Quote:
Originally posted by IRISHMAFIA
Hell, Dave, you think half the things ASA does is to the extreme, but being a baseball-influenced person, I can understand.
However, what is so extreme about the rule? Why should the defense be penalized for making a good play and catching the offense in an illegal act?
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I'll confess to being a bit baseball-biased. But don't get me wrong - I *love* girls fastpitch! I have sons that play baseball and a daughter who plays fastpitch; although I enjoy watching all their games, I have to confess that I rather enjoy watching the girls play more.
No, I can think of several things ASA doesn't do to the "extreme." For instance, they do not make their rulebook "extremely" available to the general public. I just couldn't resist that one!
The ASA view of BOO is not without logic, for certain. It's just that I think it's a bit heavy handed to allow the defense to have their cake and eat it, too. They get the benefit of getting an out because an invalid batter batted and yet, at the same time, they get the play validated by registering outs. And THEN ... as if that wasn't good enough ... they get the PROPER batter out ... with a "cherry on top!"
It certainly makes things easy for the defense when they become aware that an improper batter just finished their turn at bat. Raise the red flag NOW! It doesn't matter if the batter got a hit or got out ... you're going to benefit to the maximum extent by making the BOO claim as soon as their turn at bat has ended.
You know what I think? I think many of these organizations like to PURPOSELY be different simply for the sake of being DIFFERENT. FED baseball has long been accused of that. For some inexplicable reason they like to carve their little niche in the sport and then wear that niche like a badge of honor. "That's OUR rule!"
Generally speaking, most people don't have difficulties with varying substitution rules between organizations. That really doesn't change the substance of the game. Who really cares that NSA allows up to two optional EP's and a DH whereas ASA fastpitch only permits the DP/DEFO? ASA recently allowed subs to reenter. Fine. None of these rule differences changes the way the game is played once the ball is hit.
Softball is a derivative of baseball. I just find it strange when softball takes a rule out of the baseball rulebook and then twists it into something surprisingly bizarre that most people don't recognize it, or, are shocked to find out that that IS the rule.
Imagine if softball did this: Henceforth, any runner struck by a batted ball is NOT out unless such action on the part the runner is deemed INTENTIONAL by the umpire.
That rule would send shock waves throughout the softball world. My guess is that it wouldn't take very long until a ground ball that was heading straight for F4 would be "accidentally" kicked by the advancing R1 until everybody hit the ceiling and said, "What the hell were they thinking?" That rule just seems wrong. It looks wrong. It feels wrong. It's not what we're used to. It's different.
That's sort of how I see this BOO thing. With no outs, if the improper batter hit a line drive that doubled-up another runner and *then* the inning ended because the defense claimed she batted out of order, my guess shock waves would ripple throughout the crowd.
Sure, it'd be the correct call - technically. The offensive fans would feel screwed ... and the defensive fans would feel like the cat that just ate the canary. One would fell like it's too BAD to be true while the other would be thinking that it's too GOOD to be true. And yet - it's true. And that's esentially the definition of an "extreme rule."