FED Strike Zone

[alex7]

Hopefully near-enough to on-topic.  Toughest pitch for me to call is the low-outside pitch with a LH batter up.  Been told it's somewhat normal for that to be guys' toughest pitch to call being most of us were RHB if we played, and we don't track as well in the LHB slot if the pitch is on the outside.

 

Particularly tough when the catcher is set up right in the middle of the plate (surprised how often I see this even at higher levels) and he has to reach a bit to that outside corner.

 

Assuming you work the slot, timing is fine, head height fine...any suggestions for those that also find that pitch tougher than most?

[jjskitours]

I've been told it has to do with being right eye dominant. I believe turning slightly towards the SS can help, but agree it is my toughest pitch to follow. I work the slot position, heel / toe.

[Tony B]

You guys who only call the belt or there abouts. You're leaving legitimate strikes on the table. Remember the zone isnt when standing straight up, it is when he is prepared to strike at the ball. The center of the chest is a completely acceptable strike. At a camp I went to Paul Nauret said to call it at the nipples. A friend who is a former milb ump said they were stressing getting the good high strikes.

 

Also in this years NCAA clinic they mentioned that more coaches complain about small strike zones than big ones.

 

Strikes= Outs = shorter games. 

 

Get the strikes!!!

[scrounge]

My area of development in my 1st year was not calling too many low strikes. My initial stance was too close or something, because I was consistently calling the hollow and often straying down to the shin, really too low. Got a lot better and more consistent the next year after more experience and moving back a little into more of a Gerry Davis/HOK stance. It's still an area that I consciously work on so as not to stray too low, but I think that lower knee strike - especially if well framed or hitting the spot - needs to be called, esp if we're not going over the belly button much.

This sounds like a timing issue, to me. If you're too quick, you won't let the pitch finish and you decide on the pitch before it finishes low.

The Davis stance probably helped you get that look through the zone. Someday I'll move to it, but I just haven't felt comfortable enough to use it in anything but summer ball.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD

 

 

You're spot on, it was definitely a timing issue on top of distance. I slowed WAAAY down and it helped a ton. Now that I think about it, probably more than the stance change, which has helped my consistency.  It's not a true GD/HOK, but more of a hybrid HOK/heel and toe. Basically the slot and feet positioning of the heel and toe with the hands on the top of the triple knee shin guards (tucking the slot hand in at the pitch with the other hand generally well protected behind the catcher).

[BT_Blue]

Hopefully near-enough to on-topic.  Toughest pitch for me to call is the low-outside pitch with a LH batter up.  Been told it's somewhat normal for that to be guys' toughest pitch to call being most of us were RHB if we played, and we don't track as well in the LHB slot if the pitch is on the outside.

 

Particularly tough when the catcher is set up right in the middle of the plate (surprised how often I see this even at higher levels) and he has to reach a bit to that outside corner.

 

Assuming you work the slot, timing is fine, head height fine...any suggestions for those that also find that pitch tougher than most?

 

Remember what Speck said in Redding. If you are having trouble with that pitch its because you are actually losing it at the very end. He had me bring my slot foot further into the slot and it really opened that pitch up. Felt really strange but it really worked.

[alex7]

Thanks, I was looking for something mechanically detailed like that. Can you describe how that looked differently when it opened up?  

 

And am I now in danger of being hit in the back of the head on the batter's follow-through?

[BT_Blue]

It might feel like that but you are still far enough back. Give it a try at your clinic and let me know what you think.

[law_reb]

I just guess.. If I have had two bad pitches in a row and the next one is caught by the catcher well then strike... I also keep going higher till I get a whiner then I stop. I am so wide I have seen the on deck hitter take a hack. Hey he swung it is a strike. Also if it bounces and the caroom gets above the knees then roll that counter. My strike 1 and 2 call think John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. And for strike three I get a Robin Hood Men in Tights YES,! Snap going..

amarillo, after meeting you at the Snowden meeting, and picturing you following the above, I had a good laugh. 

[tldavis19]

My biggest problem is the low just below the knees strike. For some reason it looks right at the knees so I call it. I've never really gotten any slack for it because I always call it, but i don't wanna be wrong none the less. Is there a good way to set up to see that better? I'm just starting my second season of calling so I'll take any suggestions. I want to improve.

[JaxRolo]

My biggest problem is the low just below the knees strike. For some reason it looks right at the knees so I call it. I've never really gotten any slack for it because I always call it, but i don't wanna be wrong none the less. Is there a good way to set up to see that better? I'm just starting my second season of calling so I'll take any suggestions. I want to improve.

Track it all the way in to the glove. Watch what F2 does with the mitt. If he frames it without moving call it. If you see him trying to make it a strike then ball it

[scrounge]

My biggest problem is the low just below the knees strike. For some reason it looks right at the knees so I call it. I've never really gotten any slack for it because I always call it, but i don't wanna be wrong none the less. Is there a good way to set up to see that better? I'm just starting my second season of calling so I'll take any suggestions. I want to improve.

