[nickrego]

In our area, each high schools runs one Sr. Babe Ruth team. Only the best from the schools JV and Varsity are ‘invited’ to participate.

Can they pitch ? Man can they pitch… hit, field and run. Very fun games to work or watch.

I have never had a playoff or final for Sr. Babe Ruth where the pitchers couldn’t pitch. But last year I had a Varsity HS Playoff game where neither of the two starters could hit the broad side of a barn. Both pitchers were prospects for colleges and pro, and the coaches wanted them out there.

Did I open up my zone, NO WAY !

Both coaches were pissed as hell, because in order to attempt to win the game, they both had to replace their starters. Sorry that these kids were having an off day, but this was a very important game and I was not about to call a LL strike zone (and that's what it would have taken).

I don’t like to open my zone (more than is customary for that level). And I don’t change in the middle of a game, period. It takes the bat away from the batters, allows the coaches to leave a bad pitcher in, screws up your actual zone for the next game, and just plain makes you look bad.

Consistency of our strike zone is something I think we all work hard to achieve. Opening and closing your zone depending on the situation, I think, is counter productive to consistency. We all have several zones to match each level, that is bad enough. But to have a secondary set for each level based on how good the pitchers are ? Asking for trouble…