After its implementation in the season's series opener against the New York Giants, the opposing manager objected to its use; however, it was deemed acceptable.
The first and third basemen normally stand near the foul lines, generally near the inside of their bases, set slightly back to allow more time to react to sharply hit balls.
However, if the runner is on first, the first baseman stands closer to the base to prevent steals by means of pickoff attempts by the pitcher; consequently, such positioning produces a bigger gap between second and first basemen.
Ideally, the ball will be hit into a gap and travel into the outfield, allowing the runners plenty of time to reach the bases.
If the defensive players react fast enough, they may be able to throw the ball to second and first before either runner has reached their base, resulting in a double play.
The risk in the hit and run is that, if the batter fails to make contact with the ball, the runner is vulnerable to being thrown out at second base, which the official scorer will record as a caught stealing.
[note 1] The defensive team can improve its odds in this case by using a pitchout, having the pitcher throw the ball far outside the strike zone so the catcher can easily catch it and attempt to pick off the runner.