NFHS Baseball Points of Emphasis 2025

[johnnyg08]

2 hours ago, 834k3r said:

It's true--and I hope AZ and GA testing shows live balks are the way to go.

Umpires will struggle with enforcement. I guarantee it. Not a knock on GA & AZ...but if there will be an issue...it will be around proper enforcement. 

I used to be for it...but with the more I studied it, I can't support it right now. What is likely to happen is that umpires will simply not call balks b/c they are not confident in the enforcement. 

[834k3r]

49 minutes ago, johnnyg08 said:

Umpires will struggle with enforcement. I guarantee it. Not a knock on GA & AZ...but if there will be an issue...it will be around proper enforcement. 

I used to be for it...but with the more I studied it, I can't support it right now. What is likely to happen is that umpires will simply not call balks b/c they are not confident in the enforcement. 

No personal slight/critique intended, but I don't understand how this can be. Call the balk, let the situation play out. Did the runners all advance one base? Did the BR advance? How you answer those two questions will direct how the balk is adjudicated (or not).

I think if anything, our ability to call balks will get more consistent because we won't have to mentally switch from dead ball balks to live balks (sometimes in the middle of a season).

[johnnyg08]

1 minute ago, 834k3r said:

No personal slight/critique intended, but I don't understand how this can be. Call the balk, let the situation play out. Did the runners all advance one base? Did the BR advance? How you answer those two questions will direct how the balk is adjudicated (or not).

I think if anything, our ability to call balks will get more consistent because we won't have to mentally switch from dead ball balks to live balks (sometimes in the middle of a season).

I hope you're right. I just don't see it happening on a consistent basis which will lead to further confusion. I think many umpires think that they're better at the rules than they really are. 

The more I think about this being legal, the more nervous I get. 

That being said...I'm happy to be wrong on this one. Time will tell. 

 

[Richvee]

3 hours ago, johnnyg08 said:

Umpires will struggle with enforcement. I guarantee it. Not a knock on GA & AZ...but if there will be an issue...it will be around proper enforcement. 

I used to be for it...but with the more I studied it, I can't support it right now. What is likely to happen is that umpires will simply not call balks b/c they are not confident in the enforcement. 

I sadly agree. There’s just too many high school umpires who are not willing to put in the time to read, study, and completely comprehend the rule and be able to enforce all the ins and outs of live ball balks. I wish I was wrong. 

[The Man in Blue]

On 2/12/2025 at 5:38 PM, johnnyg08 said:

Umpires will struggle with enforcement. I guarantee it. Not a knock on GA & AZ...but if there will be an issue...it will be around proper enforcement. 

I used to be for it...but with the more I studied it, I can't support it right now. What is likely to happen is that umpires will simply not call balks b/c they are not confident in the enforcement. 

I know most of you do not do softball, but ask our softball friends about "illegal pitches" in softball.  Too many umpires couldn't grasp the concepts, so they wouldn't call it. 

Softball codes loosened up the penalties and eliminated advancing any baserunners thinking umpires would be more likely to make the call. 

 

Now they have been tweaking pitching rules and essentially eliminating things to call illegal . . . so umpires aren't calling illegal pitches because they aren't keeping up with the changes.

There is no good answer.  The correct answer is proper training and reinforcing expectations.  But there is no good answer.

[kylehutson]

Putting my mind into FED (and I keep in mind I was once a pretty clueless FED umpire)...

It seems to me the way to go would be to just make a balk a delayed dead ball. Once all action has relaxed, we enforce the balk or let the DHC take the result of the play. Yes, this might lead to the defense doing silly things (e.g. R2 is coached to just round 3rd and go home, because who cares if he gets out - the same as a "free play" in football when a defender jumps offsides), but I'll take that silliness over a batter getting robbed of a triple off the outfield fence after a no-stop balk (as a real-life example that happened to me).

[Richvee]

13 minutes ago, kylehutson said:

Putting my mind into FED (and I keep in mind I was once a pretty clueless FED umpire)...

It seems to me the way to go would be to just make a balk a delayed dead ball. Once all action has relaxed, we enforce the balk or let the DHC take the result of the play. Yes, this might lead to the defense doing silly things (e.g. R2 is coached to just round 3rd and go home, because who cares if he gets out - the same as a "free play" in football when a defender jumps offsides), but I'll take that silliness over a batter getting robbed of a triple off the outfield fence after a no-stop balk (as a real-life example that happened to me).

