Placement of foot in front of the rubber

[Lightning]

In the last few weeks I've noticed some pitchers who start their pitch with their plant foot just in front of the rubber - still in contact, but not with any part of their foot on top of the rubber, just touching the front side. (Kind of how baseball pitchers have their foot touching the rubber but not on top of it.)

Is there a reason for this? It didn't look like it helped them any, but maybe there's just something I'm not thinking of. The first time I saw it I thought it seemed odd, but now that I've seen it multiple times I wonder if I'm missing something.

 

[Northball]

In the last few weeks I've noticed some pitchers who start their pitch with their plant foot just in front of the rubber - still in contact, but not with any part of their foot on top of the rubber, just touching the front side. (Kind of how baseball pitchers have their foot touching the rubber but not on top of it.)

Is there a reason for this? It didn't look like it helped them any, but maybe there's just something I'm not thinking of. The first time I saw it I thought it seemed odd, but now that I've seen it multiple times I wonder if I'm missing something.

As someone who teaches a sprinter's start, I would have the ball of the foot (and the cleats underneath) just in front of the edge of the rubber so they can get a solid push off of it. I don't see whole foot in front of rubber as an advantage IF they're using a sprinter's start.
If they are doing a spread eagle launch where hips open to 3rd base and toes point in almost opposite directions maybe pivot foot completely on dirt works better so cleats don't get caught on the rubber when the pivot food inevitably turns sideways.

 

[sluggers]

A lot of a pitcher's footwork results from pitching with a 4 inch trench in front of the rubber.

 

[Jeffrey]

My kids do this on turf...Plenty of push and 6" closer, LOL. Much harder to do on dirt with the hole in front. I think only USSSA says the foot must be "on" the rubber. The rest say "in contact with." I could be wrong which rule set says "on." I'm pretty sure I got the idea from @Hillhouse when the rules had both feet "in contact" so the farther apart your feet could get the better sprinter start you could get.

 

[Comp]

NFHS, USA and USSSA all just say in contact.

 

[Hillhouse]

The start being described (placing the heel at the front of the rubber, and back toes against the back edge of it) was mainly used during the era of when pitchers had to start with 2 feet in contact with the pitching rubber. That rule went out 5 years ago. In 2024, I can't think of a single reason to start that way.

I'm not sure of what the wording is in the rulebooks these days but the "heel/toe" thing was (and still is) a legal pitching delivery. When 2 feet were required to be in contact at the start of the pitch, this was the only way to get the most distance for leverage between the 2 feet. As mentioned, now days, only 1 foot has to touch the rubber at the start. I would think putting the heel in front would still be legal, as long as the pitcher doesn't take the famous "gym step" prior to the pitch (ala Monica Abbott). But, it's a very unnecessary start since pitchers can now put their back foot wherever they want. In fact, I could go so far as to say starting that way now days wouldn't be the best way to go. As @Northball mentioned, if you're going to use the sprinter style start (which I do myself and would recommend) then putting the heel in front would be a DISadvantage by not using the rubber to push from. Especially as @sluggers said, the holes, trenches, and moon like craters people dig in dirt would make this more difficult.

The ones that make me chuckle, and it usually happened when someone would have a slight jump or even a crow hop would be when the coaches would argue and want illegal pitches because she's "not on the rubber". I have news for them. Even if they stood on the rubber, both feet on top of it and side by side, the inertia of the body's movement takes both feet off the rubber. In short, nobody and I mean NOBODY has their foot in actual contact with the rubber when the pitch is released. If you wanna call them for leaping or crow hopping, I'd have no argument. But, not being on the rubber is just silly.

 

[The Man In Blue]

Placing the heel at the front of the pitcher's plate will result in more illegal pitches, if the umpires are paying attention. You cannot push off from any place other than the pitcher's plate. By placing your heel there, you are most likely losing contact with the plate (as your heel rises) and pushing from the ball of your foot which is . . . not the plate.

