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Monday, December 21, 2009
Where should the home plate umpire stand to call balls and strikes?
A Bill James reader asks Bill James:
So I’m watching “The Jackie Robinson Story” on TV, and in a scene from a spring training game, they show the umpire standing behind the pitcher calling balls and strikes. It made me think: Wouldn’t we get more accurate ball/strike calls from umps behind the pitcher than from behind the plate? What are the advantages to having an ump behind the plate, if any?
Asked by: JuleSig
Answered: December 19, 2009I doubt that it would be LESS accurate. Probably the perception is that the umpire needs to be as close as possible to the action. Perhaps this is right; perhaps it is wrong. It is assumed to be right, which doesn’t mean that it is. It would be an interesting study to have umpires calling pitches from both angles, reviewed by a Questec-type system, and see which angle was better.
Forgetting, for now, that the umpire needs to be protected from a batted or thrown ball, where is the ideal place to place a pair of eyes? My guess is to place him at the center point of a right triangle from mound to plate to foul-line (on the pitcher’s hand side). Anyone want to point to relevant research?
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