Projo Sox Blog

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Tommy Harper knows a thing or two about stealing a base.

He holds the Red Sox' single-season record for stolen bases with 54 in 1973 and he knows it won't stand much longer. That's because there's this very fast guy named Jacoby Ellsbury who plays center field for the Red Sox.

Harper, now a player development consultant for the Red Sox, has known Ellsbury since the Red Sox drafted him. The two talk all the time about the art of base running and stealing bases. So when Ellsbury stole home against the Yankees' Andy Pettitte Sunday night at Fenway Park, Harper wasn't surprised.

He was elated.

Harper was watching at home when Ellsbury became the first Red Sox player since Billy Hatcher to steal home on a straight steal in 1994.

"When you're watching ESPN, with three in the booth, they talk so damn much and they were right in the middle of a conversation when they screamed, 'There he goes.' I think Jon Miller was talking at the time and then he screamed that Ellsbury's going. The cameras weren't on him, so by the time we saw it Jacoby was almost at the plate. With so many cameras, they did show the replay and you could see the whole thing. I got a good angle on the replay."

Harper is not surprised Ellsbury finally swiped home.

"Oh, no," he said. "He's got good instincts to run the bases. He made some mistakes last year, but you learn from those mistakes. As long as he has the freedom to run, it's like I told people years ago when he came up, it all depends on who's managing and how much leeway they give him."

What also surprised Harper was the fact the Yankees still had the shift on with J.D. Drew at the plate and Ellsbury at third. Plus, Pettitte was pitching from the wind up.

"Jacoby started off so damn far down the line, and the third baseman was in another county," said Harper. "On top of it, the Yankees dugout is on the third-base side. You don't think somebody screamed and yelled to call time out, or step off."

Harper stole home twice in his career, including once when he was with the Red Sox. It was May 28, 1973 at Kansas City against Dic Drago.

Drago was a right-hander, which is almost impossible to steal home against. But Harper recalls the pitcher's delivery as slow and deliberate.

"It's a spare of the moment decision," said Harper. "I just watched him. I know he had a slow delivery to the plate. Just like tonight, the third baseman is way off the line, and I kept walking up, and walking up and when he started in his delivery he had a habit of looking down at the rubber. When he looked at the rubber, I was already running. By the time he realized I was going, it was too late. That's pretty much what Pettitte did, and it's easy with a left-hander than it is with a right-hander."

Harper, just like Ellsbury did, made the decision to go on his own. It was not called from the dugout.

"It's an instinctive thing," Harper said. "You really don't plan on doing it, but the opportunity presents itself."

While Ellsbury slid head first under the tag by Yankees catcher Jorge Posada, Harper slid feet first.

"You just do what you have to do," he said.

Harper knows his single-season record will be broken, and he knows Ellsbury is going to do it. The current Red Sox speedster came up short in 2008 by four. He stole 50 and was caught only 11 times. In 18 games this season, Ellsbury all ready has 10.

This could be the year.

"Oh yeah," Harper said. "With this kind of a start, and if he doesn't go into the same kind of slump as he did last year, he'll be okay. When you're playing on a consistent basis as he is now, and you get your hits, stolen bases come within a rhythm of the game. You really don't think about it, they just come naturally in the flow of the game. You don't wake up in the morning and say, 'I'm going to steal two today.' You just kind of let it flow. You never know how many you're going to get. Some days you have none, and other days you have four."

Sunday night Ellsbury swiped two, including home. It's one of the most difficult things to accomplish in baseball. Harper knows it.

"You don't really plan on doing it, but it's the perfect storm," he said. "The third baseman is 20 miles off the bag, the pitcher's left-handed with a slow windup. Everything clicks for you. You might not have that situation again for the rest of your career - believe me."

 Tags  Jacoby Ellsbury Red Sox Tommy Harper

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