Twins @ Brewers, batter not given time
 

I'm interested in comments on this. You need to go to about 1:35 into the clip to see the whole thing (most of the clip is the Twins manager arguing with the umpire):

http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/media...00806152939011

It looks to me like the pitcher had started to come set before the batter requested time and just stepped out.

Was the plate umpire correct in not granting time? (Looks to me like he was).

There's an increased emphasis in the past month or so on "pace of the game", including the gratuitous requesting /granting of time.

Was he correct? Well, he is not required to grant time.

OTOH, F1 had not come set yet, so ordinary practice might tend toward granting time.

Still, we don't see the whole AB in that clip, and for all I know the batter was very slow throughout it. I would have to see the entire AB (and perhaps the batter's other AB's in that game) to have a good sense of why he didn't grant time there.

MLB guys are usually exceptionally good at game management, and I for one would not second guess this choice.

There was a similar situation in a Brewers-Braves game. A Braves batter (forgot who) was stalling a bit and the PU told him to get back in the box. He stepped in, the PU pointed to the pitcher, but the batter then asked for time and stepped out. The PU did not grant it and the pitcher threw a meatball over the plate for a strike. The TV guys (Braves homers) went off on the PU but I thought since the batter was told to step in and he stepped in, but then back out, the PU was justified in letting the pitch continue.

Or maybe that is the Brewers fan in me.

I agree with your assessment. I'd like to know more about this AB an other ABs during the game. You don't normally see a pitcher who hasn't already started his delivery to go ahead a throw the pitch unless he's pretty sure he's going to get a call. My guess is there's more to this than we see.

Bizarro?
 

Headline: MLB fines Cooper, Gardenhire for slow game pace
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_yl...v=ap&type=lgns

Following MLB headlines: Major League Baseball focuses on pace of game efforts
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/press_releas...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

I saw in a recent Padres game where the Padres batter raised his hand toward the umpire to request Time while the pitcher was in the set looking back runners, and the umpire cheerfully said, "No." The batter took the pitch for a ball.

This must be a new directive, as we used to see umpires giving in to such requests, even though the rules specifically instruct the umpires to not grant Time once the pitcher has started his windup or come set. I guess they are going to enforce 6.02 (b) Comment finally.

another thing i noticed was that the batter was digging in asking for time, you can see Runge's head bobbing up and down like he's saying something, could be get in the box, hurry up, let's go, etc. and then Harris wiggles the bat a couple of times and wants to step out. To long to get set IMO esp. since it wasn't the first pitch of the at bat. I could see it if he didn't dig in right but it wasn't the first pitch.

I like it, if its going to be done in MLB then that gives us more emphasis when we speed up the games at the lower levels.

If they watch the batter take a minute before stepping in the box etc., on TV, then they wonder why we tell them to get in the box, or stay in the box etc.,

Baseball has gotten way too slow.

Thanks
David

In Class A Baseball
 

There are also new changes at the Minor League level.

In the Northwest League and New York Penn Leagues the following rules are being tried:

Defensive conferences.

Three free ones per game like FED, except if a coach uses two in any one inning, the pitchers has to go. In extra inning games, they get one additional per inning and they are accumulative....they can save them up.

Only one infielder may attend a conference at a time. (Catchers are not infielders.) So no more than four on the mound during a conference.

AND, each infielder also has only three conferences! (They'll need a recording secretary to keep track of which infielder talked to the pitcher and when.)

AND, the offense is also allowed only three conferences per game.

If the batter backs out causing the pitcher to stop, a strike is added to the batter's count. If it's strike three, the umpires were warned to get ready to toss a manager.

Umpires were instructed to limit the number of time-outs they give batters and they were told that the batter MUST verbally request time prior to the pitcher coming set. A hand up means nothing.

Batter's must keep one foot in the box, similar to FED.

We'll see how these go.

Regards,