Throwing the Bat - LL

[ozzy6900]

Originally Posted by jdmara

Ozzy, I agree with you. This is exactly why it's difficult to umpire these leagues. You have the rules so call it by the prescribed penalty and move on. I bet the next time little Johnny is up to bat, he doesn't carelessly throw the bat.

-Josh

Josh, I fought this problem back in the 1970's when I actually officiated LL. Somewhere in the early 1980's, Williamsport decreed the exact same thing that they say now, warn then eject. The ejection is under Unsportsmanlike Conduct which is a valid rule that an official is supposed to use when it is needed.

My beef with some people on this board is that they put on the uniform and follow the rules until it requires the official to have the balls to do what has to be done. Many of these officials pussy-foot around so that when these little tykes get on the big diamond, they don't understand why they have been allowed to do this stuff for 12 years and suddenly, here comes Ozzy, kicking the twerp's a$$ out of the game for the very thing that should have been stopped years ago!