Coach can't have count indicator?

[DG]

Originally posted by CoachJM
ozzy,

Why I am shocked! I thought FED rules explicitly allowed it, assuming he's not sharing it or anything.

Then it's Personal, it's certainly Digital (I've never seen an analog indicator), and it's Assisting him in keeping track of the counts and outs. Hence, a PDA. Rule doesn't say it has to be electronic or anything.

Coaching a game over the weekend, our team at bat. Our batter fouls one that eludes the catcher and hits the PU somewhere in the hip area. He had taken one earlier in the game right in the chest and didn't even flinch. This one got him - I could tell immediately.

I immediately requested "TIME" (coaching 3B at the time) and went to talk to my batter about nothing for a minute or two while the umpire walks it off.

Next pitch, the batter swings and misses and the umpire indicates the count at 2 & 2. I was pretty sure it had been strike three on my batter. So were the opposing coaches (PU was solo for this game). They ask for time & appeal the count. I check with my scorekeeper & he's got strike three as well. Although I believe this is against protocol, I went and joined the conversation and let the umpire know he wasn't going to get any objection from us if he changed the count to strike three. He was still trying to recover from the shot he'd taken on the foul (which was strike two) - aparently he'd taken a shot in the same unproteted spot in a game a few days earlier and it was pretty unpleasant.

All I'm saying is in some cases it's not such a bad thing for a coach to have the count.

JM

First time I have heard an indicator described as a PDA, and it will not wash, because we all know what a PDA is. Technically, FED would not allow an indicator in the hands of a base coach, because it's not mentioned as one of the things a base coach can have. But I can't imagine anyone who would care if the coach had an indicator. And of course, the original situation was about a coach in the dugout with an indicator and no FED rule I am aware of would prevent that, just like a pitch counter is not mentioned and often used in the dugout.