Quote:
Originally posted by DNTXUM P
Dude, how hard can that hurt? She's 9. Get some shin guards and man up. Your strike zone should NOT change from one pitcher to the next, regardless of the fact that you're taking a beating
Dude, she probably threw 45 mph, with no idea where her drop was going (except into the ground. The pitches that hit my shin guards, chest protector, mask and cup did not hurt. The ones that hit the back of my hands, fingers, and arms did hurt and it happened several times. I do not rely on my quick reactions to keep from getting hit. I do not move or flinch. If this coach wanted to mix in her drop as practice once in a while, I would stayed where I was, but he every pitch he called was a drop and none of them reached the plate. He was not concerned about throwing strikes. We played a five run max per inning and all 5 runs scored each inning were walked in. I did not have to worry about my strike zone changing. I could clearly see that the pitches did not reach the plate.
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I'm curious as to how you could see the strike zone being so far back. How could you see the plate, more especially the outside corner? Can you see if the catcher turned her wrist, or framed it? How can you judge the location of the ball in relation to the front of the plate?
By moving back to the backstop, your strike zone changed. Whether you admit it did or not, it changed. You had a different perspective of how the ball crossed the plate with one pitcher compared to the other.
So often on this board (and others) we talk about the vantage point of different umps, different positions, who saw what, etc. An example is the mechanics of the PU trailing the runner to 1B to see if F3 pulled her foot - all because it's more difficult for the BU to see that. If you had to move because you were afraid of getting hit, you altered your view... and yes, your strike zone changed.
How the coach calls pitches is his business. If he's willing to make every pitch a ball, then so be it. It's not our place at all as umpires to demand that a player be replaced solely on the fact that they are less adequate than another player. It's also not our job to change
how we umpire based on the abilities of various players. Do the job as trained. Remain fair and partial to both sides, and have fun in the process.