[greymule]

Does someone have to raise an issue prior to me making a statement?

Of course not, but when your statement is part of a 5-segment critique of my post, I assume it to be related to something I wrote. Apparently it wasn't.

You concur that there is regional variation in the way umpires call strikes. Which region's umpires have set the standard for the rest of us?

I don't let the players dictate the zone, either, but I confess that I call a higher strike in 10-and-under girls FP than I do in 18-and-under. In top-level SP, I call a tighter zone than I do in picnic co-ed. And from the big guys, I require strict compliance with pitching preliminaries and delivery. I do not in picnic co-ed. In baseball, my zone for former pros is tighter than it is for middle schoolers. I am well aware that because I do not call the book zone uniformly through all levels, I fall short of the umpires who do.

But I don't have a guilty conscience about it.