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Originally Posted by mbyron
I will add this for newer umpires: if you have ANY doubt whatever about whether to award 1B, you should award the base. Everyone expects HBP to go to 1B, and you've to to sell the call to make him stay. The expected call is not always the right one, but you'd better be sure you're right.
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I'll correct this for new umpires. If you have a breaking ball or a moving fasball, award the HBP; if not, especially with the teaching of crowding the plate, put that batter back in the box with:
"No, back in the box!"
When I played, it was no big deal to let a pitch slide an inch or so off your jersey, under the arm, w/e. MOF, it was a guage of how we were reading pitches and a "in your face" to the pitcher who might be trying to intimidate.
Level of ball dictates how you handle HBP but at the higher levels, veryone knows what's happening and if you get ajackass trying to play possum with HBP, put his pssarse back in thebox.
Kudos to Interested Dump who taught me this,