2 rules to change now in baseball
In this story by Nick Cafardo he brings up Pesky returning to the dugout with Bud Selig. Bud’s last line is “If anyone wants to invoke change with this rule, they should have a discussion with the general managers.” Now is the time for baseball fans to use the power of the internet, to change the rules of the game. Write an email to every GM and asked them to respond to this question.
”Would you allow any team icon over the age of 80 the privilege
of sitting in the dugout for any game?”
We could ask Cashman first. Torre could even have his old friend Don Zimmer back. Boston will promise not to even use a matador move if Zimmer attacks anyone, especially since Pedro is not here to throw is head with a plate on the turf. Red Schoendienst could sit on the Cardinal bench as well. If Bob Feller wants to sit on Cleveland’s he is welcomed. You can ask the GM’s to vote on-line. Maybe we could get this change done effective immediately.
Another change that needs to be done is with the MLB rules committee. Wouldn’t you know that Sandy Alderson is the head of that committee. Baseball needs to implement a definition to a checked swing. On May 5th, with a struggling Johan Santana on the mound in Minnesota, David Ortiz had an eight-pitch at-bat that end by striking out. He appeared to check his swing on a 3-and-2 pitch and began walking to first base when he was called out by third base umpire Jeff Nelson. On the Red Sox radio broadcast they said it was clearly umpire error on that call. Ortiz screamed at Nelson, the NESN microphone in the dugout picked up Ortiz calling Nelson’s call “horse-blank.” It was pure manure by another example of umpires gone wild, for the sake of vain. Of course since baseball does not have anything in the Official Rulebook about checked swings, how could you argue any call? Tom Verducci alluded to this quirk in the rules, when he did his one day stand in as an umpire this spring. Why can’t MLB have the same rule that the NCAA has adopted?
Section 2.0 of the 2007 NCAA Official Baseball rulebook states: A checked swing shall be called a strike if the barrel head of the bat crosses the front edge of home plate, or the batter’s front hip.
Ask MLB why they do not have a rule about the definition of a checked swing?
I am:
The Fan’s Commish
Rick Swanson