You've answered all my direct questions, you say. Let me ask some more.
Let's talk just about FED:
You told me you would "probably" enforce FED 2.22.1a. Would you be "cheating" if you didn't?
Would you force the coach to stand with both feet in the coach's box?
The score is 21 to 0 in the third inning of a game without a mercy rule. Do you widen your strike zone?
The pitcher assumes the set position stance with two inches of his pivot foot outside the end of the rubber. Do you make him put his foot completely inside the pitcher's plate?
Do you require the coach to designate a captain and tell you who he is?
Do you call a balk if the pitcher does not come to a stop with his glove at or below his chin?
The rule requires the pitcher to disengage the rubber by stepping back "at least partially" within the length of the pitcher's plate. Do you check that every time and call a balk is he does not?
In the set position the pitcher must have his pitching hand down at his side or behind his back. If he does not, do you call a balk?
The rule requires the pitcher to take his sign from the catcher. If he takes it from the coach, do you call a balk or illegal pitch?
If a batted ball lodged in a pitcher's glove and he threw the glove/ball combination to first in advance of the runner, would you award the runner second base?
Or:
The first baseman's mitt in FED is 14 inches maximum; in NCAA, 12. Do you measure to see if the glove is legal for the level you're working?
The baseball in an NCAA game may be one-quarter inch larger than the ball in a FED game. (I'll bet you didn't know that.) Do you insist on checking the size of the balls?
I don't need to go on, do I?
I have given clinics in Halifax, Nova Scotia; Piedras Negras, Mexico; California, Florida, Iowa, Louisiana,
Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Wyoming, and more than 30 cities in Texas.
In my experience, umpires
always choose which rules they will enforce and when. Regular questions at clinics are:
When do I open it up?
How strict should I be in calling balks?
What should I do if I hear good-natured ribbing from one team to the other?
Every rule book has an elastic clause. In FED it's 10-2-3g. Baseball tradition, history, practice: We use those to help us decide what to do when we reach uncharted waters.
Don't accuse me of cheating because the rules you ignore and the rules I ignore are different.