 Bakers inability to throw the ball back to the pitcher was based on  former New York Mets catcher Mackey Sasser. Sasser was very  successful at throwing out runners attempting to steal second, but  had a mental block causing him to flinch several times when trying  to throw the ball back to the pitcher. Many baserunners took  advantage of this affliction and stole bases while he was triple  pumping his throw, and/or lollipopping the throw back.