Switch Hitter and Switch Pitcher face off...

[SeriesFinale]

...ridiculousness ensues

 

From a Staten Island-Brooklyn minor league game last night.

 

The pitcher sure wanted to have it both ways here (no pun intended)...what's good for the goose is good for the gander, pal.

[DHonks]

Venditte...wasn't there a high profile pick in '07 that was ambidextrous? Also, about 4 years ago wasn't there one?

Still fun to see

[RayKingsForemanGrill]

They didn't take it as far as to show us what happened/how it was ruled...

 

Anyone know?

[fondybrewfan]

The umpire forced the pitcher to pitch right handed and the hitter to hit right handed

[SeriesFinale]

I thought the batter had to commit but I don't know the Atlantic League rules

[And That]

The video right below it (the 8:30ish one) shows the end.

 

Yah, I thought the batter had to commit first.

[stoops17]

The sportscenter clip is a condensed version that has the final outcome.

 

Very weird occurance, but entertaining.

[sgtcluels]

I thought it was which ever side the pitcher pitches from the first pitch. Batter can switch sides.

 

Not sure why guy didn't take A pitch from his weaker side then switch.

[Principessa21]

A Yankee beat writer asked an ump about this, and in short there is no rule. Here's the link to the convo.

[DHonks]

when coaching girls' high school softball, the umps used to allow our athletic shortstop to switch mid at bat. She was a right with pop, but a big uppercut. She was so fast that just slapping the ball could be an infield hit. So we had her bat lefty, but if there were two strikes she'd switch to righty.

[Mass Haas]

MiLB.com's account

[Team Canada]

JP's talking about it on the radio right now, he says that league had a rule in their manual where each player can change hands during the at bat one time. As he says (and I'd tend to agree), the batter should have to declare a side, and then the pitcher can do whatever he wants.

[sheetskout]

The umpire forced the pitcher to pitch right handed and the hitter to hit right handed

I totally don't agree with this call at all. It is the batters burden to keep the game moving as he has the final "say" between pitches by entering the box.

 

Totally hilarious though. A battle-in-a-battle, in a battle, in a battle, in a battle.....

 

[Never Outhustled]

Venditte...wasn't there a high profile pick in '07 that was ambidextrous?

Venditte was also drafted by the Yankees last season late, but didn't sign. He got alot of attention last season after rolling up something like 40 straight scoreless innings. I wish we would have drafted him. A cheap senior sign, and I like his chances better than most 20th rounders.

[Principessa21]

The Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation (PBUC) released its official rules for dealing with ambidextrous pitchers on Wednesday. These guidelines were reached after PBUC staff consulted with a variety of sources, including the Major League Baseball Rules Committee.

Here's how it reads:

* The pitcher must visually indicate to the umpire, batter and runner(s) which way he will begin pitching to the batter. Engaging the rubber with the glove on a particular hand is considered a definitive commitment to which arm he will throw with. The batter will then choose which side of the plate he will bat from.

* The pitcher must throw one pitch to the batter before any "switch" by either player is allowed.

* After one pitch is thrown, the pitcher and batter may each change positions one time per at-bat. For example, if the pitcher changes from right-handed to left-handed and the batter then changes batter's boxes, each player must remain that way for the duration of that at-bat (unless the offensive team substitutes a pinch hitter, and then each player may again "switch" one time).

* Any switch (by either the pitcher or the batter) must be clearly indicated to the umpire.
There will be no warm-up pitches during the change of arms.

* If an injury occurs the pitcher may change arms but not use that arm again during the remainder of the game.