head movement

[RC@54OUTS]

has anybody noticed that more plate guys are moving their head with the pitch. some are leaning in and out. i was taught not to move at all. the ump doing the NCAA supers with LSU/SBROOK really moves allot. anyone being taught this at any clinics/camps. i was told that Randy Marsh reaches this.

[Fittske24]

I would say that the HP umpire in the game referenced above has a "drifting" issue. None of the major schools/clinics will teach you to move with the pitch as it is in flight. Your head should remain still while tracking the ball with you're eyes only.

[Pops]

I catch myself doing this when I get tired or bored with the game. My head moves instead of my eyes. When that happens, I have to refocus on good mechanics and I make an effort to get back to a motionless head. I bet the umpires you watched don't even know they're doing it.

[johnnyg08]

I bet the umpires you watched don't even know they're doing it.

That's where video comes in really handy.

When you're giving a guy feedback, the video never lies.

[Haid D' Salaami]

I would say that the HP umpire in the game referenced above has a "drifting" issue. None of the major schools/clinics will teach you to move with the pitch as it is in flight. Your head should remain still while tracking the ball with you're eyes only.

Fittske, drifting is when your not locking in and still moving when the pitch is coming in..

[Haid D' Salaami]

has anybody noticed that more plate guys are moving their head with the pitch. some are leaning in and out. i was taught not to move at all. the ump doing the NCAA supers with LSU/SBROOK really moves allot. anyone being taught this at any clinics/camps. i was told that Randy Marsh reaches this.

I would bet you a new pair of reebok's.. Marsh is not teaching to move your head.

It is just some thing older umpires do...think of your eyes like a tv screen.. if its moving your not gonna get a good look, it will be blurry..keep head still and you can see better.

[RC@54OUTS]

i would say it's more like leaning or drifting like mentioned before. their head does not swivel. i myself have not been taught this but when my friend told me that Marsh said thiss to him i was surprised. anyway i'm seeing more high level guys do it.i guess when you get to that level you can do whatever you want.

[Haid D' Salaami]

No, some of those guys are moving there head to see the pitches..... But when you get to their level, maybe you can do it... i know where I am at.. I can't..

[noumpere]

It is just some thing older umpires do...think of your eyes like a tv screen.. if its moving your not gonna get a good look, it will be blurry..keep head still and you can see better.

That would be true if your eyes were fixed straight ahead but since they can move too some head movement wont affect the vision. Note that Im not suggesting that umpires all of a sudden start to move there heads.

[Haid D' Salaami]

It is just some thing older umpires do...think of your eyes like a tv screen.. if its moving your not gonna get a good look, it will be blurry..keep head still and you can see better.

That would be true if your eyes were fixed straight ahead but since they can move too some head movement wont affect the vision. Note that Im not suggesting that umpires all of a sudden start to move there heads.

I for one, think if Pu moved there heads, I think we might see pitches better... I really want to try it..LOL

[btw]

Probably not where these guys learned it but ASA (softball) manual teaches tracking with a "slight movement" of the head as the pitch comes in.

[BalkHawk]

I am going to work on this, more than anything else, all summer long. (That is quite a few games in my area of FL)

[LMSANS]

Probably not where these guys learned it but ASA (softball) manual teaches tracking with a "slight movement" of the head as the pitch comes in.

I was at the national ASA training a couple of years ago. The head trainer was observing the plate mechanics. He pointed out that I was not moving my head as we had been instructed. I told him, I'm a baseball umpire & we don't move our head. He said he never heard that before about baseball.

[scrounge]

Just to play devil's advocate, not saying this is anything I do at all, but I sometimes wonder if we'd be better off with a little movement. Something is moving - either your eyeballs are moving or your head is moving, but moving is unavoidable. I get the camera analogy, though I think that's more applicable to BU or other times when your entire body is moving. But there's another analogy that comes to mind from my days as a tanker. Maybe for some, our eyes are more akin to a tank cannon being stabilized. Can you really track a fast-moving object by moving tiny little eyeballs or by keeping your eyes locked in and (slightly) moving your much larger head?

Again, just thinking out loud...

[RC@54OUTS]

another thing i noticed is there is usually little or no head movement, check that body drifting with guys using the scissor rather than the box or GD stance. Scissor guys are pretty much locked in except for looking down for the low pitches. Most of the time any movement is for that outside corner. the other thought i had is if you drift for that outside pitch your still not putting your head in harms way for a foul ball. i see way too many guys setting up right behind the catcher in line with the meat of the bat. PBUC calls that the black zone. not good

[Haid D' Salaami]

another thing i noticed is there is usually little or no head movement, check that body drifting with guys using the scissor rather than the box or GD stance. Scissor guys are pretty much locked in except for looking down for the low pitches. Most of the time any movement is for that outside corner. the other thought i had is if you drift for that outside pitch your still not putting your head in harms way for a foul ball. i see way too many guys setting up right behind the catcher in line with the meat of the bat. PBUC calls that the black zone. not good

well it's not actually a black zone...