BU: Two Man Mechanic, Infield In
 

Where do you stand when the infield is playing in w/ a runner on:

A) R2 & R3
B) R1, R2 & R3

I was always taught to stand on the dirt, and two steps to F6's left (behind
R2).

Behind R2? Inside or outside the basepath? Not sure what you mean.

Usually I will be at the "C" position, infield grass edge or the dirt itself and exact position will depend upon F6 and R2. Read where ball is hit and head for the mound as much as possible. Hit to the infield , well chances are they are going home because that is why they are up to begin with so getting there for a second play is easy. Read and React.

When possible, I take a deep C...Evans calls it "A" inside of the working area to clear the infielders to avoid an umpire interference...I don't think I'd ever do the softball mechanic of standing as deep as I picture the scenario in your post

Same place as always. Once the fielder goes for the ball, you can adjust accordingly to get out of his way.

Not so. When the fielders play in, the BU must position himself behind the infielders, usually on the edge of the grass or just onto the dirt, much like U2 in 4-man. If you play in the normal B and C, you can end up being part of the play and getting in the way of a fielder, who is trying to get you an out.

That's right SDS...and coaches/players love it when the fans "come to watch us!" We do need to get out of the way.

I will usually be on the edge of the grass on the 2nd base side ("Deep B").

Incorrect. Think back to the previous thread on U2 in a 4-man.

Think about this: slow roller hit directly at you -- where are you going? The fielder is probably coming straight at the ball and firing home. You'd have to turn your shoulder to see which angle the fielder is taking to get to the ball, then go the other way. That will not work.

Really!?

You can also adjust to the deep B if a fielder or runner asks you to move and you feel with the runner's secondary and F6 that there is no good spot for you to be in.

A sh!thouse waiting to happen.

_______


After the fielders take the positions they want/need, I take my position, out of their way, but normally I do not have to go any deeper than the edge of the grass.

Not the D where we would think the 3BU would start...but synonymous with what we would probably call "deep C" I know, I thought the same thing

Wow, it's like Déjà vu all over again....again.:)

Okay, you took one out!:D

Thanks for the pointer guys.

Yeah, the screen froze on me, I realized that there was a double post, so I took one out.

It was like Deja Vu all over again! :-)

R2 and R3 - Deep C and usually a step toward second base because F6 plays where you would normally be.

R1, R2, R3 - Deep B and usually a step toward second base there as well. In this situation you have time to get into the working area if you have a double play at home then at first.

That's not what caught my eye.

In the 15 years I've been acquainted with Evans' teachings and that of his instructors, I have never heard him refer to PU positioning with the amateur terms of "A, B, C, D, E, etc.", except in explaining that he doesn't use those terms. His recent manual does not use that nomenclature and recent grads say he never used it at school this year.

So when you said that Evans refered to a position as "D", I was surprised, to say the least.

I find this to be one of Evans' qualities I like least. If he didn't "invent" it, he acts like it doesn't exist. Listening him describe the B position and subsequently use that description instead of then saying "the B position" is silly.

This isn't an "Evans quality" and it has nothing to do with him not "inventing it."This is a pro thing. PBUC doesn't use A, B, C, D, and pro umpires don't use it.

One explanation I got from an instructor is that they feel labelling a position as the amateurs do tends to lead to umpires establishing fixed spots for each position, regardless of situations or player tendencies.

well, all i will say is that while he doesn't describe A,B,C,D etc...the way we think of them, I have his two umpire manual and he describes it as the area behind the working area or "the library" I know we're not really arguing whether or not it's in there...heck, I'll take a picture of the diagram and put it on here...well maybe not that due to respecting his copyright...but imagine a rectangle drawn behind the mound which defines the borders of the working area or "library" then behind that, in rectangular format, the letters a,b,c,d describing how and how not BU is to be positioned when umpiring certain types of plays.

You'd think pros would recognize most that it's just a starting spot. What do I know, though -- I'm just a little ole' umpire of amateur baseball.

I do have Evans manual and it is excellent.

Nobody is arguing about where he suggests that BU positions himself. Most of us also have the manual and many of us have gone to his clinics or school.

We are just expressing surprise at your statement: "Evans calls it "D"" (Which I see you have now changed to "Evans calls it "A"), since Evans has never before used any letter designation,

They are not pros when they first learn this.

I agree. The manual is excellent and worth every penny.

Fair enough.

sounds good Mr. Umpire...thanks for the discussion