Quote:
Originally posted by gsf23
Personally I have never understood that rule. If the pitcher misses the strike zone so badly that the ball is going to hit me, why should I have to try to get out of the way? Really it just doesn't make any sense. Can anyone name me any other rule where the offended team is responsible for trying to help the offending avoid the penalty?
Now, if I do something as a hitter to cause the ball to hit me, then yes I can see saying batter stay right here and keep hitting. But if the batter does nothing to contribute to it I just don't see why they should be responsible for trying to avoiding it.
I know "that's just the rule", all I am saying is that I think the rule or the interpretaion need to be re-evaluated.
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Two things this rule allows:
The umpire to judge whether the batter deserves the base and safety.
I find it unbelieveable that people have a tendency to want to punish a player or team for not being perfect. Okay, so the pitcher was that far from the strike zone, so what? If he throws a ball four feet outside, should we penalize the pitcher by giving the batter a base on that one two? What if the pitch hits the bat? Should we not call that because it was so far from the strike zone, or maybe call the batter out for not being smart enough to get the bat out of the way? Extreme? Absolutely, but fits your argument.
Second is safety. Remember Ron Hunt? He would take all the hits below the shoulders you wanted to reach 1B safely. Do you seriously want to eliminate a rule which entices coaches to place their players in harms way for the sake of getting a base? What would you do if that was your daughter the coach just instructed to "lean into one" for the team? What would you do if it ended up sending her to the hospital? What would you do if it disfigured her for life? What would you do if she lost her life? Extreme? Maybe, but not beyond the realm of reality and just one injury is not worth a rule adjustment just because someone thinks the pitcher should be penalized for being 6-12 inches off the plate.
JMHO
[Edited by IRISHMAFIA on Jul 4th, 2005 at 10:05 AM]