There was a hot topic discussion regarding the plate this weekend. Half the umpires said a ball that hits the outside black part of the plate is a strike and the other half said it was a ball and the director said it was a strike. Seeing as how Senior ball is the only sanction I know that counts the plate as a strike what is the ruling?
In SSUSA sanctioned play, the Official Strike Mat overlays the entire home plate ... Accordingly, the pitched ball should not hit the black beveled edge of the actual plate, but rather the mat covering it ... That's a strike by definition for having hit the mat, presuming it's an otherwise legal pitch for height and speed ...
ok the mat is 19 x 34 ,so it covers the plate (plate only 17 wide)like davey says,and as i have always said,THE BLACK IS NOT A STRIKE, but hey maybe thats to techincal
dog ... I agree with you if it's not SSUSA sanctioned play ... The larger mat size with us completely covers the plate if it's positioned properly, making the question irrelevant in our events ... In other sanctions, well, that's up to them ...
Dave/mad dog are certianly 100% correct, AGAIN! For those leauges or tourneys that use a mat (that does not alwys cover the plate) and the plate is a strike, hitting the black should always be called a ball. The black part of the plate should be under dirt and not visible if installed correctly, but errosion happens and the black gets exposed, IT'S A BALL.
In this case the mat was 2 inches wider on each side than the plate and didn't cover the plate it was behind it so...AA also gets 2HRs.etc.
This was SSUSA SANCTIONED PLAY and the mat didn't cover the plate.
No Ambiguity and fully Transparent by Rule.
A Pitched Ball that hits ANY portion or"part" of the PLATE and or the MAT is a strike. Plain and Simple. Swing the BAT!!!
Rob64: This was SSUSA SANCTIONED PLAY and the mat didn't cover the plate. ... We have a sneaking suspicion we know where this SEMI-SANCTIONED event occurred ... To be a fully sanctioned SSUSA tourney, the presumption, and our expectation is that the independent director administers it in full compliance with our rules ... That includes the correct number of AA HR's (1), and a strike mat that complies with the Official Specifications for same (34½" x 19") and properly positioned to completely overlay the home plate installed on each diamond used ... Please accept our apologies for what apparently happened ...
No need to apologize the tournaments are just fine with what rules are used for a Semi-Sancationed SSUSA tournament which is new to me because I never knew there was a difference. I've never played in a fully sanctioned SSUSA Tournament to my knowledge now that I understand this statement. Regardless the original question was never answered.
