NFHS Rule Changes for 2020
By Brady Hood Reading Time: 2 Minutes With each new high school baseball season umpires, coaches, and players must reacquaint themselves with the rulebook. Each year the Rules Committee at NFHS clarify, add, or remove rules to improve the game at the high school level. This coming year is no different with a major change…
Recent protest has many asking, “What is a protest?”
With last month’s Cubs-Nationals game ending in a protest from Joe Maddon, the topic of protesting in baseball came back to life. Although it is rare, with protests only being upheld 15 times in Major League Baseball history, it allows teams an avenue to enforce the Official Rules of Baseball at times when the umpires…
Texas Two-Step; Edwards told to change, Doolittle, too late
The ninth inning of the May 18 game between the Washington Nationals and the visiting Chicago Cubs began like any other late-inning, three-run game. Nationals closer Sean Doolittle toed the slab in a save situation and retired Albert Almora Jr. for the first out. The next pitch is where the controversy officially became a game…
MLB TO USE PITCH TIMER DURING ’19 SPRING TRAINING
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 22, 2019 MLB ANNOUNCES FORMAT OF PITCH TIMER DURING SPRING TRAINING Major League Baseball (MLB) today announced the format of a pitch timer that will be used during 2019 Spring Training games. No decision has been made on whether the timer will be used in regular season games. A 20-second pitch…
Can a Runner Continue to Run the Bases After He is Put Out?
Most of the time when a runner is put out on the base paths, he turns and heads towards his dugout. But what happens if the “put out” runner continues to run the bases as if he believes he is still active and in play? Perhaps one of the defensive players doesn’t realize that he…
Major League Coach Estimates Only 50% of Big Leaguers Know the Infield Fly Rule
I recently asked a coach of a Major League, pennant-contending team to estimate how many players on his team know the nuances of the Infield Fly Rule. His answer was shocking – only 50%. Everyone knows the basic requirements for an Infield Fly: Runners on 1B and 2B or bases loaded and fewer than 2…
Bat Boy or Ball Boy Interference
Baseball games feature batboys and batgirls at all levels. Occasionally they get involved in a play and disrupt the natural course of the game. It most often occurs when a ball is hit down the baseline (fair) and the ball boy stationed in foul territory, is struck by the ball. We have all seen plays…
Indians’ Outfielder Austin Jackson’s Amazing Catch (and why it was legal)
The Red Sox hosted the Indians Tuesday, August 1, 2017 in a game that was highlighted by one of the most spectacular catches ever made by an outfielder at Fenway Park. A standing ovation for a visiting player is tough to come by in Boston, but that’s what Red sox fans did after witnessing Jackson’s…