 

This has been an area of development for me as well. In addition to what Jax said, maybe consider coming back a little bit if you think you might be too close to F2. I found myself a little close, not completely tracking, and realized I was probably deciding on that pitch when it was a foot or two out, not from where it truly crossed. Coming back a few inches, tracking it all the way, considering how it was caught (not the end-all be-all but another data point) and slowing down your timing to give you the ability to process all that will help - it did for me.

[noumpere]

My biggest problem is the low just below the knees strike. For some reason it looks right at the knees so I call it. I've never really gotten any slack for it because I always call it, but i don't wanna be wrong none the less. Is there a good way to set up to see that better? I'm just starting my second season of calling so I'll take any suggestions. I want to improve.

It generally means your not really tracking it all the way even if you think you are.

 

Moveing back can give you a flatter view of the zone and even if you stop tracking say 2' in front of you now that's at or past the batter instead of in front of him.

[fla ump]

bigest  pitch i have problem   with  is  the  breaking  tword  the  right  hand batter box,I  usely  get catcher blocked on the  ball

[tldavis19]

Also, correct me if I'm wrong on this one, do any of you guys call close strikes on players not even trying to swing? I call them baseball watchers as opposed to players. Like on a close first pitch you'll side with a ball but if he just stands there on every pitch maybe you call a strike on the same pitch to get him swinging? Like full count and he hasn't taken the bat off his shoulder the entire AB. I want the game to move along and I don't want give the impression I'm gonna let them do this all game. Can you say loooong night?

[IABlue]

Also, correct me if I'm wrong on this one, do any of you guys call close strikes on players not even trying to swing? I call them baseball watchers as opposed to players. Like on a close first pitch you'll side with a ball but if he just stands there on every pitch maybe you call a strike on the same pitch to get him swinging? Like full count and he hasn't taken the bat off his shoulder the entire AB. I want the game to move along and I don't want give the impression I'm gonna let them do this all game. Can you say loooong night?

Depending on the level, obviously.  I'm not gonna let people stand up there all day in a JV game or lower, even bad varsity.

 

Now if you're working college or good high school, the pitcher does have some responsibility to throw a strike, or at least something close enough that I can call.

 

I'm pretty much a spot umpire.  If you can stick it, I don't really care if it's off the plate or not (assuming the catcher isn't in the other batter's box on 0-2 or anything like that).  Nobody in the ball park knows whether it's off the plate or not, so why shouldn't I get a strike if I can?

 

I have observed that just about everyone that works the slot calls a much tighter inside corner than they do outside.  This makes sense as a slot umpire can actually see the ball in relation to the inside corner, which they cannot do on the outside and need to rely much more on what the catcher does with the pitch.

 

I used to call liberal inside as well as out and people would freak because no one else in the area called a big inside corner.  I have since cut that down quite a bit, but I will still give more in or out than I will up or down.  The low pitch will always be the toughest to call due to the fact that you don't have an immediate frame reference like you do for up, in, and out, as you are always looking straight down on the ball.  I pretty much go by the catcher all the time on the low ones.  It took me several years to get the hang of it, but I have been extremely happy with the consistency of my lower zone over the last 2 seasons.

[BT_Blue]

One issue that you guys might be having is that you guys are not far enough in the slot. It will help both being able to see that pitch down and away as well as not getting blocked out by the catcher on that pitch in.

[GreyhoundAggie]

One issue that you guys might be having is that you guys are not far enough in the slot. It will help both being able to see that pitch down and away as well as not getting blocked out by the catcher on that pitch in.

 

+1 I have really worked on getting out there this season, and what a difference it has made. I am definitely missing less pitches, and my partners and even coaches have said my low zone has been great.

 

Also when the catcher moves inside on you and blocks your view, open up your stance and push your head up close to see around him so you won't be blocked, helps a ton.

[Big Red]

At the Southern Umpire Clinic, during our first cage session with MLB umpire (and newly selected crew chief) Ted Barrett, we were talking to him about how most of us had problems with a low, outside pitch on lefties. He gave us an excellent piece of advice I found has helped me tremendously, especially on those pitches to left-handed batters. .

First thing he mentioned, already previously stated, was to ensure you were still up in the slot as alot of guys tend to drift back on a leftie.

 

But, the gem he passed on and emphasized with almost all of us during our sessions, including me, was to slightly angle yourself in the slot. In other words, don't line your shoulders and head exactly parallel to home and the rubber.

With a rt-handed batter, your head and shoulders should basically be lined up toward the right side of the pitching circle, almost like you were lined up facing your partner in the "B" position.

Vice-versa with a lt-handed batter. It actually flows naturally with your stance when you stand heel-to-toe.

As I mentioned, doesn't seem like much but it has really helped me on those low, outside pitches. Of course, that is assuming you are at a good height and not too low, blocked by the catcher.

 

One other thing he pointed out for guys like me with a wide stance is stand heel-to-instep versus heel-to-toe. That may not work for everyone, but it did for me and I felt a little more balanced when locked in.

[mtnump]

Head height is another key factor on the low outside pitch.  I was having some consistency issues at a clinic and was told by our D1 guru to raise up a little to make sure I could track that pitch all the way to the glove.  It has helped tremendously.

 

Our area is trying to go one ball on either side of the plate,(the outside ball on the previous diagram) which almost makes it batter's box to batter's box.  I can't make myself do it!