Quote:
Originally posted by cbfoulds
Again: assume a LHP, in the stretch, who came set;
who "jumped", but DID NOT TURN [he continued to face 1st];
his pivot foot landed behind the rubber; and
he threw to 1st.
Now, presuming that he did not separate his hands until AFTER his pivot foot was on the ground behind the rubber, why is it a balk that he "jumped" rather than "stepped"?
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Seems to me the fundamental issue here is the legal way to disengage the rubber. Most pitchers in the Set position disengage the rubber by simply stepping back with their pivot foot. The question is: can a pitcher disengage by jumping up in the air and then landing by straddling the rubber? No twisting, no turning, just jumping up with both feet and then landing with the back foot behind the rubber?
Since the rules and interpretations indicate that the only legal way to disengage is to STEP back, one could argue that the jump is not a legal way to disengage. For example, J/R states:
It is a balk if a pitcher fails to disengage the rubber properly. Such pitcher is still in contact for the purpose of a subsequent throw. A pitcher can disengage properly only if he steps his pivot foot backward of and off the pitching rubber, and does so without interruption or hesitation.
Manny Aponte