Putting the Ball in Play

[ErichKeane]

1 minute ago, noumpere said:

Just because "someone" tells you something, doesn't mean "someone" is right or that you need to listen to him (well, depending on who he is)

 

I will say that it can be much more subtle than with runners on base.

It was a partner, but yeah, I get what you mean.  Unless someone orders me otherwise, I'm not changing.  I find if I do it every time out (verbal plus physical), catchers seem to notice and work off the signal.

[MadMax]

2 hours ago, mac266 said:

I'm working JuCo this year (NCAA rules).  Because of the pitch clock, we have to put the ball in play whenever it is dead, runners on or not.  By giving the hand signal as well as the verbal, our partner knows to start the pitch timer.

It is crucial we don't give the verbal, nor do we consider that signal "putting the ball in play". Yes, the hand signal is an imperative, so as to give our partner / the clock operator the indication that the clock is to start. But, if we say "Play" on a ball that is already Live, you'll get a shrewd coach who will think and/or say, "Wait wait... why is the ball dead?!" Between batters, the ball is still Live; so pickoffs may occur, the HBT may still occur, the F1 is still under the auspices of (potentially) defacing the ball, or engaging and then stepping improperly, thus incurring a Balk, etc. With a new batter, the Action Clock is "on pause", but the ball is still Live. PU's point(ing) is to start the Action Clock. 

Now, off of a Dead Ball, we give signal (point) and verbal ("Play"), that hasn't changed. Although now, it's even more important, and I do like having it be "more important", because that means reminding, prompting, or forcing some lazy PU slugs to start actually doing it. 

Anyone – a-n-y-o-n-e – who is not a Professional (as in MLBU) umpire, and tells you "you don't have to signal" is a PU slug, and needs to adapt. 

Even with the bases empty, coming out of a Dead Ball, I still point the ball Live. Every. Time. 

 

[mac266]

On 5/16/2023 at 1:18 PM, MadMax said:

It is crucial we don't give the verbal, nor do we consider that signal "putting the ball in play". Yes, the hand signal is an imperative, so as to give our partner / the clock operator the indication that the clock is to start. But, if we say "Play" on a ball that is already Live, you'll get a shrewd coach who will think and/or say, "Wait wait... why is the ball dead?!" Between batters, the ball is still Live; so pickoffs may occur, the HBT may still occur, the F1 is still under the auspices of (potentially) defacing the ball, or engaging and then stepping improperly, thus incurring a Balk, etc. With a new batter, the Action Clock is "on pause", but the ball is still Live. PU's point(ing) is to start the Action Clock. 

Now, off of a Dead Ball, we give signal (point) and verbal ("Play"), that hasn't changed. Although now, it's even more important, and I do like having it be "more important", because that means reminding, prompting, or forcing some lazy PU slugs to start actually doing it. 

Anyone – a-n-y-o-n-e – who is not a Professional (as in MLBU) umpire, and tells you "you don't have to signal" is a PU slug, and needs to adapt. 

Even with the bases empty, coming out of a Dead Ball, I still point the ball Live. Every. Time. 

 

Since I specifically said "whenever the ball is dead," which you lined out before "correcting" me, I'm extremely confused by your comment.  You seriously ended up saying exactly the same thing I did by changing my words to literally mean something else.  English, man.

[mac266]

On 5/16/2023 at 10:43 AM, ErichKeane said:

I actually only JUST last weekend had someone tell me I didn't have to put the ball in play with the bases empty.  I've just been doing it, and it is muscle memory by now.  I find it is a mental 'split' point between time in/time out that makes the mental approach easier.

Old school you didn't, but the base umpire needs to know when to start the pitch clock. 

[MadMax]

2 hours ago, mac266 said:

I'm extremely confused by your comment.

I’m being pedantic, I’ll admit. 

We are not “putting the ball in play” because of the 20-second pitch clock; we should be doing that anyway. Instead, because of the 20-second pitch clock, we have to give a signal to indicate when to start the clock; it just so happens that it’s the same physical signal (point), but it’s important to note that it doesn’t change the status of a ball that is already Live. 

 

[mac266]

6 hours ago, MadMax said:

I’m being pedantic, I’ll admit. 

We are not “putting the ball in play” because of the 20-second pitch clock; we should be doing that anyway. Instead, because of the 20-second pitch clock, we have to give a signal to indicate when to start the clock; it just so happens that it’s the same physical signal (point), but it’s important to note that it doesn’t change the status of a ball that is already Live. 

 

Putting a ball into play makes a dead ball live.  If you have a mechanic to start the pitch clock, fine.  But you’re not putting it into play.  Our base umpire just starts the clock when the conditions are met (pitcher has the ball and is on the mound, live ball).  We do not have a mechanic for it.  

[MadMax]

59 minutes ago, mac266 said:

We do not have a mechanic for it.

Yes, we do. “We” being NCAA, NAIA, and NJCAA umpires. It is the same “point at” mechanic, performed by the PU (in both cases) to make a Dead ball Live. Of course, the “make the dead ball Live” mechanic is (should be) usually teamed up with a vocal “Play” when Runners are aboard. 

We do not rely on – or, at least, we’re directed not to rely on – the BU to just start the clock when the conditions are met. 

Why am I saying this / how do I know this? Because I have college evaluators making a POE about it!!! Lucky for me, I was on BU first, and my PU partner got “dinged” for it post-game. It didn’t matter that I was a cognizant, competent BU who knew when to start the clock; we must follow the directives of NCAA training and video tutorials and POE memos and do it the approved way every time. 

“Consistency. We must have consistency.”