Mitt distance traveled

[AdamK]

Russell Martin might have competition when it comes to the distance his mitt travels after receiving a pitch in Boston's catcher. 

Over the course of one season, I'd guess Martin's glove travels 3/4 mile.

 

Should this be a new metric?

This, coupled with "strikes that were balls", might actually be interesting, and potentially ID catchers who are more selective at this AND those who abuse the tactic.

PS. It's irritating.

[Aristotelian]

It's part of the game as long as we don't have robo umps. I just wish the Orioles were better at it. 

[spiritof66]

If I were an umpire -- about as likely as my becoming Pope -- I would talk to the catchers and managers before each game and say something like this:

"It will help me call balls and strikes if you will try to keep your glove steady after catching each pitch. I know you can't always do that -- sometimes your glove has to move pretty far before you catch a pitch and you can't help continuing that motion after the catch. But if you catch the ball and then move it toward or into the strike zone, and it looks to me ;like you've done that intentionally to make the pitch look like a strike, I am likely to conclude that you don't think the pitch is a strike without your help, and I probably won't think so either. So don't try to persuade me with that   'framing' stuff. Just catch the ball, and I'll do the best I can to call balls and strikes."

 

 

[InsideCoroner]

12 hours ago, Aristotelian said:

It's part of the game as long as we don't have robo umps. I just wish the Orioles were better at it. 

I actually thing Castillo does a pretty solid job of this (especially compared to Wieters). He nudged a few called third strikes against Cincinnati and Boston.

[AdamK]

11 hours ago, spiritof66 said:

If I were an umpire -- about as likely as my becoming Pope -- I would talk to the catchers and managers before each game and say something like this:

"It will help me call balls and strikes if you will try to keep your glove steady after catching each pitch. I know you can't always do that -- sometimes your glove has to move pretty far before you catch a pitch and you can't help continuing that motion after the catch. But if you catch the ball and then move it toward or into the strike zone, and it looks to me ;like you've done that intentionally to make the pitch look like a strike, I am likely to conclude that you don't think the pitch is a strike without your help, and I probably won't think so either. So don't try to persuade me with that   'framing' stuff. Just catch the ball, and I'll do the best I can to call balls and strikes."

 

This is what I'm getting at. At some point, perhaps with some of the less subtle catchers, it should have a negative impact instead of zero impact over the course of a game/season.

I actually like the move when selectively used. But seeing a guy like Martin or Vasquez bring 3 out of 4 pitches into the zone gets under my skin. I don't watch other games, so maybe the are worse offenders. 

 

[Aristotelian]

11 hours ago, spiritof66 said:

If I were an umpire -- about as likely as my becoming Pope -- I would talk to the catchers and managers before each game and say something like this:

"It will help me call balls and strikes if you will try to keep your glove steady after catching each pitch. I know you can't always do that -- sometimes your glove has to move pretty far before you catch a pitch and you can't help continuing that motion after the catch. But if you catch the ball and then move it toward or into the strike zone, and it looks to me ;like you've done that intentionally to make the pitch look like a strike, I am likely to conclude that you don't think the pitch is a strike without your help, and I probably won't think so either. So don't try to persuade me with that   'framing' stuff. Just catch the ball, and I'll do the best I can to call balls and strikes."

 

 

So you are saying you would counteract their presenting the ball by being biased against them? Why not just call balls and strikes as you see them? If a major league ump actually said something like this, it would be a great case for eliminating him and replacing him with a computer. What you should say is "Try framing all you want, I am not going to fall for it. A ball is a ball and you aren't going to get any extra pitches tonight".

[AdamK]

Full disclosure, this is not Vasquez or Martin, but is essentially what each frame attempt feels like to me...