Batters Squeezing their strike zone

wadeintothem · #1 (**permalink**) Tue Apr 20, 2004, 03:22pm

How do you handle batters who crouch down during wind up/release to shrink their strike zone?

I like to set up with my eyes at their pits, top of my strike zone and I hold it... I dont readjust for them based on that movement.. but in another one from last night.. the coach cried a few times when i would call a strike from the batters original position.

"Hey that was acrossed her eyes!" "Yeah, well your batter scrunched" was my envisioned conversation so I just ignored the coaches comments. Oddly, it was their pitcher who habitually did this at every at bat. But a few others did it too.. i started suspecting it may even be taught. (ASA 12U btw)

Dakota · #2 (**permalink**) Tue Apr 20, 2004, 03:36pm

All the rule book says is "natural batting stance." It doesn't say when the batter has to assume that stance.

I have no problem with how you called that, so long as you judged the scrunching down to not be the natural stance for that batter, as opposed to it being not the stance she first took.

JEL · #3 (**permalink**) Tue Apr 20, 2004, 04:00pm

Same thing in a b@%*b%ll game, 9U, batter scrunches way down, low strike in the zone, I ring him up. Coach yells "that was six inches below his knees", I reply calmly (really I was calm), "Coach, HE AINT GOT SIX INCHES BELOW HIS KNEES!" Coach smiles, I smile, rest of game was great

Skahtboi · #4 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 10:06am

Like Tom said, if that is their natural stance, then that is the way I call it.

That said, one of my pet peeves is when a batter tries to duck as a pitch as it comes in, in an attempt to shrink her strike zone. On those pitches, if it is anywhere near a strike, I err on the side of the pitcher!

Dakota · #5 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 10:10am

If I think the batter is ducking the pitch, then that is not her natural batting stance.

However, there is nothing illegal about a batter "standing tall" initially and once the pitch is on the way, assuming her natural stance, to keep the pitcher off balance.

Skahtboi · #6 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 10:39am

No Tom, you know the ones I am talking about. The kids whose dads have taught them to take their stance, and then push their chin into their knees as the pitch arrives. We have all seen them. These are the ones I am talking about.

Dakota · #7 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 10:45am

Quote:

Originally posted by Skahtboi
No Tom, you know the ones I am talking about. The kids whose dads have taught them to take their stance, and then push their chin into their knees as the pitch arrives. We have all seen them. These are the ones I am talking about.

Yup.

FUBLUE · #8 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 10:47am

Quote:

Originally posted by Skahtboi
No Tom, you know the ones I am talking about. The kids whose dads have taught them to take their stance, and then push their chin into their knees as the pitch arrives. We have all seen them. These are the ones I am talking about.

Had one of those last night...she was about 5'7" but ended up at about 3'1" after the duck.

What really gets me is coaches, especially with younger girls, who teach them to almost crouch when batting. Then the complain when you call a strike that would have been a strike if they weren't sitting in the batters box.

Of course, when the other team does it, they are ducking (at least according to the coach of the first team).

wadeintothem · #9 (**permalink**) Wed Apr 21, 2004, 12:25pm

Quote:

Originally posted by FUBLUE

Quote:

Originally posted by Skahtboi
No Tom, you know the ones I am talking about. The kids whose dads have taught them to take their stance, and then push their chin into their knees as the pitch arrives. We have all seen them. These are the ones I am talking about.

Had one of those last night...she was about 5'7" but ended up at about 3'1" after the duck.

What really gets me is coaches, especially with younger girls, who teach them to almost crouch when batting. Then the complain when you call a strike that would have been a strike if they weren't sitting in the batters box.

Of course, when the other team does it, they are ducking (at least according to the coach of the first team).

Yep, these are the ones I'm talking about... Like many things so far, Dakota pointing out the words "natural batter stance" actually helped me out... I was accidently following the rules calling the strikes on the intentional scrunchers. I've read the book a million times; little key words like that are pretty easy to skip over and miss as far as application.