Quote:
Originally posted by hardball3b
Gentlemen - this discussion (and hundreds more like it) have finally broke the straw on this camels back. Is there ANYONE out there that can give a honest example of why there are rules differences (OTHER THAN FOR SAFETY, THE TIME WINDOW, & PARTICIPATION?SUBSTITUTION) between OBR, Fed, or College? I just don't get why in OBR, a balk is not an immediate dead ball, and in Fed it is. The pick being discussed is just another example. Wouldn't life on the diamond be better if the "rules where the rules"? Other than "political ego's", what's is the reasoning behind playing a simply complicated game under different sets of rules? One thing it does do: Increases my resource library!
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Easy:
Despite the common belief that MLB is adults playing a kids game, it is not. Baseball is an adult game and its rules (OBR) are written for adult players.
When adapting this game to youth and students, leagues and officials have adapted the rules for the level of their players. 60' diamonds, malicious contact, no lead-offs are some of the changes made for kiddie ball.
The honchos in FED make changes to make the game more appropriate for their level based on four considerations:
1. Safety....malicious contact and FPSR are examples.
2. Increased participation. Re-entry is the example here.
3. Speed-up... Courtesy runners
4. Lack of guaranteed and uniform training of umpires. The different balk rulings are the best examples here.
Most organizations have reasons for altering the rules. It doesn't matter if you agree with those reasons or not. If you want to work their games, you call by their rules.