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Originally posted by David B
Quote:
Originally posted by DG
Quote:
Originally posted by Carl Childress
I don't know about that -- everyone looks for the start of the pitch as being the step back with the free foot. Matter of fact (Tee, don't read this), I know that bringing both arms up together and pausing doesn't get balked in this neck of the woods.
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Why?
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Because it would be considered a "highly technical balk", no runners move when the hands move together, and no one complains that it is not called. Everybody in my Fed association would balk stepping off from the windup with the wrong foot, but about half the association would not know this was a balk and the other half does not call it.
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If I were a coach in "your neck of the woods," you would call it - or lose every protest when you didn't.
It's not a technical balk. It's a real balk because there are consequences when the runners are coached well. Stepping off slowly with the wrong foot (with hands remaining motionless) is technical. Everybody knows what the pitcher is doing - and why.
Moving both hands is, BY RULE, the start of a pitch. I would send my runner, and the guys in "your neck of the woods" wouldn't balk him, and I would laugh all the way to the bank.
You guys had better get you heads (and necks) into the rule book. [/B][/QUOTE]The runners are not coached on this subject, and nobody complains and there are no protests when not called. If someone would complain it would get called. However, everybody knows that stepping off with the wrong foot is a balk and everybody will complain. And players will be coached to move when the non pivot foot moves back. So how do we decide what is a real balk vs. a technical balk? So far it sounds like a technical balk is one where everybody knows what he is doing and nobody is concerned. So why does this not apply to this situation?
And what does my neck have to do with this subject? [/B][/QUOTE]
Sounds like in your neck of the woods you have coaches then who aren't smart enought to take advantage of umpires not calling the rules.
If I were the coach and saw that, then I would pick every runner off of third.
Simply, start the movement, pause and then step off and pick the runner.
If a runner waits for the step back to move then he's way behind the play. We were (and correctly I should say) taught many years ago to go on movement.
Thanks
David [/B][/QUOTE]How you going to pick a runner off third on this? You can't make a pick from the windup in FED.