Strike zone

[buckweat]

Originally Posted by ncump7

Last year, our assignor sent out a memo to all officials. Do not call the curve ball that hits the dirt a strike. I had previously tried to call the ball that passed through the zone and hit the dirt a strike. I was hearing a lot of crap about it, but just thought I was right and they were wrong. After the memo, I call them a ball and never hear a word. It works for me. I work strictly high school varsity games.

In that case, its pretty cut and dried. If you want to work, you work the way the guy that gives you the work wants the work done. I have absolutely no problem with that! But that’s different than the ump just deciding he’s gonna do it on his own.

When that happens, everything’s on the “boss”. If someone doesn’t like it, they can certainly take it up with his boss.

Originally Posted by WhatWuzThatBlue

I waited a long time to enter this fray and I'm fairly sure that the hornet's nest I'm about to stir up is unappreciated.

Call what you see and get the damn call right!

Most of you know my experience and while pro school was very long ago, we were taught that the catcher matters little in the outcome of the call. If the ball passed through the zone and is uncaught, do you call it a strike? Do you allow a catcher to grab it in such a way that a ball outside the zone looks close enough to call it a strike?

Depending on the level of ball you work, you may be able to get away with 'finding' a strike. Watch enough Minor and Major League games and you'll see pitches that miss by a whisker and the umpire never blinks - Ball!

The definition of a strike is what? We are supposed to call the play per the rules and using our judgement. Nowehere in any respected umpire manual or rule book does it state that this is supposed to be easy. If you make the expected call because you don't want grief, shame on you. I've witnessed some incredible curve balls in my day. I don't tell the coach, "Get a better catcher and I can call some of those." We are supposed to reward good pitching, not penalize bad catching!

I’m not familiar with your experience, but I’m assuming that since you went to pro school “very long ago”, your experience and training far exceeds most of the posters on BB’s like this.

What you’re saying is exactly the way as a "layman" who understands how hard it is to call pitches, common sense tells me it should be.

Call what you see and get the damn call right, and We are supposed to reward good pitching, not penalize bad catching, just about say it all as far as I’m concerned.