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Originally Posted by bob jenkins
The original rule was that the batter always had to be put out. When F2 was standing a considerable distance behind home plate, and didn't wear a glove (or wore a smaller glove), and the fields weren't so well maintained, catching the ball (often on a bounce) and putting out the batter was far from a sure thing.
Then, as equipment improved and catcher's moved to (at least about) the current position, it became "too much" of a sure thing. It was obvious that BR was going to be out when F2 caught the ball, so why bother? So, the rule was changed to only require the BR to be put out when F2 did not catch the pitch.
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I love that story. Whenever someone asks me why the "dropped third strike" rule was added, I explain to them that it was always part of the game since baseball was invented, and that it was a "caught third strike" rule that was actually added.