Proposed ASA SP Rules Changes

[Dakota]

Originally posted by IRISHMAFIA
Pure umpire's judgment. Examples would be anything the umpire perceives as intentional which delays or, in some cases, shortens the game.

I've used this a few times and you'll know it when you see it. The problem is that too many umpires don't want to be known at the blue who forfeited a game. The players will not understand and will not get a straight answer from the coach.

...

The most obvious reason you will not see examples of such a thing is because no one wants to set down guidelines which in the long run would be detrimental to the game. When in print, too many time people believe that if it isn't written as a no-no, it must be okay.

I agree with you that it is a bad idea to be too specific in the rules when describing a more general thing. However, that does not preclude the ASA from including some examples in the Case Book in order to give umpires some guidance.

For example, is it a violation of this rule for a team, with just a couple of minutes left in the game, to bring in a new pitcher have her throw her 5 warmups, and then bring in a second new pitcher, have her throw her 5 warmups, and then bring in a third new pitcher,... until time expires, and then get the final out to win the game? Apparently not, since something like this happend a few years ago at an ASA National Championship Tournament, and intentional delay was not called.

If this was legal, what is a violation unless the team does something that in and of itself is illegal?

What did the team do that resulted in you declaring a forfeit under this rule?

What I would like to see is some specific clock management rules that go into effect in the final x minutes of the game (say, final 10 minutes). These would allow the umpire to have a range of remedies depending on the situation. Mildest remedy would be for the umpire to stop the clock for any time out for conferences or substitutions during the final 10 minutes. While this might compromise the timely completion of the game, once the coaches know the umpires will do this, the only time outs near the end of the game will be legitimate ones, and not ones called just to delay. After all, what the objective should be is to discourage the delaying / hastening tactics while allowing the game to reach the conclusion it would have reached had these tactics not been employed.

JMO, of course.