Kershaw doesn't stop
 

Dodgers at Nationals

I have not seen a stop yet

Ok, I have seen a couple of stops now but, he is doing a lot of "not stopping".

The silence of anyone caring is deafening. :)

Cueto will really tick you off then.

Why? He stops all the time!

Nope.

In physics, a stop is mandatory for any change of direction. It's impossible to change directions without a momentary stop. Momentum is zero, even if for a micro second.

And that's not relevant, because the stop has to be discernable.

Except also that the stop means everything stops. If I lift my leg before the hands stop....

I don't want to get into a word definition battle for sure, but people discern things differently. If there is a change in direction of the hands, and that change if direction occurs in the same spot each time, it can be predicted and ceases to be deceptive. I have then discerned there was a stop. If minimum duration of time mattered greatly, there would be a time mentioned in the rules.

Obviously the pitcher can't begin their leg lift or slide step until their hands are either stopped, or moving in the same direction as their lift or slide step. Otherwise you have a balk.

Except that the various rule codes have specifically said that a mere change in direction is not a stop.

No pitcher is ever required to deliver the same way each time, either. A delivery is either legal or illegal on its own.

In a world of 2 dimensions, you are correct.

In real life -- this is completely false.

Imagine holding the ball in your hands and making a complete circle with it. You are constantly changing directions, and at one point you stop going up and start coming down (and at another point, vice versa) ... but you never stopped.

The only rule set that followed this rule to the letter was NCAA and that was changed years ago to meld with the other rule sets. "a change of direction is not to be considered a stop".

So if a pitcher does it the first time it's a balk, but on the 24th time it isn't?

Fascinating.

He stopped entirely after the 5th inning!

"ceases to be deceptive" has nothing to do with calling a balk. That's not mentioned in the rules.

Most pitchers stop in the same spot every time. It would mess up their mechanics if they altered it.

What they do is alter the elapsed time of the stop. This keeps theor mechanics the same but keeps the runner on his toes.

Coach Paul:

One cannot make the statement that: "It's impossible [for an object] to change directions without a momentary stop." Circular motion is an excellent example of an object changing direction without stopping.

MTD, Sr.

I agree. It would be more accurate scientifically to say that an object cannot reverse direction without stopping. Stopping is only necessary in 1 dimension situations. Along each dimension, objects stop before changing direction even in circular motion (look at the horizontal and vertical components of circular motion). Of course, athletes move in 3 dimensions, so the statement that they can't change direction without stopping is incorrect.

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