Robo-Ump experiment seems to be going pretty well
- Thread starter Bulldogg31
- Start date
Timing of this is pretty funny considering that I just watched the Vandy ump call a Leiter strike 3 that was a full 10 inches off the plate.
Call it jealousy or whatever, but I’m far beyond sick of Vandy baseball. 16 innings, 0 runs, 4 hits against one of the better teams in the country. It’s just absurd, and their dumbass whistler and shirtless football players ain’t helping
Call it jealousy or whatever, but I’m far beyond sick of Vandy baseball. 16 innings, 0 runs, 4 hits against one of the better teams in the country. It’s just absurd, and their dumbass whistler and shirtless football players ain’t helping
Pitchers deserve to get credit for a strike if they get it in the zone. Batters deserve to get credit when they correctly take a pitch. Hopefully this is implemented in all levels of baseball within a few years.
Coulda used the Robo-Ump in that 8th inning yesterday. Both of those called third strikes against us were way outside. Sucks to see the ump take the bat out of a hitter’s hands.
It’s obvious. Umpires should not be “part” of the game. A strike should be a strike every day of the week, shouldn’t vary from pitch to pitch, pitcher to pitcher.
I appreciate skill, and framing pitches seems like an incredible skill to me. Seems like catching the ball to begin with is hard enough. But it’s sort of a ridiculous part of the game to think that a batter’s decision could be made wrong after the fact by a catcher catching the ball the right way.
What needs to happen is for someone to take it upon themselves to start compiling footage of all these missed calls in big college games and putting it out there for people to see. I’m really surprised someone isn’t doing that already.
If videos start getting posted showing umps blatantly missing 10+ calls a game, then something might happen. Otherwise, it’s going to be more of the same for the foreseeable future.
If videos start getting posted showing umps blatantly missing 10+ calls a game, then something might happen. Otherwise, it’s going to be more of the same for the foreseeable future.
I have always wondered... What kind of person decides one day to be an umpire? The only thing I can come up with is someone who likes baseball and wants to be in some kind of "respect my authority" position. The side hustle money argument doesn't really fly either.
I'm sure there are some are good folks, but 17 most of them with with a metal studded bowling pin. Especially the aholes that go Enrico Palazzo on a strikeout call or close play at first to make sure they get some attention and then yell at some actual player for a bat flip or excited home run trot.
Now that I think about it.. Fighting Irish must be an aspiring umpire.
I'm sure there are some are good folks, but 17 most of them with with a metal studded bowling pin. Especially the aholes that go Enrico Palazzo on a strikeout call or close play at first to make sure they get some attention and then yell at some actual player for a bat flip or excited home run trot.
Now that I think about it.. Fighting Irish must be an aspiring umpire.
I just hope the electronic strike zone corresponds to the dimensions of home plate. I hate the “strike tracker” on TV. The strike zone is not a rectangular window. It’s a 3-dimensional prism.
I think it will impact how pitchers pitch and batters hit. A pitch should be called by where it is when it crosses the front edge of home plate. With the amount of break some pitchers are getting and skilled catchers framing, some pitches that look like strikes and are called strikes are balls when they cross that front edge. I think it should happen. Make it a pure skills matchup without all of the "interpretations".
I watch some of that myself. After a couple of innings I couldn't take it anymore. I don't know if it was the ump or the reputation that caused those calls but it was ridiculous..
I can see how the Trackman technology can be used laterally - the width of the plate is a constant. But vertically, it's not if I understand how the strike zone is defined (between the knees and letters). It changes depending on the height of the player - a guy 6'5" is going to have a different strike zone than a guy who's 5'6".
Do the controllers change the strike zone depending on the player, or just let it be the same for everybody?
Do the controllers change the strike zone depending on the player, or just let it be the same for everybody?
Most often it's just below the belt to just below the knees and the width of the plate plus the width of the baseball on both sides
I think you mean constant in terms of the same for each batter, but to be clear the taper of home plate towards the catcher also defines the strike zone. That’s why the strike zone “window” doesn’t accurately represent the actual strike zone.