Not a fan.  I'm looking for more uniformity within codes. Not more differences.

[johnnyg08]

I'm not for it either.  As much as I hate to say it, the way it is makes the most sense. 

Enforcement consistency would be a nightmare.

[Richvee]

4 minutes ago, johnnyg08 said:

I'm not for it either.  As much as I hate to say it, the way it is makes the most sense. 

Enforcement consistency would be a nightmare.

I'm on the fence. Personally, I'd love to see it align across codes. I also can clearly see the issue with consistent enforcement. Especially at the sub varsity levels, and especially by the slew of "Sub varsity lifers " in the high school ranks. 

[The Man in Blue]

Dumb question . . . what is the difference in @kylehutson's delayed dead ball and leaving it live?  Is there a distinction I am missing?

[MadMax]

On 2/11/2025 at 3:22 PM, Richvee said:

Why not just add another word 😩

But, but, BUT!… that would mean having to reprint and replace those couple-hundred cards, Rich! Someone has to print those cards!
Heaven’s forbid umpires in any state HS unit can think for themselves, eg. choose which shirt to wear! 

On 2/12/2025 at 3:34 PM, 834k3r said:

Great question and certainly a germane point.

“The g0ddamn Germans ain’t got nuthin’ to do with it!” 

On 2/11/2025 at 6:57 PM, Replacematt said:

"Unlike the collegiate and professional models...” 

Dare I point out yet another wording that means (I...hope? assume?) the opposite of what they actually mean:

"Like Bench Decorum, there is no logical purpose to have props at an education based athletic event." 

By that wording, then if you see “props” in the dugout, then you should be taking punitive action. Are not dugouts a part of an (NFHS) athletic event? The same with benches in football, basketball, volleyball, etc. If someone dissents, or taunts, from the bench at a NFHS basketball game, are they not penalized as well? 

Look, what this cryptic statement from NFHS comes down to, is the presence of cameras in Pro and broadcast-level NCAA baseball. Those guys set the insta- & twitter- spheres ablaze (and make their NIL sponsors happy!) with an ever escalating and more outrageous prop cavalcade. In non-broadcast college, we were first directed to formally warn; soon after, we were directed to eject the offender (bringing the prop out of the dugout). 

I remember doing a game on the southeast side of Phoenix (Chandler). Lemme tell you, within a 15 mile-long rectangle, there are _6 monster_ high schools, and they do NOT like each other. This was a big rivalry game between 2 of them. One was very urban, while the other – the home school – really embraced their “hicks from the sticks” position in the pecking order. Their _entire_ bullpen, every last PO, was wearing a 10-gallon hat while in the pen, hootin’ and hollering’ and proclaiming this game “the rodeo!”. 
That pen was outside the fence. 

What’s an umpire to do?  
 

On 2/11/2025 at 3:56 PM, Velho said:

Are these umpires that were splitting time college and HS? Or solely college and then HS once college season ends?

Velho, down in Arizona, most of us at the three big cities – Phoenix, Tucson, and Flagstaff – are doing not only both, but in some cases all 3! 
 

… although props are not an issue for us in pro. 

[TheLovejoy]

Kevin Weber, (a Michigan assignor for like 40 high schools, and college umpire) makes a rules reference to the coach being restricted to the dugout the instant a prop is used. AKA: any item not normally associated with the standard use DURING a baseball game. etc cowboy hats, gatorade jug, foam swords. And the penalty is instantly restricting the head coach to the dugout. 

This thread has me thinking it might be inaccurate, as you guys are all very knowledgeable, but he seemed so sure in his reference. 

[BLWizzRanger]

6 hours ago, TheLovejoy said:

Kevin Weber, (a Michigan assignor for like 40 high schools, and college umpire) makes a rules reference to the coach being restricted to the dugout the instant a prop is used. AKA: any item not normally associated with the standard use DURING a baseball game. etc cowboy hats, gatorade jug, foam swords. And the penalty is instantly restricting the head coach to the dugout. 

This thread has me thinking it might be inaccurate, as you guys are all very knowledgeable, but he seemed so sure in his reference. 

What if the players use a bat like a sword to 'knight' a player who just returned from an home run? Isn't that using a prop?

[johnnyg08]

7 hours ago, TheLovejoy said:

makes a rules reference to the coach being restricted to the dugout the instant a prop is used. 

That would likely stop the behavior. 

[johnnyg08]

1 hour ago, BLWizzRanger said:

What if the players use a bat like a sword to 'knight' a player who just returned from an home run? Isn't that using a prop?

