Hey Umps! Answer me this...

[stephanie]

Do you hold the better pitchers to a tighter strike zone than the obviously weaker pitchers?

I ask, because I see it in my games ALL THE TIME. My top 2 pitchers (this is rec, but they are still pretty good!) are expected to throw strikes. If it's at the knees, they are called balls. If it's at the shoulder, they are called balls. If it skirts the inside of the plate, it's a ball. If it skirts the outside, it's a ball...

The other teams much weaker pitcher can throw one which is nose high to my batter, and it's a strike...

So, I'm just wondering...why do you do it?

 

[T Red]

I'm not an ump.

But I agree with you. I believe ump's hold better pitchers to a higher standard. Even though it should be the same. My 11 yo dd even noticed this and she just started playing and pitching this year. What am I suppose to tell her? She can see and knows its not fair.

Tim

 

[sluggers]

Softball is like life, and life is not fair.

A pitcher has to learn to read the umpires strike zone, and then adjust what she is throwing to that zone. That is why teaching kids "how to throw strikes" is a waste of time--you teach kids how to put the ball exactly where they want the ball to go.

Many umpires use a "is the ball hittable" standard at the lower levels. So, a slow pitch at the shoulders is hittable, and therefore is a strike, while a fast pitch at the same location is a ball. The umpire is wrong, but that is the way it is. You can cry buckets about it, and it won't change a thing.

 

[BretMan]

Do you hold the better pitchers to a tighter strike zone than the obviously weaker pitchers?

No.

Well, not in the same game. In a game with two poor pitchers, I'm going to be looking for any strike I can find. In a game with two good pitchers, I'm going to have a pretty strict by-the-book strike zone. Either way, within a single game, both pitchers are going to get the same calls.

I try really hard to give the same strike zone to both pitchers in a game and to be consistent with that strike zone throughout the entire game. An umpire should never call a "different" strike zone for one pitcher than the other in a misguided attempt to "make things fair" or "more equal". That's not his job. And, it shows a borderline lack of integrity.

In a situation like this- one good pitcher, one bad pitcher- as a practical matter if I make any adjustment to my strike zone I'm probably going to be a little more liberal in calling strikes for BOTH pitchers. If you give one "a liitle bit more" at the top, bottom or corners, give the exact same to BOTH pitchers. Then, nobody can complain that one pitcher is getting calls the other isn't, batter's will be more inclined to swing the bats instead of standing there like a statue looking for a walk (yawn) and, I hope, an more enjoyable game of softball might be likely to ensue.

 

[TheRogue]

Saw it last weekend, playing weaker teams on Saturday. Pretty much everything from shoestrings to shoulders was a strike on us; our pitchers had to hit a very small zone. Not that it mattered much.....but it was very frustrating for our pitchers. We could see it coming by the third game.

 

[SoftballMama]

No.

Well, not in the same game. In a game with two poor pitchers, I'm going to be looking for any strike I can find. In a game with two good pitchers, I'm going to have a pretty strict by-the-book strike zone. Either way, within a single game, both pitchers are going to get the same calls.

I try really hard to give the same strike zone to both pitchers in a game and to be consistent with that strike zone throughout the entire game. An umpire should never call a "different" strike zone for one pitcher than the other in a misguided attempt to "make things fair" or "more equal". That's not his job. And, it shows a borderline lack of integrity.

In a situation like this- one good pitcher, one bad pitcher- as a practical matter if I make any adjustment to my strike zone I'm probably going to be a little more liberal in calling strikes for BOTH pitchers. If you give one "a liitle bit more" at the top, bottom or corners, give the exact same to BOTH pitchers. Then, nobody can complain that one pitcher is getting calls the other isn't, batter's will be more inclined to swing the bats instead of standing there like a statue looking for a walk (yawn) and, I hope, an more enjoyable game of softball might be likely to ensue.

BretMan - Kudos to you! What an excellent explanation. Wish we could have you as an ump!

 

[GOINGDEEP]

The only thing I care about is the strike zone should be the same ( regardless of the level of pitching ) for both sides during a game. PERIOD!!! It should never be expanded because one pitcher is struggling.

 

[stephanie]

Bretman, I'd love to have you as an ump!

It's really hard teaching the girls when one pitch is a strike in one game, and in another game, it's a ball...even harder when it's during the same game!
But as it's been said already, I'm trying to teach the girls that they have to figure out what the ump is calling as a strike, and that's where they throw it.
But I have one pitcher who throws beautiful strikes right at the kneecaps, and almost every ump will call it a ball. (until she comes up to bat, and then it's a strike....) Kneecaps are in the zone, right?

 

[Torontonian]

My son was a dominant pitcher in his age group.

In tournaments, the umps are usully fair, same strike zone for both teams.

But in house league where the umpires are older kids in the organization, I see it all the time. Some umps even told me later they hold my son to smaller strike zone because they know he plays select (travel) ball. I don't make a big deal of it because HL is HL, it's for fun and as long as the kids are enjoying the game and improving, that's good for softball. Not quite fair to my son, but it also forces him to have to pitch into the smaller strike zone.

 

[BretMan]

Kneecaps are in the zone, right?

The definition of the bottom edge of the strike zone is "the top of the knees", which I would say is pretty well defined by the top edge of the knee cap. Close enough for me! At higher levels, it is customary to give the pitcher a tiny bit more at the bottom of the zone- nothing ridiculous like mid-shin, but a couple of inches (approximately 1/2 a ball width) if you have pitchers able to consistently stick that pitch. And I'm talking about the top edge of the ball nicking the bottom line of the strike zone.

But now we're getting into tiny increments and splitting hairs on borderline pitches in upper level games where the expectations of the players and coaches is entirely different than in a typical rec ball game. Adjusting the zone in a rec ball game is a tricky balance. You might want to give them a liitle bit more around the entire perimeter of the zone, but you don't want to get outrageous.

What is outrageous? The rule book defines the top of the zone as the armpits. Generally, at higher levels, the expectation is that the top of the ball should be below that line, and maybe even a notch below that, just like at the bottom of the zone. In a rec game with young, inexperienced pitchers, you might give a strike if the bottom of the ball nicks the armpits. This satisfies the rule book definition of a strike, where any portion of the ball can nick the zone. On a small batter, this could put the top of the ball around the batter's chin, giving the appearance of a high pitch. Try calling those strikes in a high-level game and they will be ready to lynch you!

Now, we have just effectively given the rec ball pitcher one ball width at the top of the zone to work with and these pitches still meet the definition of a strike. Should you raise that top line any higher? Maybe from the armpits to the shoulder? That gives another inch or two at the top of the zone. How much higher do you go before it gets ridiculous? To the neck? The chin? The nose? The eyes?

These are all incremental adjustments that each add an inch or two to the top of the strike zone. You have to find one that works for your level of ball and for the skills of the players. Then, when you find it, STICK WITH IT AND CALL IT THE SAME FOR BOTH PITCHERS.