swinging third strike

[David Emerling]

Originally Posted by Manny A

Maybe the mechanic has been recently changed to just sticking the right arm out? It seems the PU in video 3 did the same thing to signify he had an U3K, but then signaled the out since the batter could not advance.

I agree with your interpretation of Play #3. I think, for the moment, the umpire forgot that there was a runner at 1st and immediately went into his "dropped third strike mechanic" and then realized there was a runner on 1st and called him out. Or, he completely forgot about the ramifications of having a runner on 1st and simply called the batter out for "giving up" and walking out of the dirt area around home. But the batter was out instantly. The umpire may got the call right for the wrong reason.

I think they must have changed the mechanic. They were using the safe sign for a while but they seem to have switched to an extended right arm and holding it there to indicate that a play is still pending. You see the same mechanic in Play #1. The catcher shows the umpire the ball to highlight "I caught it" and then sees the umpire's arm extended. He immediately recognized that as a signal that the umpire considered the pitch uncaught.