Strike Zone - How to call

[bradrhod]

I know this is controversial but I still have to ask; besides it is winter even in SoCal and this is a good time for this question.

A couple of years ago an umpire friend mentioned that ASA talks about a ‘currently’ called strike zone in their spring classes. Last year it seemed like the zone moved up to two balls above the knee and was widened to the outside allowing up to two balls off the plate on the outside corner.

Also, I have heard a non-ASA umpire tell a coach, I was not involved in the game, that “the strike zone is whatever I call”. This happened after 3 or 4 bad (IMHO) strike calls in a row, and the coach riding the umpire. Certainly the umpire was justified in reacting to the coach. Once you get this far with an umpire, you deserve what you get. However, the umpires statement got me thinking.

Finally, we have this umpire in our area. He is a really great guy. Has been involved in the game for near 50 years; is coming up on 70 years old; still volunteers entire weekends to umpire games; and he still calls an awesome game. All of us can only hope to have his resume and continued involvement when we get to his age. One thing, he cannot stand it when one team beats another by a lot of runs. He asks the score every inning (too old and losses track), and when run differential is 5 runs or so, you will see the strike zone change significantly. The winning team will get squeezed and the loosing team will get opened up. If the score happens to tighten up, then the old strike zone returns. Sometimes you get a new zone inning after inning. This has been going so long; only new people bother getting excited. Personally, I do not like his efforts to control the game because it confuses the young hitters, and that confusion can carry into other games. So far he has not changed the outcome of a game.

Of course as a coach/batter/pitcher it is a part of the job is to recognize the strike zone and work on adjusting. That has been part of the game for 200 years
(http://www.baseball-almanac.com/arti..._history.shtml). The part to me that is off a bit is that the ASA rule book is exact in stating the location of the strike zone. It really provides no room for adjustment. Yet ASA, I believe, teaches adjustment of the strike zone year to year.

STRIKE ZONE. When a batter assumes a natural batting stance adjacent to home plate, the strike zone is that space over any part of home plate between the batter’s:

• (Fast Pitch Only) Arm pits and the top of the knees.

• (Slow Pitch Only) Back shoulder and the front knee.

When MLB actually changes the strike zone, they do it officially in the rule book. We do not allow the difference between what is called on the field and what is in the rule book in any other area of the game.

Few questions:
How should the strike zone be called, per the rule book or with allowances? Should ASA (or any association) actually be making a rule change to adjust the strike zone?