Illegal pitchs-Florida/UCLA

[Amy in AZ.]

Peppers, I was thinking about this, too. I was taught and I teach to drag the toe. Many of the girls that I see are attempting to drag the top of their foot, for some reason. Their foot has to leave the ground in order for them to turn their foot over.

Dragging the top of the foot has to strain the ankle ligaments, I would think.

 

[Bishop]

Tojo,

The original memo came out saying pitching rules were going to be a point of emphasis. The month of March the rules were strictly enforced.

Some coaches, namely the ones who's pitchers are illegal, Candrea and Walton among them vented spleen at them for enforcing the rules. The second letter came out and it seems the position was moderated at bit. The girls that were getting called a bunch weren't getting called much or at all.

The coaches got exactly what they wanted. They made enough noise to get the NCAA and/or the umps to soften the position on enforcing the rules. What they didn't get an indefinate stay. I agree that enforcement should have been consistent the entire year. The high profile powerful coaches screamed and got thier way. Thier only mistake was to think they had won and didn't need to fix thier players.

I find the resurgance of the strict enforcment in the WCWS a good sign and consider it a beacon of hope going forward. If they are going to be strict to the rule now, then maybe...just friggin maybe the coaches in all the programs will sit up and take notice. MAYBE they will invest the time and effort to fix the players. Maybe next year we can just get back to enjoying watching the games without all the drama around the issue because the 'best players in the game' can follow the rules and the highest payed coaches in the land are earning thier pay.

 

[tojo]

They have been cracking down on IP all year. They will be especially hard on it at this WCWS. Problem is , even with all the IPs called, pitchers still throw a lot of IPs. They stop for a few pitches, then start again as they begin pushing it again.

It can take the wind out of a team, but honestly UCLA just plain beat the snot out Florida anyway. Period. Might have contributed to 6 runs, but what about the other 10???

Florida and Arizona were both taken out of their game with the IP calls. They started cracking down then basically quit after Jordan Taylor and the NCAA memo.

 

[tojo]

Bishop, I read the Memo and they did back off during the season. I agree that IPs should be called, but if started;it should continue and not take leave during the middle of the season. Start at the beginning of the year and stay with it next year so we don't have all the controversy next WCWS. This will give the pitchers a chance to make the adjustments necessary to correct the IPs during the season to something they have been doing all their pitching life.

 

[Bishop]

I thought for sure the tradition of turning the blind eye would continue through the post season. It's a nice surpise to see the strict enforcement is back. The only thing to do now, provided the enforcement continues, is follow up the WCWS with a nice "We really mean it" memo to set the tone for next seaon and things should look a lot better next year.

Now all we have to do is pray for trickle down into youth ball.

 

[FPump]

Bishop, excellent post.
Well explained and a very accurate chronology of the events regarding iP's as they took place during the past season.
I'm with you on this as both an NCAA and "elite travel softball" umpire.

 

[T Red]

They made enough noise to get the NCAA and/or the umps to soften the position on enforcing the rules.

So that means they haven't been enforcing the rule constantly during the season?

 

[halskinner]

After the third or fourth trip to the circle and umpires and it fixed NOTHING with the pitcher, WHY THE HECK DID CANDREA LEAVE HER IN?

Don't blame the umpires for enforcing the rules. Blame the head coaches, the team pitching coaches, instructors AND THE PITCHERS themselves. Is anyone going to tell me she has NOT been taught to cheat? Good grief! She was practically standing straight up during the entire pitch! No wonder her push off was more UP than FORWARD!

The umpires did an excellent job, iMO. If you are going to cheat at pitching and the umpires are going to enforce the rules, you should be called on it from the very first pitch,,, AND SHE WAS. The pitcher and the coach should have fixed the problem right then. They did not and you see the result.

How many times have I heard in other threads that a pitcher gets to a qualifying tournament, a state championship, a metro, regional or the national championships and all of a sudden, they get called for an IP every third pitch?

Same thing gpoing on here.

I have no sympathy for for pitching instructors that teach pitchers to pitch outside the rules.

 

[dpett]

What were these coaches thinking when they recruited these girls. You can't tell me Candrea didn't know. These girls have obvious flaws and they just assumed they would never get IP's called. The announcers keep talking about whether the pitchers gain an advantage when they IP. Who cares? If they don't like the rules change them. Quit whining when they are enforced and you burned all your scholarship money on them.

 

[SoftSocDad]

I'm sorry - why exactly does this rule exist in the first place?

I'm not buying the 'oh, it causes injuries!' argument, especially absent any real evidence to support that claim.