Ending game's due to darkness

[chapmaja]

Originally Posted by Manny A

I can't recall where I read it; I'm sure it was some baseball discussion board somewhere on Al Gore's invention. But a youth league uses a drop-dead rule based upon when a safety light on a sensor that is on a storage trailer illuminates. One of the dumbest things I've ever heard of, since I'm sure the light turns on and off when there's significant cloud cover that later dissipates.

I understand your opinion of this rule, and somewhat agree, but it does make a point.

Maybe the schools should have a light detector that detects the amount of available light on the field. If the light level gets below a certain level, the game is suspended and then a decision is made to continue or not to continue the game based on a totality of the situation. If heavy clouds are moving over, but will vacate the vicinity, the game is only suspended. If the light level gets to low due to sunset then you have a different situation.

Drop Dead rules are often like Zero Tolerance laws. They are good on paper, but don't stand up well in the real world.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally Posted by chapmaja

I understand your opinion of this rule, and somewhat agree, but it does make a point.

Maybe the schools should have a light detector that detects the amount of available light on the field. If the light level gets below a certain level, the game is suspended and then a decision is made to continue or not to continue the game based on a totality of the situation. If heavy clouds are moving over, but will vacate the vicinity, the game is only suspended. If the light level gets to low due to sunset then you have a different situation.

Drop Dead rules are often like Zero Tolerance laws. They are good on paper, but don't stand up well in the real world.

And where would they mount that detector?

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

And where would that mount that detector?

You could get several per field, and put them up all over, and then maybe erect a small pole behind the pitcher and another in shallow center, and put a couple there too.

[EsqUmp]

Originally Posted by chapmaja

I understand your opinion of this rule, and somewhat agree, but it does make a point.

Maybe the schools should have a light detector that detects the amount of available light on the field. If the light level gets below a certain level, the game is suspended and then a decision is made to continue or not to continue the game based on a totality of the situation. If heavy clouds are moving over, but will vacate the vicinity, the game is only suspended. If the light level gets to low due to sunset then you have a different situation.

Drop Dead rules are often like Zero Tolerance laws. They are good on paper, but don't stand up well in the real world.

I already have this detector. They are called eyes.

[SWFLguy]

I already have this detector. They are called eyes.
I laughed and needed it, thanks. Been there done that many times on fields with no lights, you can at least be prepared for it. It's really an issue when lights go out before you finish a game. Had one this season and luckily we finished the game before darkness became a problem. A couple years ago it happened and we were able to continue with ambient lighting from an adjacent field.

[LIUmp]

Originally Posted by chapmaja

I understand your opinion of this rule, and somewhat agree, but it does make a point.

Maybe the schools should have a light detector that detects the amount of available light on the field. If the light level gets below a certain level, the game is suspended and then a decision is made to continue or not to continue the game based on a totality of the situation. If heavy clouds are moving over, but will vacate the vicinity, the game is only suspended. If the light level gets to low due to sunset then you have a different situation.

Drop Dead rules are often like Zero Tolerance laws. They are good on paper, but don't stand up well in the real world.

You can't make this decision yourself?

"Sorry folks, in my judgment, it's too dark to continue this game safely."

Is that hard?

[Manny A]

Originally Posted by LIUmp

You can't make this decision yourself?

"Sorry folks, in my judgment, it's too dark to continue this game safely."

Is that hard?

That's what I do.

Problem is, as this article points out, our night vision degrades as we get older. Here's an example from the article of how something looks to a 20, 60, and 75 year old:



One night a few years ago after a cookout, my son and I went out in the back yard looking for a pair of shoes that a friend's child left back there. It was already pitch black, at least to me. My son went over to them and picked them up. I literally could not see them!

So while you may judge it's too dark to continue, it may in fact be relatively safe to play from the players' perspective. But hey, we need to be able to see to make calls, so our judgment prevails.

[Dakota]

While the topic of that article is interesting, it is written with a bunch of unsupported data and speculation that even the author himself discredits within the article. In fact, the article even contradicts itself.

IOW, what he has written may be largely correct, but I wouldn't bank on it from that article alone.

I suspect the article is written to sell his seminars, not to provide objective information. After all, you do need to create the crisis before you can sell the solution!

[Little Jimmy]

Have to agree with Manny about night vision as you get older. Twilight time never was my strong suit and it's getting a little tougher as the years move on, especially on an unlighted field.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally Posted by LIUmp

You can't make this decision yourself?

You mean like whether the batter actually attempted to "bunt" the ball?