 

[Hillhouse]

Placing the heel at the front of the pitcher's plate will result in more illegal pitches, if the umpires are paying attention. You cannot push off from any place other than the pitcher's plate. By placing your heel there, you are most likely losing contact with the plate (as your heel rises) and pushing from the ball of your foot which is . . . not the plate.

I understand what you're saying but, this is countless pitchers threw in international competitions putting the heel in front, toe behind. The goal is to get as much width between the feet as possible, the rubber is 6" wide so putting heel/toe on the rubber gives the pitcher the full 6". Personally speaking, I was never called illegal when pitching this way. While true, under the letter of the law the pitcher isn't pushing from the rubber per say, I don't think the spirit of the rule is violated as long as he/she doesn't take the "gym step" similar to Monica Abbott's. She would put her heel in front AND take the gym step but was rarely called illegal because she's Monica Abbott.

The key words in this discussion is "pushing off from any place other than the pitchers plate". This is true if you go by the absolute letter of the law and rule. But, I think it would be rather petty for an umpire or opposing coach to be concerned about this, again providing there's no gym step forward prior to the pitch. This circles us back to the discussion of crow hopping, and how people would yell "the pitcher has to stay on the rubber". Nobody is in contact with the rubber when they release the ball. Nobody. As I said before, even if a pitcher stands with both feet side by side on top of the rubber and the pitcher doesn't do anything for momentum or power in the pitch, as he/she steps forward to deliver the pitch, the back foot automatically comes off the rubber from the inertia of the stride foot going towards the plate. Neither foot is on the rubber at the release. TMIB, I realize that's not what you said. You specifically said "pushing off from somewhere other than the rubber" but, all I'm doing is saying what is most commonly heard from fans and coaches with the pitcher has any kind of controversial pitch delivery: "Keep him/her on the rubber Blue!!" That moronic statement is echoed all the time and I'm sure everyone reading this has heard that before.

So, I'm certainly not questioning TMIB, his interpretation of the rule or the rulebook itself. I'm only saying that the "heel/toe" start was used be almost everyone in International competition when the rules required 2 feet on the rubber. And it's how I encouraged girls to pitch back when girls had to have 2 feet in contact with the rubber to start. Of course, much of that was conditional on the field conditions. Large holes in front of the pitching rubber make the heel/toe start impossible sometimes.

 

[The Man In Blue]

@Hillhouse . . . the only time I ever encountered that "keep her on the rubber thing" was a local league that screwed up and copied and pasted baseball rules into their house softball rules (so it actually said they had to stay in contact). I'm sure it happens though.

As you know, the old rules allowed for the pivot foot to lose contact as long as the push off came from the plate and the foot stayed on the ground (drag). (So yes, those people are fools.) I can't say for certain if that "slide step" (which it essentially is without the slide leading in) was an NFHS POE in last several years, but I know it was a local POE in our annual meetings.

Under the new rules, that "push from any place other than the plate" will be scrutinized. Starting with your heel on the front of the plate means the push actually comes several inches in front of the plate. Petty or not, the heart of the new rule is that the push ONLY comes from the plate. This isn't a leap, but it follows in the same logic of a pitcher trying to push from somewhere else.

 

[Ken B]

@Hillhouse . . . the only time I ever encountered that "keep her on the rubber thing" was a local league that screwed up and copied and pasted baseball rules into their house softball rules (so it actually said they had to stay in contact). I'm sure it happens though.

As you know, the old rules allowed for the pivot foot to lose contact as long as the push off came from the plate and the foot stayed on the ground (drag). (So yes, those people are fools.) I can't say for certain if that "slide step" (which it essentially is without the slide leading in) was an NFHS POE in last several years, but I know it was a local POE in our annual meetings.

Under the new rules, that "push from any place other than the plate" will be scrutinized. Starting with your heel on the front of the plate means the push actually comes several inches in front of the plate. Petty or not, the heart of the new rule is that the push ONLY comes from the plate. This isn't a leap, but it follows in the same logic of a pitcher trying to push from somewhere else.

As long as the foot does not slide forward/away from the front edge prior to the push, the foot may rock forward onto the toe, breaking contact with the rubber. Otherwise, almost every pitch would be illegal as the heel rolls up.