RHP Balk to 1st?

[rzanew]

10U Travel ball.  At this age you see some weird things!

 

RHP with runner on first.  F1 lifts left leg (knee up), pivots, steps toward first and throws to F3 on the bag.  Pivot foot stays on/near the rubber.  Would this be a balk or legal play?

My thinking at the time is that he is doing the same thing a LHP would do.  Namely lifting the non-pivot leg and then stepping directly toward first.  

 

On reflection, I could see this as illegal, as he started his normal pitching motion (left leg lift) and did not complete the pitch.  But then why doesn't this apply to LHP?  Does RHP need to move the pivot foot first when making a pickoff move?  

 

[noumpere]

43 minutes ago, rzanew said:

10U Travel ball.  At this age you see some weird things!

 

RHP with runner on first.  F1 lifts left leg (knee up), pivots, steps toward first and throws to F3 on the bag.  Pivot foot stays on/near the rubber.  Would this be a balk or legal play?

My thinking at the time is that he is doing the same thing a LHP would do.  Namely lifting the non-pivot leg and then stepping directly toward first.  

 

On reflection, I could see this as illegal, as he started his normal pitching motion (left leg lift) and did not complete the pitch.  But then why doesn't this apply to LHP?  Does RHP need to move the pivot foot first when making a pickoff move?  

 

If that means "toward the balance point" then the move the pitcher made is a balk -- it was "a move associated with a pitch" (that was not also an immediate move toward a base -- that's why the LH can do it)

If that means "cleared the spikes" then the move was legal.

 

NCAA has it specifically -- but the wording applies to all:

1) The pitcher, while touching the pitcher’s rubber, must step toward the
base, preceding or simultaneous with any move toward that base. The
pitcher is committed, upon raising the lead leg, to throw to the base being
faced, to second base or to the plate. When throwing or feinting a throw
to a base not being faced, the pitcher must step immediately, directly and
gain ground toward that base.

[rzanew]

8 minutes ago, noumpere said:

NCAA has it specifically -- but the wording applies to all:

1) The pitcher, while touching the pitcher’s rubber, must step toward the
base, preceding or simultaneous with any move toward that base. The
pitcher is committed, upon raising the lead leg, to throw to the base being
faced, to second base or to the plate. When throwing or feinting a throw
to a base not being faced, the pitcher must step immediately, directly and
gain ground toward that base.

This makes it clear that RHP and LHP are treated differently, at least for NCAA.  I wish OBR and NHFS would have something similar.

[noumpere]

17 minutes ago, rzanew said:

This makes it clear that RHP and LHP are treated differently, at least for NCAA.  I wish OBR and NHFS would have something similar.

On the contrary -- they are treated the same in all rules codes.