where he won 2 Ivy League titles (2:39).

Dai Dai then explains the study he did reviewing more than 600 5-4-3 and 5-6-3 successful double plays to see where the pivot man most often receives the throw (5:58). He also details the video review he did on the fielding approaches of Nolan Arenado (9:25), Javier Baez (12:30), and Francisco Lindor (14:50), and explains how what he learned could be applied to studying any infielder (15:48).

He also shares his passion for coaching, describing drills that could be done just by watching video highlights on YouTube or throwing a ball against a tree (16:56). He also notes the most common mistakes infielders make (19:54). Lastly, he gives advice for aspiring researchers (21:01) and teases future studies and his career aspirations (22:44).

Make sure to check out Dai Dai’s Twitter work. Thanks for listening, don’t forget to rate and review us, and stay safe!

Useful Links

Dai Dai Otaka Yale player page

Dai Dai’s study of 5-4-3 double plays

Study of approach of Javier Baez and Francisco Lindor

The “Watching highlights on YouTube drill”