Leaping? Or replanting?

[Dabears17]

Well I certainly hope they don't come up with something different than what nfhs has already put out. I don't recall the nfhs video saying anything about the arm, it was all the feet .

Hi Comp,

Have you found a link to the NFHS video on an NFHS site? As of Friday evening I had only been able to find it on a certain pitching coach’s facebook page.

Hoping at the CA CIF HS Section softball rules Zoom meeting I’m on this week they’ll provide the video snd further guidance.

 

[Dabears17]

@Hillhouse. USA Softball made leaping legal starting in 2022, so hopefully NFHS guidance doesn’t differ much from USA Softball.

 

[Hillhouse]

@Hillhouse. USA Softball made leaping legal starting in 2022, so hopefully NFHS guidance doesn’t differ much from USA Softball.

Understood. But then you get other codes may not follow either USA or NFHS. You just never know. Many times, organizations and sometimes even individual tournaments will modify the rules in the rulebook, with their own rules. Umpires will be instructed to follow certain rules and ignore others when working some tournaments.

In men's fastpitch, the top organization is called ISC (International Softball Congress). For a long time ISC and ASA were at war. And ASA being the governing body, they set the rules. And at one point, which lasted for years, ASA told teams that they would be banned in ASA if they played in anything related to ISC. The war started to simmer about 1991 or so. And now days, it is a pretty cohesive relationship. But the damage is done, if they would've worked together instead maybe the game would be in better shape. Anyway, the ISC has their own "rulebook". It's a very very very thin rule book!!! lol. Basically, the opening page says: We follow all rules provided by USA/ASA softball with the following exceptions: then the next 7 pages would be the differences. Some of the rule differences at were things like still allowing guys to use single ear flap batting helmets, refusing to use the double bag at 1st base, etc. At times there was also differences in pitching rules to various degrees.

 

[Northball]

Well, whatever any rules committee decides, I would hope a training video accompanies an announcement, showing examples of legal vs. illegal. This video should be made public and given a press release/social media release treatment. People should at least be able to see what it is, even if they disagree what it should be.

 

[ArmWhip]

I can’t see how an umpire will be able to see it in real-time on the field.

This is going to be the heart of the problem, it's not too different from the previous issue which precipitated this rule change, pitchers not keeping in contact with the ground. I'm hoping that the more egregious violations are called, to me the mini replant is not an advantage. I've been taking video for decades and the mini replant is common, but it's generally not observable unless you go to slo-mo.

 

[Dabears17]

Well, whatever any rules committee decides, I would hope a training video accompanies an announcement, showing examples of legal vs. illegal. This video should be made public and given a press release/social media release treatment. People should at least be able to see what it is, even if they disagree what it should be.

I'm hoping there are video examples of what is illegal as well. I've seen official videos of what they consider legal, but don't recall seeing videos of what they consider illegal.

 

[daywalkerdad]

The problem with the illegal pitch rule has always been, is it rarely gets enforced to a level to stop the action.
Like holding in football or a reach foul in basketball, they are only going to called so many times. Refs/umps do not want to shut the games down.

 

[The Man In Blue]

Have you found a link to the NFHS video on an NFHS site? As of Friday evening I had only been able to find it on a certain pitching coach’s facebook page.

Hoping at the CA CIF HS Section softball rules Zoom meeting I’m on this week they’ll provide the video snd further guidance.

Well, whatever any rules committee decides, I would hope a training video accompanies an announcement, showing examples of legal vs. illegal. This video should be made public and given a press release/social media release treatment. People should at least be able to see what it is, even if they disagree what it should be.

I only say this from my experience: The NFHS video typically does not become "publicly" available until after clinics are done in March. They send them out to the clinicians to use. If your state also has a mandatory "rules presentation" video, they pop up there.

 

[Hillhouse]

Well, whatever any rules committee decides, I would hope a training video accompanies an announcement, showing examples of legal vs. illegal. This video should be made public and given a press release/social media release treatment. People should at least be able to see what it is, even if they disagree what it should be.

Absolutely. But ultimately this is going to come down to discretion. And we're still going to expect umpires who don't know that "present the ball" went out of the rulebook 30+ years ago to get updated on the 2024 rules when they didn't do the same thing for 2014, 2004, 1994, etc. etc. lol I even had an umpire tell a student last year, 2023, that she needed to keep 2 feet on the pitching rubber.

Well, whatever any rules committee decides, I would hope a training video accompanies an announcement, showing examples of legal vs. illegal. This video should be made public and given a press release/social media release treatment. People should at least be able to see what it is, even if they disagree what it should be.

 

[Dabears17]

No video was provided by NFHS of what is obviously or marginally illegal. I saw more information in the NFHS video than was in the Facebook video. Bottom line IMO:

1) Pitchers stepping off the plate before starting the pitch will be called more.
2) It's legal unless there is significant movement in the non-pivot foot after the pivot foot lands, so umpires are to watch the non-pivot foot to see if anything looks strange or it moves significantly. Makes sense to watch the non-pivot foot vs. the pivot foot.

I only had time to watch the video once last week when I saw it on Facebook.