2 man fly ball mechanic question
 

How do you guys handle the fly ball to the right side of the infield as a BU in A? Some guys I work with like to have PU take all fly balls on the infield and have the BU pivot inside, others like the BU to stay near his A position on fly balls to the first and second basemen and take the catch/no catch while the PU comes up to take the BR to second if the ball is dropped. Different mechanics manuals and sites I have seen state differently on subject.

In general, most mechanic's sets are based on the BU deciding when to go out and watch a ball or when not to. The BU has the center fielder to the right field line as their primary coverage. It is up to the BU all the way whether they decide to go out and look at a ball in the outfield or not. It has nothing to do with different mechanics, because those are the mechanics. The mechanics are what give the BU the option to read the play and move accordingly. When the BU moves accordingly, the PU covers the other things that the BU left. In other words there is no one size fits all coverage all the time no matter what.

Peace

I think that he was asking about coverage of a flyball in the infield between
1st and 2nd base.

i'd like to see the mechanics manual you referenced that says the BU should not come in and pivot on a fly ball to the right side of the infield. if the ball drops and the b/r is motoring the whole way, good luck making the call at 2B from the line... iow, pivot.

In that instance, the plate man takes the runner to second in what i have seen (as if the BU had gone out to right field).

You can come in and pivot, and risk becoming a factor in the play.

There is no harm in taking a few steps into fair territory, toward 2b, if you can so you are not taking the play from the line, read/react to the play and if it's dropped you are in a great position to move into the infield.

in the words of jim evans, that is patchwork umpiring.

if you become a factor in the play, you are in the wrong place. go in, pivot, and stay out of the way. there is no set-in-stone place to make your pivot, so vary it based on what the situation dictates. i'd still like to see the mechanics reference you said states that this is ok.

there is harm in this, bob. unless you are The Flash, there is no way you can beat the b/r to 2B in an upper level game. you will either collide with the b/r when you try to scamper into the infield, or he will already have passed you and you will be trailing the play into 2B.

Make the call from behind, then.

Who says the call has to be made from the infield grass?

ok, ball is thrown to 2B, but gets by and rolls about 20 feet away. b/r gets up after sliding into 2B and heads for 3B. SS collects the ball and fires to 3B where you know have a whacker. you're now in position to make this call from the area of 2B. good luck. to address your inevitable counter of, "the PU will take the call at 3B," i reiterate, that is patchwork umpiring. if you have him make that call, you should just hand him your paycheck for doing your job for you.

Agreed. I learned to handle this the same way you have, from the same instructor.

Later when teaching this in my association mechanics classes I ran into the same resistance you are. Funny thing, once they began working it correctly, they found it was the better way to go.

Should I get out my Jim Evans Academy bingo card and the lime koolaid?

I've got "patchwork umpiring" twice and "hand him your paycheck" once.

I'll get inside myself, but if my partner doesn't, it doesn't bother me a bit. I can cover second.

You can become a factor in the play if you don't read it correctly or pivot too early and in the wrong place. In the situation when the fly ball it taking F4 toward the line, you better not try to pivot in front of him. If the ball is hit extremely high then you have the time to locate the fielders and make your way into the infield.

You have to adjust based on the how the play unfolds. On a shallow fly, you won't have time to pivot, so you have to play it like a grounder and overthrow. Move toward the infield as far as the play will let you, without getting in the way. If the ball is dropped, adjust your movement into the infield based on player positioning. In most cases you won't be behind the BR.

PU takes all fly balls in the infield, BU should come in and pivot and watch the tag of 1B. However, on routine fly balls to F3 or F4 it would be rare for a batter-runner to advance on a dropped fly ball so I tend not to come into the grass and pivot but to get a position in the dirt where I know I can beat the runner to 2B if I need to. He has to run 90 feet and I would only need to run about 45 to get a good angle.

su never served lime kool aid for lunch.