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Originally Posted by mbyron
One of these statements is about officiating. The other one is crap. Endorsing both is idiocy. That is, of course, just my opinion.
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First off I don't remember endorsing either one. I simply proposed how the two mindsets may come up with different rulings in odd situations.
Let me give you a sitch and tell me how you'd handle it.
I was doing 3 man last week when this happened.
R1, live ball, I'm in C
F1 steps on rubber in set position, PU is behind F2 but still casual.
PU had just asked for more game balls, a coach from 1st base dugout catches PUs attention (non verbal) and had two previously fouled gameballs.
PU steps out from behind plate as a bench player runs out the balls.
F1 seeing the PU step away to retrieve balls casually steps off the rubber but with wrong foot first. In C position I'm seeing the same thing F1 is and I let the balk slide. My P in short A however does not notice what's happening at the plate and calls a balk.
Would you enforce the balk?
If so, then I'd say you're a by the rules guy
If not, then the best interest of the game trumped the rules.
I believe there are many many good umpires that would wave off this balk.
So like it or not it's a fact of umpiring that both mindsets exist and your mindset relative to this question may very well influence your ruling.