Talk to "The Hand"
Ah.. the "talk to the hand" thread is back. It appears every year on every ump board.
Save yourself! Convince yourself and all your leagues umpires that THE HAND means DEAD BALL! The ball is either LIVE or DEAD, no in between. "Some" LL umpires want to argue that "THE HAND" is a no pitch signal, thus you have this peculiar situation of the ball DEAD here.. but LIVE over there... weird.. and wrong.
Especially in LL.. sometimes you NEED that hand to keep the overanxious pitcher from throwing to the not quite ready batter. This is a safety issue and you are RIGHT to slow him down. But he doesn't get a free ticket to PICK OFF a baserunner, either. Ball is DEAD.
Note.. be sure to PUT THE BALL IN PLAY after using "THE HAND!"
2nd Item: When working with a veteran partner.. and no runners on THIRD.. you CAN quickly clean the plate WITHOUT calling time. I strive to kill the ball as INFREQUENTLY as possible.. keep it live. I make quick eye contact with base ump and clean the plate.. if something happens... I know he will deal with it.
OF COURSE, with a runner on third.. ALWAYS call TIME before cleaning the plate.. the consequences of THAT play are obvious.
Mike B
EWS
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