Gotta love it:
For the most part, people are advocating leaving the bat alone, saying they have never had a problem. I'm not sure how they are defining "problem" but I'll take their word for it.
What I'm saying is that I know thousands of umpires who move the bat and none of us have had a "problem." Unless you consider someone saying, "thanks for getting the bat out of the way" a problem.
So why are those who don't move the bat so adamant that those who do move it are wrong? Is it a "that's baseball" argument? I love that one.
Why don't you all ask your associations to put it in writing NOT to move the bat? I can't wait for someone to say that not everything has to be put in a rule book or a manual. After all, it's not like ASA kills trees telling us to make sure we keep a stand-by plumber and electrician
