MadMax

If money was truly irrelevant, then why are we thinking so small, friends? An “oversized” indicator? Psshawh, I got your oversized indicator right here… Every field would have a working scoreboard, and an attentive scorekeeper or, absent that, a remote that I (as PU) or my partner can control during the game. Heck yeah, make the BU pay attention to the game! Every college field would have a clock, too, with again, at least a remote that the BU can manipulate. Heck (again!), these should be on HS fields too! If money was truly irrelevant, every Varsity -rated and college-used ballfield would have lights, too.

Gen-X’ers remember this one: 🎵 “Five Eight Eight, Two Three Hundred, Empiiiiiire.” 🎵 If you live in Wisconsin: “David Gruber… One Call, That’s All.” (Big grin) 😁 @gerry, the particular type of bat-sport matters: Baseball ⚾️? Out. Softball 🥎? Not out, unless intentional.

Whoever inherits #6 better be a good one, goldammit.

Sure. If this was a squibber or “angry hornet” 🐝, chewing up the line, neither fair nor foul yet, and the fielder – F1 or F3 typically – approaches the ball to try and touch / play / field it fair, with the BR converging on him/her, and the BR interferes, then by all means, that’s INT. That’s not what happened, even in my mistakenly perceived / constructed scenario. Instead of it directly off the bat, I saw it chopped straight down and then arcing high in the air. If you’ll notice, the BR takes off for 1B directly, and F5 clips her from behind, with the ball perceivably over foul territory, by that point. And you’re saying we should call the BR out for that?? By that logic, what keeps a bold F1 from running through a BR on a bunt attempt which is propelled foul, albeit slowly? Extending that logic further, if we have a bunt or chopper up the line, against a drawn in infield, and the F3 lets the ball go by him, in foul territory, but the BR runs right into him, are we awarding 1B on OBS? The batted ball isn’t technically foul yet, until it passes the bag on the foul side, or is touched in foul territory… right? That is the principle, is it not? Can we really award OBS on a foul ball?

… unless the batted ball was already foul (or, in foul territory). It looks like the ball had already bounded, and was in its descent definitely foul of the line. And, with how heavy that grass is, it likely would never have gone back fair. EDIT: Now that I’m able to see this on a larger (than a postage stamp) view, and slow it down, she (Batter) popped it up. Thus, it is INT like @noumpere concluded.

OBA? Surely, you mean OBR... Yes. The Pat Venditte Rule (ambidextrous pitcher) stipulates the pitcher must declare which arm he'll be pitching with, and he is "locked" to using it for the duration of the at-bat, unless the batter is substituted for. No need to. The Batter simply cannot switch sides during the pitch, generally interpreted as the pitcher begins his delivery. With the OBR action clock (rules), the clock runs regardless of which box the batter enters... or switches to... provided he is in the box, alert to the pitcher, with 8 seconds remaining. While he could request time (in OBR with clock, he's allowed (proper spelling) 1 "Free" Time request), but he doesn't have to.

Not substantiated by rulebook citation or terminology. This was called by a (plate) umpire who falls into one of three categories... either: A) An elder (in terms of years of experience) umpire, who has never progressed, and has become calloused in his rulebook knowledge, interpretation, and application... B) A "younger" (again, in terms of years of experience) umpire, who has not really done "enough" games or gained enough experience to interpret balks "correctly", and whose training has been largely text-based (devoid of illustration / visual examples)... C) An umpire who has been over-influenced or directed to "get more __________s" (in this case, balks) by a coordinator / assigner / mentor / "evaluator" who treats such calls as merit badges, or some kind of Pokemon cards to collect.

Yes, it’s contextual. A simple “Time out” / reset for rhythm, or related to displeasure with a strike call fetches a (rather) expedient resumption of the clock. A ball up-&-in that forces the batter from his box, or if the Batter fouls one off his foot, let’s say, it’s understood to delay the resumption of the clock accordingly. Again, contextual, but for the most part, if the catcher just arrives out at the mound, and then a coach emerges from the dugout, we (umpires, with timekeepers directed by umpires) reset the clock to 30, and (re)start it according to our ruleset. We also charge 1 visit, not 2 (NCAA differentiates player visit from coach visit). Yup. Wave at the box, and if it’s a like-like / same-spot substitution, just point at the position. If it’s an outfielder, point “up and over” towards the outfield spot. If it’s a double-switch, and 2 (or more) players departed, and 2 (or more) entered the lineup in spots different than their field positions, then wave to the pressbox, give a “hitting” signal, the number of fingers indicating batting spot/slot in the lineup, and then point at the player on defense. Repeat until all subs are completed. If ending the DH, and he (or his sub) is now in the field, perform the batting signal, indicate the DHs spot in the batting order, and then do a discreet “kill” slash. Then, point at the player on defense.

I favor Brooks Glycerin 22's, use Nike Air Zoom Terra Kiger 7's (trail shoes) on "deep grass / traction needed" fields, and still have New Balance VAADUs just for wet games. I'm on the verge of getting Brooks Cascades (again, trail shoes) and something else from Brooks that are... flatter... so I can wear them without strain on turf. The Brooks Glycerin, like Hokas or New Balance 1### shoes, are so plump and plush, they can create an untrue, double-bounce effect on your legs, potentially causing sprains, strains, and sore joints.

Oo! I stand corrected… Drake’s not wearing a DynaTite… that’s a black @Whosyourcaddy -supplied Icon Ti (which I nicknamed the Boe-Ti … get it?).

