Timeout hand toward pitcher not PU

[pfsears]

My question stemming from what I saw on the Softball World Series game last night and from other team my 12 year daughter played against. Question: When a right handed batter steps in the box with their left hand asking for time is gestured at the pitcher, and not the PU, can't the pitcher go ahead and pitch the ball anyway since they are not the ones to ask for time. Aren't you supposed to put your free hand towards the PU? Also, if I am correct please tell where in the rulebook it is located so I have it on hand when my daughter pitches on someone next year and a umpire trys to challenge me.

[Dakota]

The recent world series on TV was LL. I don't have a LL rule book, but speaking ASA, the issue of holding the free hand anywhere in particular is not directly addressed in the book.

The batter needs to keep at least one foot in the box between pitches (exceptions include wild pitch, attempted play, etc). The ASA rule is 7-3C.

But my main point is your pitcher should be watching the umpire, not the batter's hands. The umpire will signal the pitcher to pitch & the umpire will hold his hand up to hold up the pitch if the batter is not ready. Once the umpire signals to pitch, your pitcher should complete the pitch regardless of what the batter does or does not do.

If you try to challenge an umpire on when he is ready or when he judges the batter is ready for the pitch, it will be a losing challenge.

The call will be NO PITCH if the umpire is trying to hold up the pitcher.

The call will be Illegal Pitch (quick pitch) if he judges it was an intentional pitch while the batter was not ready or off balance.

[pfsears]

ok Tom, i understand your point of watching the Umpire and his hand signals. i guess i would be more interested in the finer details of how the batter is supposed to be asking timeout from. and if the rules state that the batter is to hand gesture to the umpire, then the umpire would not be following the rulebook. but if there is a concrete passage i would like someone to point it out. in either ASA or LL.

[LDUB]

Also just because the batter has her hand up does not mean that the upmire must call time. So I agree with Dakota in saying that the pitcher should watch the umpire not the hands of the batter.

[Skahtboi]

I know of no code that lists what procedures a batter must go through to request time. Plain and simply, if a player requests time and an umpire grants it, then you have time until such a point as the umpires beckons to the pitcher or says "play." (or both)

I think you are tilting at windmills pfsears. I don't believe that you will find how a batter holds up their hand in requesting time codified anywhere.

[SC Ump]

Originally posted by pfsears
...please tell where in the rulebook it is located so I have it on hand when my daughter pitches on someone next year and a umpire trys to challenge me.

L.L. 8.05 - An illegal pitch is -
(c) a "quick" return pitch. Umpires will judge a quick pitch as one delivered before the batter is reasonably set in the batter's box.

I personally do not hold up my hand nor "require" the batter hold up their hand. If a batter is getting situated in the box, I consider a pitch delivered to catch a batter off balance to be a quick pitch, and rule accordingly to what organization I am calling.

Why do you want to teach your daughter how to quick pitch? Wouldn't it be more sporting to teach her how to wait until the batter is ready? I think Little League likes to strive for promotion of sportsmanship.

[pfsears]

Hi Dan,

I understand the quick pitch rule and I would abide by that. I was only trying to find out if there was a rule simply stating to whom the batter has to have their hand facing when asking for time. If ASA and LL have such minut rules as to having the same colored knee pads i would have assumed that where a batter has their hand up for time would also be included. So by just going off what everyone has stated I have told my daughter to just watch the PU and not the batter which she totally understood. I'm just trying to understand the finer points of the rules and stay within them.

[Del-Blue]

There is no rule which states which hand the batter has to face the umpire. That gesture by the batter is just their way of telling the umpire she isn't ready. I will always hold the pitcher up until the batter is ready, although most pitchers don't pitch until the batter IS ready. If the batter is taking an excessive amount of time between each pitch, I will tell her to speed it up.

[Larry Wolfe]

I agree with Delblue and SC Ump. This really touches a pet peeve of mine. All this hand up just slows down the game. I simply tell the batter to get in the box and that I will not let the pitcher pitch until they are set and I tell the pitcher they should not pitch until the batter looks up. I normally do not grant time for the batter to get in the box because that time out applies to ALL action on the field and play does not start again until I say "play". No where in the rule book is it required for the umpire to call time for the batter to get in the box. The rules to provide for the prevention of the "quick pitch" and for 10 seconds for the batter to get ready. This method works well for me and the batter and pitcher quickly settle into a routine of play at a steady pace.