MLB’s Collision Rule Is Missing The Mark

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusmail
Facebooktwittergoogle_plus

http://throughthefencebaseball.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Buster-Posey-after-infamous-collision.jpgMay 25, 2011 is a day that will go down in Major League Baseball infamy. That night San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey suffered a fractured fibula and torn ligaments in his ankle which ended his year. Posey sustained this injury as he was attempting to block the plate against Florida Marlins outfielder Scott Cousins. The Giants and the fans in San Francisco alike were outraged as they had lost their best player. Since then MLB has thrown around the idea of possibly changing the rules involving catchers and their ability to block the plate. That came to fruition this past winter when MLB implemented rules in regards to blocking the plate.

The current rule allows for a collision if the catcher has the ball and is blocking the runner’s direct path to the plate or if the catcher goes into the base path to field a throw to the plate. The rule has been implemented as a one-year experiment by Major League Baseball and being that is has caused more problems that anything else it should be scrapped altogether.

http://ww1.hdnux.com/photos/31/51/52/6724252/3/784x2048.jpg

Robin Ventura

Too often this season we have seen instances where managers have challenged plays at the plate not to determine whether or not that a runner was safe or out. But to determine whether or not that a catcher blocked the plate and impeded a runner from scoring or that the base runner himself interfered with the catcher. Last month the Giants were hosting the Chicago White Sox. In the bottom of seventh inning, Giants outfielder Gregor Blanco was called out at the plate. Giants manager Bruce Bochy challenged the play and the umpires overturned the call. An incensed White Sox manager Robin Ventura immediately charged out of dugout to argue the call and he was ejected as managers cannot dispute the call. What made matters worse was that the night before Ventura challenged a similar call against the Giants and the umps ruled in favor of San Francisco.

This is just one example of a rule that has produced a huge gray area for managers, players, umpires, broadcasters, and fans alike as these people are simply confused. Recently MLB executive vice president of baseball operations Joe Torre attempted to clarify the rule by sending a memo to the umpires on the matter. But the best thing for MLB to do in regards to Rule 7:13 is to send it packing for 2015.

Earlier this season New York Mets broadcaster and former MLB player Keith Hernandez made a tremendous point on the matter when he let it be known that if it had been a backup catcher for the Giants and not Posey who was the 2012 National League MVP that had gotten hurt, then no one would have said anything about protecting catchers. Catchers blocking the plate has been around Major League Baseball for the longest time just like injuries. Baseball Hall of Fame catchers such as Johnny Bench, Carlton Fisk, and Yogi Berra made a living blocking the plate and they also took a beating behind the plate. Major League Baseball like other professional sports leagues is attempting to take new steps in preventing head injuries in sports. But baseball isn’t like the National Football League where players are being hit on every play. As a catcher the chance of being hit by a foul ball or the follow through by a hitter’s bat are still there and MLB is not attempting to change that.

MLB did what too many other institutions are doing which is that they pushed the panic button in regards to Posey’s injury from a few years ago. If a respective MLB team does not want their catcher to block the plate, then that should fall on them. In the case of the Giants and Posey, Bochy was a former MLB catcher who should be able to school his All-Star catcher on the necessary defensive skills behind the plate. We are a few months away from MLB’s winter meeting where this matter of blocking the plate will be a hot topic and it is a topic that should be sent on its way just like to old “cookie cutter” ballparks.

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusmail
Facebooktwittergoogle_plus
By | 2014-09-13T11:37:40+00:00 September 13th, 2014|Categories: Major League Baseball|Tags: , , |0 Comments

About the Author:

Leave A Comment