I am a reputable umpire who does travel ball, high school, and college. For the first time in many seasons, I find my strike zone being challenged considerably more than in the past by high scool and travel ball coaches and players. I use the same strike zone for high school, community league, and travel ball, that I use for college because I feel that eventually, the players must face that zone. I also feel that I've adapted my zone well to meet the changes in pitching that I've noticed and been made aware of to date such as: calling the low at-the-knee outside and inside corner, high logo inside and outside pitch. My strike zone is in the shape of an hour glass, with the top and the bottom tighter and the middle expanded. To me, my strike zone affords the best opportunity for making softball the offensive game I feel it should be. I gage my zone when a batter first settles herself properly inside the box, eyeing the knee and the logo then the inside, outside, and the face of the plate. I feel that I am fair and consistant, but my problem and maybe I'm being too self conscious about it, that for the first time I'm beginning to get defensive with coaches and players. Have any of my brethren sufered through this like I am, and how did, or do, you deal with it

What level of the game are most of your complaints from and what calls are they complaining about?

For what it is worth, I wouldn't normally use an upper level zone with rec ball & I assume your community ball is rec.

Reason is, I'd be there all day watching batters walk. That level needs a bigger zone.

" I use the same strike zone for high school, community league, and travel ball, that I use for college because I feel that eventually, the players must face that zone."

Not all players will advance to higher levels of the game. Call the strike zone for the level of play.

Bob

Are they complaining that your strike zone is too tight?
Or are they complaining about strike zone consistency?

I am new to the world of softball umpiring but I’ve been umpiring baseball for many years. Until this past season it had been many years since I had worked games lower than varsity HS level baseball. During my years of umpiring the ‘older’ kids & adults I developed my strike zone as it is today. This past season I began to do some youth baseball/softball and had to modify my zone slightly for those games. I raised & widened my strike zone for those games only because the younger pitchers couldn’t handle my ‘regular’ strike zone at this point in their careers.

I have found when the umpires start tightening up "the zone" on younger players, it tends to make for a long game.
Walk,walk,walk,etc. Opening up the zone a little, for the younger players, accomplishes two things. Number one you force the batter to swing the bat, and number two you allow the pitchers to stay on the mound for more than three batters.

I guess you could call my strike zone more of a egg shaped.Alittle bit narrower at the top and bottom edges but full width thru 3/4 of the rest of the zone.Plus in little kid ball that egg is pretty fat around the middle.LOL

__________________________________________________ ______
However, if you just use the normal zone, you don't get a lot
of "come on blue, that pitch was high, or low" from the coaches.

__________________________________________________ _______




[Edited by whiskers_ump on Dec 17th, 2005 at 12:38 AM]

I don't have an "hour glass / egg strike" zone I just have a normal one. The inside corner or outside corner at the knees is a good pitch. I call it a strike. The good batters will fight off those pitches and wait for the pitcher to make a mistake. The ones that don't sit down.

What’s ‘normal’ for one umpire might be ‘abnormal’ for another. Some umpire’s call an oval or egg shaped zone and some call a box or rectangle. Some call a high zone and some call a zone just above the belt. Some call the pitches at the top part of the knee and some call the pitch at the lower part of the knee. Some give the pitcher a little inside/outside others want the pitch across the plate. So what’s normal? The key is being consistent with your strike zone (during the entire game, every game), the hitters will adjust.

Having said all that, IMHO you still can’t expect a 12yo kid to find the same zone as a HS varsity or college pitcher, at least not very often.

A strike zone shaped like an hour glass sounds like trouble. I'm sure I just have a different idea of an hour-glass shape, though. Regardless, your description demonstrates that you have, for better or worse, adjusted your zone from a book zone. Why not adjust it for the level of play, too?

More important, you are experienced, and the questions about your zone are new. The best way to determine the problem might be to have a friend (especially another umpire) video tape your plate work. When you review the results, you're likely to have the best answer to your question. Then you can adjust properly.

Mike

I hate the fact that so many here have used the phrase "my strike zone". I don't own a strike zone. I call by a set of rules that tells me what the strikezone is (a rectangular prism, by the way), and call strikes and balls based on those rules.

Why do anything else?

After coaching for several years, I learned that every umpire has a sweet spot - be it outside, inside, high or low. That's not really a bad thing, a good pitcher will find it and take advantage.

This was my first year umpiring and I had a real problem with the flat low strike at the knees. Because I realize what a tough pitch it is to throw, had a tendency to give it when it wasn't there.

What was really amazing is how fast you get a reputation for "'calling low", "calling high", etc.

Like the videotape suggestion, good way to look at yourself objectively, plus you can hit the mute when the whining starts.

Being able to call the low pitches gives a lot of 'new' umpire's problems. You probably already know this but I like to hear myself talk so here goes:
1) You want to look at your positioning to ensure that you see the entire plate.
2) You might want to look at your head height. The higher you set-up the more difficult the low pitches become.
3) Watch the ball into the catcher's glove. Sometimes where she catches the ball will help you determine if it was a strike.

No matter where "your" strike zone is just be consistent.

Welcome to umpiring!

(Imagine a side view)
I draw a line through the midle of the arm pit and the middle of the knee cap. The whole ball has to be between those two lines in order to be a strike [for veticle]
.
For Inside/Outside- As mentioned in young rec council level games I think almost baters box to batters box is a good width for the strike zone. For older/Better leagues or club ball I tend to want the whole ball over the plate for inside pitches & I give all the outside edge of the plate for outside pitches.

I would disagree that the whole ball hour glass or egg thing. Any part of the ball crossing any part of the plate in the strike zone is a strike.

Now I ump USSSA (so I get a bit of circus out there) but with pitchers being able to use various angles I have called strikes on pitches that landed a good half a foot of the side of the plate because it crossed a portion of the plate.