Manager Acts Like a Dipstick, I'm Sorry to Say

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by jkumpire

Looking for a little help:

FED game, R1, 1 out bottom 1st.

LH R1, lifts non-pivot froot in set position, steps to home, throws to 1B.

Now, I know I'm not Carl Childress, Jim Evans, or anything, but I am 70-75% sure this is a balk.

I'm sure you meant F1. R1 has nothing to throw. But I digress. Yep, it's a balk.

After moving R1 to 2B, here comes the manager.

"What did he do wrong Blue?"
"He didn't step to 1B.
(Short aside to tell the asst. coach to get in the dugout and not put his .02 in.)
"Wait a minute, he lifted his foot straight in the air, put it down and threw to 1B. that's not a balk."
"Coach, he has to step at at least 45 deg. so he can show he's throwing to 1B.He stepped straight home."
"Well how can he throw to 2nd if he has to step like that."
"Coach, we are talking about 1B here, not 2B"
"Blue, that's terrible, and that's a terrible call."

(snip...)

"Blue, explain to me why he balked."
"Coach, he has to step towards 1B, which we define as at least inside a 45 deg. angle towards 1B."
"Blue, I looked in my rule book, and it says nothing about 45 deg, it says he has to step to the bag."
"Coach, that 45 deg angle has been used forever to decide if the pitcher steped to 1B, You can look it up, It is written somewhere in the Case Book or umpire manual. And in you kid's case, he put his foot in the air, then stepped right at home plate and threw to 1B."
"Okay Blue", and then we play.

(snip...)

My questions:

1. Should I have not brought up the 45 deg bit in the first place, and just said, he has to step to 1B?

2. When he talked with me the second time between innings (which is okay by me, if he wants to waste my time during warm-ups to get educated, no problem if he is quiet about it), should I have just said, "Coach, I'm sorry, he was not close to stepping to 1B, and that's why he got it called on him."

3. Any other suggestions? I mean, the balk is so obvious a blind man could call it, and he has no clue. What do you do here?

Thanks for your thoughts.

1. Don't be creative. The rule says he has to step toward the bag. Why invent new wording?

2. Don't be so talkative. Five words:

"What'd he do wrong blue?" Didn't step to the bag.

"Wait a minute, he lifted his foot straight in the air, put it down and threw to 1B. that's not a balk." Didn't step to the bag.

"Well how can he throw to 2nd if he has to step like that." That's not the issue.

3. What I do: (FED) "TIME! That's a balk...didn't step to the bag...You, second base."

BTW: Long time no see....how've you been?

[Rich]

21 innings today. 6.5 hours of fun in the sun.

I did call a balk, though. I've called my share this season, I gots to say.

LH pitcher. R1 takes off as soon as LHP lifts his leg. Magically, F1 put his foot right back in the same place that he lifted it from.

"He didn't gain distance."

The catcher asked me to check his footprints. That was funny, especially as F3 threw the (already dead once he caught it) ball into left field and R1 was now R2 regardless.

[lawump]

Umpire Schools teach umpires to keep it short and simple when explaining balks.

For example:

Umpire: "That's a balk! You second base (said to runner)."
Manager: "What did he do?"

Possible responses include:

Umpire: "No step."
Umpire: "He started and stopped."
Umpire: "No pause."
Umpire: "His leg crossed the rubber."

At higher levels (HS, NCAA, pro) this usually works. (Now they might come out and argue that your judgment was wrong (i.e. that he did pause) but at least they're not arguing the rule.)

If the coach/manager wants more of an explanation, listen to his question and answer only that.

For example, this following conversation (by coincidence) happened to me in my last high school game:

Head Coach (who has come out of the dugout): "What do you mean 'no step'?"
Umpire: "He didn't step toward first."
Head Coach: "He doesn't have to step toward first."
Umpire: "The rules require that he does, and he didn't."
Head Coach: "I've never heard that one before, huh."

The head coach left and we resumed the game. He came out between innings and I just said, "the rules require he step toward first, when throwing to first. You pitcher stepped toward home and threw across his body to first that's why it was a balk."

He said, "o.k., I got you." and left.

(edited for spelling error)

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by lawump

Umpire Schools teach umpires to keep it short and simple when explaining books.

For example:

Umpire: "That's a balk! You second base (said to runner)."

This year's attendees were taught to give the reason as part of the call instead of making the manager ask.

[jkumpire]

They taught us just to call the balk and move 'em along. But since I never got a pro job, esp. in HS Baseball I always tell kids what they did.

My call was last night: "THAT"S A BALK (Pointing at F1) TIME! (Hands UP) NO STEP TO 1B (pointing R1 to 2B)."

My partner did nothing, of course, but he is a 2nd year guy who mostly does SB. He did a decent job for a newbie.

[RPatrino]

Five words or less!!! They can't use what you DON'T SAY against you. And finally, "coach, that's enough"

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by jkumpire

They taught us just to call the balk and move 'em along. But since I never got a pro job, esp. in HS Baseball I always tell kids what they did.

My call was last night: "THAT"S A BALK (Pointing at F1) TIME! (Hands UP) NO STEP TO 1B (pointing R1 to 2B)."

My partner did nothing, of course, but he is a 2nd year guy who mostly does SB. He did a decent job for a newbie.

In FED the balk kills the play. "Time, that's a balk,"

In OBR the balk does not kill the play. "That's a balk...Time, that's a balk,"

[LMan]

I always say, "Thats a balk, TIME" in FED so that when I change gears to OBR in the summer, the call stays consistent (in my addled mind).

[justanotherblue]

I had a very simular play last year in a Legion tourney. LH F1, called the balk, coach wanted to argue the call, it was simple. Coach, he didn't step toward the base. Coach what do you mean. ..It's easy coach he didn't have any distance or direction toward the base, that's a balk. After I repeated he had no distance or direction toward the base several times, the light went on. Coach commented, that must be important, you said that several times! I had a hard time putting my mask on with roar of laughter within my mind! Never had to use the field lights his light went on so brightly!

[tibear]

Originally Posted by GarthB

3. What I do: (FED) "TIME! That's a balk...didn't step to the bag...You, second base."

Is FED different from OBR with regards to how to call a balk?

In Canada, we only use OBR so the proper procedure is not to call time when the balk takes place but wait for the play to end before calling time.

[FTVMartin]

Originally Posted by GarthB

3. What I do: (FED) "TIME! That's a balk...didn't step to the bag...You, second base."

Perfect handling. Explain as you make the call and then nobody should question you.

Last night I had runners at 2nd & 3rd. Pitcher didn't stop. "Dead Ball! That's a balk! He never stopped! You score, you go to third!"