Ah, he’s one of those type-of-coaches. These ex-pros (and recently, too) who are part of, or form their own academy/travel-ball team. Occasionally, they’re control-freaks, and have their players (trying to) do(ing) all these complex things in situations so as to exert “pressure” on the opposing team. They count on having local umpires who either kowtow to their having been a pro, or are old (or “way too young”), and they can “outfox”. While I like @Velho’s and @Coach Carl’s interpretation and imposing a penalty reflective of the “crime”, I can also see @Richvee’s point. What if the pitch had been a ball? What if the pitch had hit the batter? With runners aboard, what if the pitch had been wild, and allowed the Runners to advance? The offense should, in no way, benefit from this shenanigan. So, with this being amateur baseball (< college), it’s best practice to call No-Pitch, with the penalty of a strike because the batter left the box during the pitch. Then, just lay into that “coach”. I’m not going to let him even get that far. Whether I’m on PU or BU, I’m going to verbally chastise him, starting with he can’t just “call Time” (coaches request Time; Umpires grant / call Time), he can’t just walk in the field during Live ball, he can’t interrupt a pitch like that… need I keep going? I’m going to throw it all on him, right up front, and there won’t be any “wriggle room” for him to even argue anything. The only reason I wouldn’t outright dump him, is in that environment, he might be the only “coach”, and if dumped, his team likely forfeits; I wouldn’t want to affect his players so drastically due to his attempted antics. It’s bad enough when a coach makes a mistake and leaves his pitcher in longer than (limited) pitch/inning count, and we’ve got to forfeit the game.

I can see how/why you’re reading it this way; instead, I’m reading it from a different way, wherein the (permanent) presence of 18” bases – including 1B – does not disqualify a venue (field) and prohibit (or prevent) a game from commencing. You just know there are strict NFHS Apologists (as umpires) who will take the strict letter-of-the-law to its full degree, and will not let a game start – or worse, will forfeit it – if a double-base isn’t installed / installable at 1B. By including this optional provision, and codifying it, this allows High Schools to use neutral-site, professional or contractual venues without burdening… resources… to accommodate this new HS rule. If we really think about it 🤔, this “covers all the bases”, to employ the pun; a HS could use a college ballfield, and it would have the double-base, whereas a pro ballfield, of each level from inde-pro thru MLB is going to have the 18” bases. As an example, we would have a HS “game of the week” at Chase Field in Phoenix; you better believe they’re not going to put a double-base in just for a HS game. Even the NAIA and JuCos using the 15 MLB/MiLB facilities we have around the valley use the 18” bases.

Thanks for noticing… @DerekGDS and I (and others) have been keeping track of it since Charlie debuted it in late March. @wolfe_man and @concertman1971 and @834k3r have heard from me enough that, “All we need is one, just one MLBU to wear it, and everything will take off from there”, and Derek hauls off and drops on me that Ramos broke camp with it, my heart nearly stopped. Unless my eyes deceive me, I think I spotted Rob Drake using Davis Cores&Socks pads on his Wilson DynaTite mask. I’m especially hopeful of seeing more Davis C&S pads out there, since not only is Team Wendy no longer producing any pads, but Davis cores are available in 3 different levels, and the socks (casings) are devoid of any branding that would have to be otherwise obscured. Of course, if sand-tan or sky blue was in circulation, that’d really draw eyeballs. 👀

Is it, though? The 18” pizza box bases are an optional alternative. Instead, from the read, NJ is going all-in for compliance to the double base rule. My experienced estimate is that this (the inclusion of optional 18” bases) is a bone tossed to the schools / programs / venues / states that support a multitude of baseball levels conjunctively. Arizona high schools, especially those in Phoenix and Tucson, frequently play on fields that are part of or adjacent to OBR (Pro, et. al.) Baseball, which have largely eliminated the standard bases from their supplies. In fact, 3 of our 5 NAIA schools play on MLB/MiLB facilities, and are unable to support the double-first-base. Then back here in Wisconsin, there’s a complex near-&-dear to me that has 5 60-90 ball fields (1 Inde-pro stadium, 4 in a quad), with no less than 5 nearby school districts using their fields for Varsity baseball games. This complex also serves dozens of OBR and NFHS -based tournaments and leagues, as well as Adult Amateur. But again, it’s not only a physical facilities issue, but also a Human Resources / personnel issue. As we’ve discussed before, the kids that are playing OBR on the weekends are the very same kids playing for their high schools on Tuesdays and Fridays… with the same umpires in both environments!! This isn’t an excuse or “free-pass” to remain ignorant, unaware, or uneducated of rules (by umpires), but if a state weighs these costs against the benefits, and finds that the enlarged bases are the best optional compromise, then they should be able to adopt that. … and, finally, it appears NFHS is building that into it; certainly more obvious than the “it shall be navy” clause.

We already do/did in Arizona, where Sub-varsity games have a time limit, we don't keep an action clock (by the umpires), and a few other details. If you're speaking about wholesale rule changes / adaptations, you're not going to see it from NFHS itself. Why? Because the NFHS rules are largely influenced by liability concerns, not "fair, competitive playability". Then, there are a few antiquated "holdout" rules, kept there by (a) committee member(s) who for any number of reasons, personally endorses that rule, and fiercely defends it, ala Charleton Heston, "From my cold, dead hands." The one that comes to mind is the Balks as Live rule, wherein some part of the committee felt – without any concrete or measurable evidence – felt that we amateur umpires could not properly adjudicate a balk. Sub-varsity should actually be conducted like a structured scrimmage, with the latitude to "roll an inning", less stringency on Balks, run a continuous batting order and allow for defensive (non-pitcher) substitutions.