Balks and hit by batted ball...

[bob jenkins]

Originally posted by rmstone
Let me give another example. The pitcher stands in the above position (which I mistakenly called the "stretch" but the stretch is really the motion) with one foot on the rubber, ball in his hand, hands at his side. If he turns his shoulder to first, its not a balk right? Now NO WHERE in the rulebook does it say that. It simply says in the SET POSITION he can't do that, yet he can do that here so he's not in the set position. This is just one example of how a pitcher in the said position is exempt from balking.

Any thoughts?

1) No where in OBR does "tunrning the shoulders" equal a balk. It's a balk to "feint to first" -- whether in the set or the "stretch".

2) All the balk rules apply when the pitcher intentionally contacts the rubber (and you won't find that phrasing under OBR either). You can find lots of examples where the rule book taken too literally would result in a game completely unlike baseball.