Balk?

[Manny A]

Originally Posted by RadioBlue

I'm not in MLB, obviously. But I DO care. The lax enforcement is gonna cause us problems in NF ball.

"NF ball"? What is "NF ball"?

MLB pitchers get away with technical violations of the balk rule if it is part of their routine move before getting set. I've seen pitchers lean forward and take a step toward home with their free foot when going from the stretch to the set (Musina), tap the ball repeatedly in and out of the glove (Rocker), and do all sorts of other minor fluctuations that really fools nobody.

It's really no different than the free-foot step that pitchers take to the side or even to the front of the rubber as they windup. 8.01 allows only a backward step with that foot. It's also no different than the hesitation some Asian pitchers take during their windup. They make these moves all the time, and if they did them with base runners, they would never get balked for them.