Pitching Lane Question

[Goobie]

Quick sanity check question. DD was called for IP in last game (Freshman in HS). Ump said her pivot/drag foot went outside the pitching lane when she was dragging it. She is a Right Hand pitcher. Her right foot (pivot) pushed off of the rubber within the 24" "lane." Her stride foot landed fully within the 24" lane... However when she drug her pivot foot, her toe briefly went outside the lane. The ump came out and pointed to her drag mark which looked sort of like an upside down question mark. It started and ended within the lane, but did briefly go outside the imaginary line which defines the lane. Is that indeed an illegal pitch?

For the record... single ump at freshman game. He also made her start with the ball IN her pitching hand and NOT in the glove (covered in an earlier thread).

 

[Sparky Guy]

The pitchers feet must remain withing the 24" pitching lane. He was right about that. That is why the NCAA started putting lines coming off of the pitching rubber. Too many girls jumping outside the pitching lane trying to get an illegal advantage on screw balls.

 

[tojo]

Goobie, my understanding of the pitching lane rule is that the stride or plant foot must be within the width of the rubber, not the drag or pivot foot. ASA Rule 6.3.i states the the non-pivot foot must be forward and toward the batter within the 24-inch length of the pitcher's plate. I have not found anything in the rule book that addresses the pivot or drag foot. I was watching a college game and the announcer(who herself was a D1 pitcher) said that as long as any part of the stride foot landed within the 24-inch that it was a legal pitch.

 

[Comp]

Both feet must start on or within the 24" width of the pitching plate, and the plant foot must land on, partially on, or within the 24" width extended toward the plate. Nothing in the rules requires the drag foot to also stay within the pitching lane.

 

[Jojo]

I too always heard it was just the stride foot--must stay inside or touch chalk if it is chalked. The pivot foot can leave the area.

 

[starsnuffer]

I've only heard about the stride foot as well, and that's my understanding of the rules. I'm not even sure the rule is in the HS rule books but maybe someone could copy it here.

This rule exists to keep the pitcher from striding out and over the land and then pitching back inside to play the angles and make offspeed fastballs appear to be screwballs or curveballs.

-W

 

[quincy]

I think this is the HS rule.

Rule 1:

the pivot foot may remain in contact with or may push off and drag away
from the pitching plate prior to the front foot touching the ground, as long
as the pivot foot remains in contact with the ground and within the 24-inch
length. Pushing off with the pivot foot from a place other than the pitcher’s
plate is illegal.

Rule 2:

After the pitcher releases the ball, there are no restrictions on the pitcher’s movements
except the pitcher may not continue to wind up after the release of the ball.

 

[Goobie]

I think this is the HS rule.

Rule 1:

the pivot foot may remain in contact with or may push off and drag away
from the pitching plate prior to the front foot touching the ground, as long
as the pivot foot remains in contact with the ground and within the 24-inch
length. Pushing off with the pivot foot from a place other than the pitcher’s
plate is illegal.

I will keep an eye on it. That is probably what he called her on.... however if I am reading it correctly, the key words are "prior to the front foot touching the ground". If you look at her drag marks, they go directly in a straight line toward the catcher... then sometime after the front foot lands and she brings her arm through, her drag foot sort of makes an "s" shape. This is well after her front foot has touched down. In any event, she said she was trying to avoid a large hole in front of the rubber so was using more of the left side of the lane. First time it has been called on her. After he called her on it she made a correction and didn't have a problem.

 

[halskinner]

Once the ball leaves the pitcher's hand, the 'Pitch' is OVER and the delivery is now in progress. Once the ball leaves the pitcher's hand, she can dance a jig inside and out of the lines, it doesnt matter.

sneakysoftballpitching.com

 

[FPump]

NCAA 10.4 Step/Stride
"In the act of delivering the pitch, the pitcher must move toward home plate by pushing off the pitcher's plate, taking one step/stride forward toward home plate landing on or within the lines of the pitcher's lane."