Quote:
Originally posted by LDUB
Quote:
Originally posted by Carl Childress
R3. Pitcher in the wind-up. His coach yells, "Curly, pitch from the stretch." So Curly slowly and deliberately steps off the rubber with the wrong foot. I argued in an article that since everybody knew the pitcher was simply changing positions, the umpire should not call a balk.
A gentleman named, uh, you, followed me around telling me how stupid that was. "That's a balk, and that's all there is to it."
...would it be fair for me to ask for a list of other rules you have no intention of "sticking up their backsides"?
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Didn't you just ignore a rule?
In Rich's stitch, everyone knows that the other guy isn't the pitcher. He is just fooling around. How is this any different than ignoring a balk because everyone knows the pitcher is just changing positions?
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Well, you mean the skipper couldn't send a guy to the mound to warm up
before he reported him?
31 goes to the mound and tosses a warm-up pitch to the catcher. How is "everyone" to know he's fooling around?
You know, I'm almost always amazed by your posts. You get the words generally, but you can't hear the tune.
My whole point is that "advanced" umpires
often pick and choose the rules they will enforce. Rich has his list. I have my list. BTW: The balk rule I ignore never causes problems in my area because everybody knows what the pitcher is doing.
In the Texas State Umpires Meeting back in the mid 80s, Durwood Merrill was asked about my comment of "no balk" when the pitcher stepped back with his non-pibvot foot. Durwood said (and I have this on tape) that at his level he didn't worry about what gear the pitcher shifted out of as long as it was slow and there was no movement of the arms. So I'm happy ignoring that rule.
I asked Rich for some of the other rules he doesn't enforce.
To quote
Word Jazz: How are things in your town?