Rule of the Week: Baseball Lifespan
Hold a baseball in your hand. Feel its solid weight and smooth surface. Count its 108 careful stitches. Major League baseballs are hand-sewn in Costa Rica at a Rawlings factory that produces millions of baseballs a year. What happens to those baseballs? “The ball,” Rule 3.01 proclaims, “shall be a sphere formed by yarn wound…
Rule of the Week – Catcher Interference Won’t Always Stop the Show
How should an umpire respond to catcher interference? Watch the video! This week we’re discussing catcher interference. Catcher interference is when a batter swings and touches the catcher’s glove. The umpire points and calls out, “that’s catcher interference” – but the ball remains alive and the play develops! If the batter gets a base…
Rule of the Week: The Best Quick Pitch Advice for Coaches and Players
What does a quick pitch look like? Watch the video! This week’s official baseball rule is all about the quick pitch. If the pitcher throws the ball on purpose to surprise the batter, it is a quick pitch. In the set position, according to Rule 5.07(a)(2), the pitcher must pause after the stretch, holding the…
A whole lot of bumping going on
Runner on first, no outs. Lazy infield popup down first base line. First baseman and pitcher converge but it seems like it’s a play for the first baseman. As the batter-runner approaches first, he and the pitcher slightly bump which causes the batter-runner to lose his balance and fall. The pitcher also loses his balance…
