New ASA Mechanic for 2008

[BHBlue]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

To be honest with you, the reasoning or "comment" offered is what I don't understand.

Up the foul line ISN'T where batters normally warm up, and why do I need to be "observing" the offense's dugout? Will they be "rolling" their bats in the dugout? I can see some umpires start looking for trouble, but then again, I'm a pessimist.

How many batters does ASA allow out of the dugout and how close does it allow them to get to the plate between innings? The answers to these questions become meaningless if nobody is watching the offensive team area.

I don't see this mechanic change as that big of a deal. The majority of youth FP and SP umpires aren't going to put their noses in the manual to discover the change anyway. Unfortunately, in the Houston area, there are enough games to be covered each weekend that everyone gets work, whether they care to do things correctly or not. Down here, it is a numbers game.