Gerry Davis stance

[umpandy]

Your standing approximately 1 to 1.5 arm's lengths behind the catcher. Your feet are planted wider than shoulder width (when I experimented with the stance, I was about 8 inches more than shoulder width on each side). You keep your head straight forward, and put your hands on your knees.

In general, umpires like the stance because it gives you a good "still" view of the zone with nearly zero movement on your part (due to the hands on knees). The stance is quite similar to the one knee, in that you get the same 'look.'

Why my exposure to the Gerry Davis stance was only experimental?

I felt that it changed my strike zone (enough for coaches and players to notice in some cases). I also could not get the outside or low pitches the same; possible due to my neglect to really learn all aspects of the stance. Furthermore, I was hit with a substantial amount of foul balls because I was a greater distance from the catcher. I did a two-week study of the stance, and was hit with more foul balls on my hands/arms that I had in the previous four seasons.

I would NOT suggest this stance, however there are advantages.