Is a swing a strike?

[LDUB]

Originally posted by Shmuelg
It was a pitch, but it was clear that in our opinion (and the ump's opinion is the only one that counts) the batter was not even CLOSE to trying to strike at the ball. He wasn't confused and thought the ball was in the strike zone, or anything like that.

Think about it like this: Pitcher pitches. The batter is in the box, and is kinda like swinging the bat back and forth in a pendulum fashion, the way many do when waiting for a pitch. He lets another pendulum go while the pitch is coming in, obviously not trying to hit the ball, but just as a habit. Kind of scratching your head, or something like that. Should you call a strike at this as well?

I agree, you have to attempt to strike the ball. Think about if there is a pitch up at the batter's head. He falls to the ground and twists so that his arms push the bat across the plate while he is falling. Did he swing the bat? Yes he did. But is it a strike? No, because he did not attempt to strike the ball.