Yes, constant for each batter. I believe home plate is 17" wide and deep with the corners clipped to meet in the rear. So the important part (the width of the strike zone) is 17". It doesn't taper, it's clipped. That's how I see it at any rate.
Yes, any part of the ball crossing within the width of the plate. So really 17" + two ball diameters minus a "smidgen" (as granny would say). That still doesn't account for players of differing heights.
I’m especially curious to see how the game is played in the first few weeks after the change, whenever it happens. I bet there will be a whole lot of bats on shoulders early on just so everyone can feel out what the true strike zone is.
Also, are these robot umps capable of adjusting the height snd vertical position of the zone based on the height / stance of the batter, or is it just a standard zone for everyone that is something like 17” wide by 24” high that starts 16” off the ground?
IF it can be proven to work I would love it. The way the game is generally called all these years is more wide than tall. I would say it mostly seems to be belt to 4 inches below the knee and then about 20 to 22 inches wide depending upon ump. A hitter can't physically reach a ball 2 or 3 inches outside and once that is called it really causes a batter to have to make too much of an adjustment in width and changes body position relative to the plate.
If the zone becomes taller and more narrow as actually defined, physically the hitter can put barrel on all strikes without having to adjust in width. Adjusting to an above the belly to below the knee strike zone, as defined in the rule book, would just be swing planes. Still difficult for hitting but not physically impossible to put the barrel on the ball. The 33 to 35 inch bat can reach every pitch. The old Atlanta strike zone where you needed a 40 inch bat was just not fair.
If the zone becomes taller and more narrow as actually defined, physically the hitter can put barrel on all strikes without having to adjust in width. Adjusting to an above the belly to below the knee strike zone, as defined in the rule book, would just be swing planes. Still difficult for hitting but not physically impossible to put the barrel on the ball. The 33 to 35 inch bat can reach every pitch. The old Atlanta strike zone where you needed a 40 inch bat was just not fair.
I know a guy from Mississippi that is an MLB umpire: Lance Barksdale.
Lance went to high school at Forest Hill, and he and I played basketball and baseball against each other for years.
I haven't seen or spoken to Lance for years, but he was always a very good athlete and a great guy (honor, moral and ethics) when I knew him . . . and I'll bet my house that he's exactly the same guy today.
It would be my guess that Lance became an umpire because he loves sports and competition . . . and he likely thought he'd make a good umpire. My father was a HS baseball coach for years in the Jackson area, and I've seen Lance umpire a couple of his games. In those games, Lance was highly competent and professional. (my opinion)
While I agree that there are many umps out there whom seem to have a chip on their shoulder and a god complex, I can vouch for Lance . . . he's one of the good guys.
I feel the same about framing as I do basketball players trying to draw fouls instead of score. I hate that it happens but until you fix the rules you can’t blame the players for doing everything in their power to win.
I umpired all during college and for a few years after, it keeps you around the game. There are good umps and bad umps, just like with any profession. When you are behind the plate, you have to maneuver yourself around the catcher, without getting in his way. Sometimes you set up and the catcher moves his body during the pitch and partially obstructs your view. It becomes a judgment call when that happens and it is close.
The hardest area to judge is a low pitch, you are elevated above the catcher, so your looking down. Inside and outside and high were fairly easy.
Adjusting your strike zone up and down significantly is just crazy. I have seen coaches instruct their smaller players to squat more, impossible to hit from position, just to try and shrink the zone. If you come up and bat one way then try to shrink it up the next time, umps will call strikes outside of the shrunken zone.
The hardest area to judge is a low pitch, you are elevated above the catcher, so your looking down. Inside and outside and high were fairly easy.
Adjusting your strike zone up and down significantly is just crazy. I have seen coaches instruct their smaller players to squat more, impossible to hit from position, just to try and shrink the zone. If you come up and bat one way then try to shrink it up the next time, umps will call strikes outside of the shrunken zone.
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