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Originally Posted by MikeStrybel
Do you have 11-12 year olds with that kind of control and commitment to the coach's direction near you?
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Few do but I have seen this taught by a number of coaches. Usually the same ones who adhere to the "crowd the plate" batting philosophy.
They are looking for one or all of several things.
1) Something to get in the face of the PU about. Intimidation, then belittling, since the OBR is gray on this, it makes for a great way to begin an episode with a PU.
2) An easy out.
3) Advantage on the throw but this one can be a double edged sword. As you are alluding, the pitch has to be fairly accurate to be cleanly caught and to have the throw shortened (F2-->F3). F2s momentum can either be disrupted or enhanced depending on F2s footwork and the location of the pitch, vertically and horizontally.
4) Surprise.
5) Look cool.
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Are you content with penalizing the batter for trying to evade being hit by a pitch that is not in the strike zone?
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The reason I never taught it was that I was concerned with the B's health. B's moving around especially out of the box in such an unusual pitch location, no telling how that is going to turn out when he's HB this P. Typically, B is going to be much more defenseless imo than a typical HBP in box.
Unless F1 throws a breaking ball then all bets are off.