Trivia time

[Ump29]

I know why a Strike is called a Strike (because the batter "strikes at the ball") or at least should strike at the ball but why is a pitch which is not in the strike zone and is not struck at by the batter called a Ball ?

[blindumpire99]

Well the reasons given in Fedlandia, that purveyor of all rules known to be in the best interests of (FED) baseball:spit: is----

Because they said so....

[jjb]

No, if the FED people had a say into what to call it, (like they do in their own rulebook), they'd call it "Larry", for no apparent reason

[okump96]

No, if the FED people had a say into what to call it, (like they do in their own rulebook), they'd call it "Larry", for no apparent reason

now thats funny right there.

[LMSANS]

No, if the FED people had a say into what to call it, (like they do in their own rulebook), they'd call it "Larry", for no apparent reason

What?

[catoblue]

If I had to throw a wild guess at it, I would guess that it comes from cricket. Each "pitch" is called a "ball". Incidentally, in cricket, a "pitch" is the area of the playing field between the stumps, and the delivery of the "ball" to the batter, is called bowling.

According to Wiki... cricket has been around for roughly 500 years longer than baseball.

[Ump Rube]

I would say, but I cheated and got the answer off of the other forum this has been posted in. So I will keep my mouth shut . Or maybe just to be on the safe side .

[therefump]

I would say, but I cheated and got the answer off of the other forum this has been posted in. So I will keep my mouth shut . Or maybe just to be on the safe side .

OMG, the suspense is killing me.

BTW, what are the origins of the foul tip and why is a caught 3rd strike foul tip an out...................

And, what is the meaning of life? Only answer if you've got the first 2 correct.

[mstaylor]

The origins of the foul tip:

The rules of 1896 defined a foul tip as a foul ball that does not rise above the batsman's head and is caught by the catcher within ten feet of home plate.

The basis of the rule as it is enforced today appeared in the 1897 revision and defined a foul tip as a batted ball that goes "...foul sharp from the bat to the catcher's hands."

In 1904, the rules described a foul tip as a batted ball that goes sharp and direct to the catcher's hands. It is interesting to note that the catcher's glove is not mentioned as many receivers of that era were not using them. The 1950 revision explained that it was not considered a foul tip if the ball rebounded off any of the catcher's equipment and was then secured. If it hit his glove or hand first, rebounded, and was subsequently secured, it was considered a legal catch and a foul tip rather than a foul ball.

[treedog24]

There is a book that was published in 1994 for the 125th year of MLB. It give a history of the rules and why they came about. Although it doesn't cover every rule in the book it does cover most of the good and odd rules that are in the book like the defense must take their equipment into the bench after their half of the inning is over (c. 1957). Great read for the nerdy umpires in all of us.

[catoblue]

I know why a Strike is called a Strike (because the batter "strikes at the ball") or at least should strike at the ball but why is a pitch which is not in the strike zone and is not struck at by the batter called a Ball ?

OK... With a little research, here's what I came up with. Originally there were two kinds of pitches - a fairly pitched ball and an unfairly pitched ball. The batters only were required to attempt to strike at fairly pitched balls. Eventually, umpires were allowed to call a strike on a fairly pitched ball that the batter did not strike at - after warning the batter!!! This led to a fairly pitched ball to eventually be called a strike.

The "unfairly pitched ball", eventually was shortened to "unfair ball" then eventually just "ball"

There is the Reader's Digest condensed history of "Balls and Strikes!"

[MCLEOD36]

Now that is cool...thank you.....

[therefump]

There is a book that was published in 1994 for the 125th year of MLB. It give a history of the rules and why they came about. Although it doesn't cover every rule in the book it does cover most of the good and odd rules that are in the book like the defense must take their equipment into the bench after their half of the inning is over (c. 1957). Great read for the nerdy umpires in all of us.

If that's the same book, then most of the rule revisions came from the Pacific League where the managers were very creative in skirting the rules as they were written at the time.

Michael is correct on the origins of the Foul Tip.

[treedog24]

The book is "The Rules of Baseball: An Anecdotal Look at the Rules of Baseball and How They Came to Be." By David Memec, 1994.

this is great book for understanding why someone put in a rule and how it came to be.

[therefump]

The book is "The Rules of Baseball: An Anecdotal Look at the Rules of Baseball and How They Came to Be." By David Memec, 1994.

this is great book for understanding why someone put in a rule and how it came to be.

That be the book. It was a great read if you're a student of the game. Helped me to enforce those rules where I couldn't see the reasoning. Highly recommend it to anyone in our profession.:clap: