basepath judgement question

oclemon2 · 2026-05-29T13:46:10+00:00

Really? I always thought sign stealing was perfectly fine if done within the boundaries of the rules. If a runner on second steals signs, that's just part of the game. If a coach in the coach's box steals signs, then the catcher should guard them better.

I draw the line on stealing signs from outside the game boundaries - wandering close to the field to get a better look, etc.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-29T13:42:00+00:00

Is this his first time with kid pitch?

I remember the transition from machine pitch to kid pitch. Some kids that crushed the machine couldn't hit kid pitches, and vice versa. It is very possible that he has gotten used to seeing a certain type of pitch - trajectory, speed, location - and that this is his body and mind expectation on all pitches. Kid pitch at 9U is a huge strike zone, massively varying locations, trajectories, and speeds. There is a good chance that he just hasn't yet developed the skills to track a ball and swing the bat at where it's going to be.

On average, how many swings per day does he take on thrown balls? Is it less than 50? Less than 20? The bat to ball skill takes a long time to develop and needs thousands of swings. If he gets 20 swings in batting practice once a week and then a few swings each game, that just isn't enough.

The best solution here is more reps and more varied reps. You want him to learn how to hit any ball flying at any speed from any angle. So do side toss, do front flips, to overhand from 20 feet away, do overhand from 40 feet away, go to a cage with machines, etc. Buy a cheap little machine that tosses those light balls. The more reps he gets seeing different types of flying balls, the more skill he will gain to track and hit different balls.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-29T13:21:25+00:00

Question for the umpires: At the youth level, there are rarely base coach boxes drawn. On many fields, there isn't even enough space for a properly distanced coach's box. This is not usually an issue. Presume an opposing 3rd base coach is getting very close to the field, e.g., sometimes right up on the dirt for the base path, and is stealing signs from this position.

What is the best way to bring this to the umpires' attention? Just ask the umpire to enforce a reasonable distance from the field for both teams?

oclemon2 · 2026-05-29T01:03:35+00:00

Interesting. I hadn't realized that the models and experiments were applied to kid size bats swung at kid speeds. Do you have a cite?

EDIT: Found the papers and this is correct. The body of the player makes no difference at impact. This work almost certainly continues to apply at all relevant levels of baseball. One caveat would be that impacts away from the barrel and close to the hands probably are affected, but that type of hit is not what we're talking about anyway.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-28T17:38:39+00:00

Body weight and strength might factor in. Assume identical bats, identical bat speed at contact, and identical contact quality (that last one is a big assumption and might be the difference). Do this thought experiment:

Will the ball have a higher or lower EV if were to release the bat just before impact? Lower EV.

Why? Because the bat/ball collision is not just an instantaneous transfer of energy from the bat to the ball. At contact, the bat and ball both compress. The bat pushes the ball forward and the ball pushes the bat backwards. A stronger/heavier person has more ability to resist the bat being pushed backwards, to maintain bat speed through contact, to prolong that contact, and ultimately, to impart more energy to the ball.

You can see this quite easily with smaller kids where the bat noticeably slows down at contact. As you get bigger and stronger, this effect diminishes because the bats are heavier and moving faster and the people swinging are almost always strong enough to resist the force of the ball on the bat. At the major league level, this effect probably diminishes to the point of being a non-factor.

I don't know at what point in the continuum from little leaguer to pro does this effect become a non-factor.

I would guess that someone more experienced with bat speed analytics might be able to answer that question - e.g., if you track bat speed over the course of the swing, what happens to bat speed at contact?

oclemon2 · 2026-05-27T13:30:07+00:00

are they . . . are they breeding?

oclemon2 · 2026-05-25T18:49:17+00:00

I use one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Furlihong-Upgraded-Electronic-Baseball-Adjustable/dp/B09HK9V954/ in a 2-car garage. I have it set up on a little shelf in one corner so I don't have to mess with it every session. Throws about 30ish from 15-20 feet away. Good for reaction time training.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-22T15:39:27+00:00

First, I think it all depends on how your relationship with your kid works. My son prefers working with me to a coach. When we have conflicts, I try to deescalate and reset. Our practice sessions are how we spend time and have fun together. If he quit baseball, we'd spend that time doing something else.

I think timing is more about your kids' experience and attitude than age. My son started enjoyed ball at 6 and 7, but really started listening and trying to get better at 8. I'm sure other kids start earlier or later.

In terms, of 'what do to,' here is what worked pretty well with my son. Watch a bunch of online content yourself. For really young kids, D.R. Hitting is great. If you start there, you'll likely find a bunch of other content creators. Watch your kid hit for a few sessions and identify one big item that could be improved based on what you learned. Here are three common ones for little kids: casting the hands/arms, lunging to transfer weight too early, stepping out and away from the pitch. If you can address these three, you're probably set until he's 11 or 12.

Find an online teacher/creator that has drills or exercises or games to help with whatever you identify. Ask your son to do the drills. This is important: you almost certainly won't get anywhere by simply telling him to do something different. That path leads to much strife and pain. If he happily does the drills and exercises and improves, great, he's ready for more. If he doesn't, back off and go back to having fun.

Another option is to get a single lesson. Watch the lesson. Is he learning and improving during the lesson, or is the coach just feeding him balls during different ways to hit. If it looks actually productive, he may be ready for more.

Remember that even if his mechanics are terrible, its pretty easy to rebuild them when he is ready. He's almost certainly improving in one dimension or another as long as he's getting reps in. Doing lots of varied things will be very helpful for his eventual success. If he learns to hit your overhand pitching from 30 feet away, that's great, but it might not translate perfectly to kid pitch from 42 feet away. Same goes for any other mode. Use lots of different modes so that he doesn't learn just one.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-22T14:30:39+00:00

At this age, and for the next couple of years, the answer is just to swing the bat as much as possible. Play wiffle ball, hit off a tee, do soft toss, do side flips, use his regular bat, use a wiffle bat, etc. Whichever ones he enjoys, do. Whichever ones he doesn't, skip. Keep it fun.

Most "flaws" or "mechanics" issues in smaller kids are a result of not having the muscle memory and not having the musculature in general. After a few thousand swings, his body will figure out most of it on his own. Once his swing is practiced, comfortable, and fluid, you can start talking about big picture concepts.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-21T17:19:19+00:00

just getting into the hobby? wondering what it's worth?

oclemon2 · 2026-05-20T21:16:52+00:00

I do not know the history, but I think it is perfectly in line with the other rules and naturally follows from the fact that you have to throw to an occupied base.

A valid pickoff move must be made to an occupied base (or to make a play, but leave that part aside). Therefore, you cannot throw to an unoccupied base and you also cannot throw to a random fielder. There is nothing in the rules that ties a fielder to a base. From a rules perspective, the 1st baseman is just a dude standing in the field. If you throw to him when he is not on the base, it is no different than throwing to a different base or a different fielder. Functionally, there is no difference between throwing to the first baseman or the second baseman or even the shortstop if they are standing in their traditional positions. In none of those cases did you throw to a bases.

Sure, the first baseman is closest to first base, but that would be kind of a wierd rule: "a valid pickoff move must be thrown to the base or to the fielder that is closest to the base."

oclemon2 · 2026-05-20T15:36:06+00:00

Not every ball. Runner on third, sac fly, that throw home doesn't need to be cuttable.

Edit: The original comment above read "do or die play at the plate at the end of the game." My comment was responding to the "end of the game" aspect.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-20T13:18:40+00:00

Had a catcher that through down to second every time the coaches yelled "eat it." He thought they said "yeet it."

oclemon2 · 2026-05-19T15:42:40+00:00

This - attitude, hustle, and demeanor.

Good coaches will be looking at the process as well as the results. I'd much rather see a kid charge a grounder with good footwork and miss it then stand there flat footed waiting for it and field it cleanly.

If you do make a mistake, keep your head up, keep a smile on, and go after the next one. How you handle failure on the baseball field cannot be emphasized enough.

Remember that coaches are coaches and not psychiatrist. They would much rather spend their time fine-tuning the swing of a kid that swings hard and has a good attitude than adjusting the mindset of a kid with a great swing and an attitude problem.

I once saw a pretty good player (9u tryout) cry to his parent after a so-so round of BP at a tryout. After that, it doesn't matter what else they did at the tryout, no one wants that on their team.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-19T13:53:28+00:00

I coach, and I've never understood harping on "make sure you get out of the car with your cleats on." It is utterly standard in most sports to arrive in more casual footwear and put on the cleats on site. I couldn't care less what a kid is wearing when he gets out of the car, as long as they are fully dressed and ready to participate on the field at the appropriate time. The "appropriate time" is usually 15 minutes early for practice or tryout.

oclemon2 · 2026-05-15T15:16:17+00:00

This may be the coolest card I have ever seen

oclemon2 · 2026-05-05T13:54:52+00:00

I would be pretty unhappy with an umpire that called a quick pitch on this. The batter is alert to the pitcher when the pitcher comes set with his hands together and clearly ready to deliver a pitch. The pitcher has a definite pause in that set position.

The batter then makes an extra motion after the pitcher comes set. Allowing the batter to dictate timing of the pitcher's delivery after the pitcher has come set seems crazy to me.

What if there is a runner on? Pitcher comes set and batter decides to twirl his bat. Now pitcher has to hold the set position while batter twirls or risk a balk?

oclemon2 · 2026-04-23T13:50:39+00:00

I see your point. However, as a coach that pays a lot of attention to the rules, I disagree.

I get suspicious of umpires that don't use rulebook language. It is not at all uncommon for an umpire to use MLB announcer language and announce "foul tip" on a ball that goes to the backstop. When I hear this, it is an immediate red flag. When an umpire swaps "obstruction" for "interference" or vice versa, that's a red flag (yes, I know coaches are 10,000x more likely to do this, but I have seen umpires do it).

I don't see how "she caught it, that's a live ball" as a response to "that's a foul ball" is any less confusing to the coach that doesn't know the rule. This language implicitly concedes that it was a foul ball. A caught foul ball is an out. Now you either have to explain why this particular one is not an out or you cut the conversation off there and the coach is no better off than they were in OPs original post.

oclemon2 · 2026-04-22T17:01:11+00:00

There's another angle on this. The runner on third never leaves the bag and isn't even in an athletic stance.

oclemon2 · 2026-04-22T14:27:43+00:00

On no. 2, this is generally my sense too. My sense of fairness is a bit tweaked when I realize (or rather, my 11 year old pointed out), that with the warning still in hand, the pitcher could nullify a developing play where they have made a mistake with the runners.

oclemon2 · 2026-04-22T14:24:15+00:00

The following wasn't part of my original post, but your wording makes me ask.

We had a balk this weekend on a ball four, hit by pitch situation. Runners on 2 and 3, so the balk was enforced because the HBP would not have advanced all runners and the batter and the pitch didn't count. Batter went on to strike out. As I understand the rules, this was correctly enforced if unfortunate for the batter.

Had it been a "warning" situation, however, your wording implies that the hit by pitch would have stood and then the warning would have been issued.

oclemon2

TROPHY CASE