Good question. 

I would say no...I think they're wanting non-baseball props out of the game. 

[BLWizzRanger]

2 hours ago, johnnyg08 said:

Good question. 

I would say no...I think they're wanting non-baseball props out of the game. 

Being facetious here, but what about a horse race where one or more players ride their 'bourse' (bat/horse)? Or they play harry potter?  I would hope the HC would shut that down quickly.  I didn't think I was in the no-fun group but, I just might be.... all in the name of safety, of course.

[Replacematt]

4 hours ago, BLWizzRanger said:

What if the players use a bat like a sword to 'knight' a player who just returned from an home run? Isn't that using a prop?

If we were to use the same interpretation as NCAA, yes.

[Richvee]

11 hours ago, TheLovejoy said:

Kevin Weber, (a Michigan assignor for like 40 high schools, and college umpire) makes a rules reference to the coach being restricted to the dugout the instant a prop is used. AKA: any item not normally associated with the standard use DURING a baseball game. etc cowboy hats, gatorade jug, foam swords. And the penalty is instantly restricting the head coach to the dugout. 

This thread has me thinking it might be inaccurate, as you guys are all very knowledgeable, but he seemed so sure in his reference. 

It seems FED is leaving the penalty up to the states. (Which bothers me to no end especially when they make it a POE)

I know Patrick from Umpireclassroom has said Ga. is using the coach restriction penalty. I'll get info from my chapter in NJ tomorrow night, but I'm not expecting a definitive answer. Unless something has been passed down since I last talked with our chapter interpreter.  

[834k3r]

43 minutes ago, Richvee said:

It seems FED is leaving the penalty up to the states. (Which bothers me to no end especially when they make it a POE)

I know Patrick from Umpireclassroom has said Ga. is using the coach restriction penalty. I'll get info from my chapter in NJ tomorrow night, but I'm not expecting a definitive answer. Unless something has been passed down since I last talked with our chapter interpreter.  

Same. I have one clinic (my primary association) tonight and another on Wednesday (secondary association). I'll post how either/each association wants us to handle it.

[The Man in Blue]

 

9 hours ago, Richvee said:

It seems FED is leaving the penalty up to the states. (Which bothers me to no end especially when they make it a POE)

I know Patrick from Umpireclassroom has said Ga. is using the coach restriction penalty. I'll get info from my chapter in NJ tomorrow night, but I'm not expecting a definitive answer. Unless something has been passed down since I last talked with our chapter interpreter.  

Which brings me back to . . . 

On 2/11/2025 at 8:22 PM, The Man in Blue said:

Coach, the NFHS wants us to make sure you are aware of their Point of Emphasis on the use of props during the game.  To ensure that I am emphasizing that correctly, I want to emphasize there is no explicit rule that we are pointing to or emphasizing.

That said, those stupid oven mitts are props if your kids refuse to slide.  Therefore, a kid not sliding while wearing an oven mitt will be ejected.

Kids who bring a bat to the plate and don't swing it will be assumed to be using the bat as a prop.  They will be ejected.  The same goes for a kid in the field who doesn't use his glove.

Hang on a second . . . coach, what are your kids wearing?  Are those matching uniforms?  That is embarrassing the other team, I'm going to have to eject any kid in uniform if they come out of the dugout.

[The Man in Blue]

On 2/23/2025 at 7:10 PM, MadMax said:

“The g0ddamn Germans ain’t got nuthin’ to do with it!” 

 

[johnnyg08]

10 hours ago, BLWizzRanger said:

Being facetious here, but what about a horse race where one or more players ride their 'bourse' (bat/horse)? Or they play harry potter?  I would hope the HC would shut that down quickly.  I didn't think I was in the no-fun group but, I just might be.... all in the name of safety, of course.

It's not too crazy...and it's a fair point. If we allow the knighting, why shouldn't we allow a Yellowstone parody. 

 

[MadMax]

43 minutes ago, The Man in Blue said:

 

Nope. 

[The Man in Blue]

 

 

[834k3r]

On 2/24/2025 at 10:50 AM, 834k3r said:

Same. I have one clinic (my primary association) tonight and another on Wednesday (secondary association). I'll post how either/each association wants us to handle it.

So, my update isn't much of an update at all. Both of the associations with which I work say they're still discussing how to adjudicate this. My secondary association last night said they're approaching props like the NCAA does until the state tells them differently.