A Straight Dope Classic from Cecil's Storehouse of Human Knowledge
In baseball, why do batters pound the plate with the bat?
January 1, 1990
Dear Cecil:
In baseball, why do batters always pound the plate with the bat when they step up to hit?
Cecil replies:
If I put my mind to it, I imagine I could cook up some pop-anthropological explanation about how it's an aggressiveness display, like bulls pawing the earth before charging. However, there's a simpler explanation: you hit the plate with the bat to gauge the distance, the better to get yourself positioned properly.
