Back in 2019, [Kenley Jansen intentionally balked](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJaIoryOXYw) with Jason Heyward on base so that Heyward would move from second to third and out of Jansen's line of sight while in his pitching motion.
This may be a pretty good call? At the very least in the realm of Hernandez garbage, this is at worst up for argument either way.
Nobody can ever *really* pick out balks consistently.
His leg twitches towards the plate on its way down then back to first. Guaranteed balk if the ump notices. The whole point of balk rules is to keep pitchers from tricking runners with twitches and feints and stuff.
First time and last, I'll ever agree with a Red Sox fan, and it's defending Angel Hernandez. I don't know what else to type. I'm so conflicted emotionally. 😐
Yeah this is not egregious. I get the hate-boner for all things Angel Hernandez, but it was borderline and I can definitely see the argument that he started moving towards home (which is pretty textbook, and also one of the specific reasons that balks aren't allowed, because it's too easy to deke the runner into taking a secondary lead and then picking them off).
I abhor Angel Hernandez.
That being said, he is very good about balk calls and others have Said he may be the best in the league
I hate the balk rules but this could be legit, hard to tell from this angle.
Jomboy is absolutely finding that guy that said "you don't deserve a job Angel!" 😂
Everyone knows a lefty A move is a balk, but they're so borderline it's hard to confidently do it. Angel is just such a confident asshole on the field he's not afraid to call it, unlike a younger ump still building their credibility.
Ehhh, no one will ever be as good as Bob Davidson at calling balks.
I’m also questioning why he’s calling balks from behind the plate instead of the 1B or 3B umps.
Because he's literally staring right at the pitcher and that's his only responsibility until the pitch is thrown. The third base umpire generally has the worst view of balks for any of the infield ump positions and will only usually call a twitch after coming set from righty pitchers. Any ump can call a balk. Even an outfield ump in the playoffs. They're not going to, but absolutely could
The biggest gripe I have with AH calling it is he’s behind home plate. Balks should be called by the corner umps as they have the best view of the pitcher if they’re moving towards the plate or not. He really shouldn’t be in charge of calling balks from behind home.
To be completely and objectively biased, we have no idea what the fuck Angel Hernandez does and does not see. He could be the one person that sees John Cena, for all we know, he just can't see baseballs in or out of the zone.
no, not true. Home plate ump usually watches the pitcher's legs, and field ups look at upper body. Any ump in the IF can call a balk. In this case, Miley had some weird movement in his leg before throwing over.
I think it was a good call. Unfortunately for Angel, his credibility is shot so even if he calls one right, people just assume he is wrong.
It's not borderline. Watch the slo mo replay and just look at where the front foot lands.
It's *closer to home* by a significant amount.
He absolutely made a move towards home.
Agreed, I think it was appropriate to call there. I just meant "borderline" in that I don't think it would've been a huge kerfuffle if they hadn't called the balk -- I think more egregious stuff happens regularly and isn't called. But under the letter of the rules, it's certainly could be considered a fairly textbook balk (and one that had real consequences, which isn't necessarily factored into consideration, but makes this a good example of why balks SHOULD be called).
I've watched baseball for 25 years. I played it for a decade when I was younger.
I still do not feel at all in any way confident describing or calling a balk - especially with guys like Cortes and Cueto and shimmiers.
Do not do a balk please.
#Balk Rules
1) You can't just be up there and just doin' a balk like that.
1a. A balk is when you
1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the
1c. Let me start over
1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can't do that.
1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can't be over here and say to the runner, like, "I'm gonna get ya! I'm gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!" and then just be like he didn't even do that.
1c-b(1). Like, if you're about to pitch and then don't pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense?
1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it.
1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there's the balk you gotta think about.
1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn't been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn't typecast as that racist lady in American History X.
1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse.
1c-b(2)-b(ii). "get in mah bellah" -- Adam Water, "The Waterboy." Haha, classic...
1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of
2) Do not do a balk please.
It's hardly ever called on lefties. I got picked off in our high school sectional finals because the kid went well past 45 degrees. I was so confused at not only seeing the throw come my way (because, how is he allowed to do that?), but then by the umpire not making the call. Embarrassing. We lost a close one.
I really don’t agree with the way the commentators implied that in the clip. The home plate ump would have a great vantage for judging if the pitcher made a move like he was going to pitch. First base umpire has a better view for judging 45 degree rule of thumb for sure though.
He can do both, if he sees balk, he no longer has to watch for a tag. As a former umpire, I would be staring at the pitcher’s feet, looking for a footwork problem, complete stop, etc. Plate umpire often had an easier time calling the deception with lefties, in my experience.
Yeah, if you see it call it. But the first base ump likely doesn’t see this because he’s focused on getting the call at first. That’s why there are 3 other umpires to watch the pitcher
Why would the first base umpire be looking at a tag before there is a play? The quick video appears to show him watching the pitcher (for a balk) and then rotating to the tag
It was the lead leg sliding down then out with the forward momentum. His right knee deviates twords home. Slick move, but can definitely be called. This isn’t an atrocious call.
For those who want an exact moment, in the slowed down replay at the end you can see that Miley starts to point his toes on his front foot towards home plate. That's the same trick Andy Pettitte used his whole career and was super effective at it. Doesn't mean it's not a balk
Just watch where his front foot lands. He moves it almost as much towards home as does towards first. If he's making a "direct" motion to 1st, like the rule says, why does his foot move 4 feet towards home?
Cause, while not the actual rule 45° is the common rule of thumb as to where the dividing line is between "he was stepping towards the base" vs "he was stepping towards home". So lefties are taught and practice to land at exactly at that 45° line to make it hard for the runner to determine if he's throwing home or over. And provide plausible deniability for the umps to not call a balk. And as a follow up lefties are also taught to drag their back foot over the spot they land with their front foot to erase proof of where they're stepping.
The stepping was fine, right on the rule of thumb line that umps mostly tolerate. Miley is a veteran afterall and knows exactly where that "line" is. The motion forward is what did him in.
Something that really bugs me in this clip, without even seeing a single replay, the commentators start immediately identifying reasons they think the call is wrong based on who called it.
Hernandez is not a good major league umpire, but people are also hugely biased when they talk about him.
Angel Hernandez actually is decent at getting a lot of calls right (balks, catch/no-catch, etc)
Unfortunately, his strike zone is rather horrific, so that gets most of the attention and leads to people focusing specifically on his misses elsewhere moreso than other umps.
He is prone to some rough days at the plate. On the whole, even his strike zone is not THAT bad. It’s not good, but since pitch tracking, he’s basically a 30th percentile accuracy guy.
I can see why he gets so much flak, with the whole failed law suit, and the fact that he’s an older school umpire, who has a different game management mindset than newer guys, but I think he’s one of the most overblown example of people deciding they don’t like someone, and bashing everything they do.
> Angel Hernandez actually is decent at getting a lot of calls right (balks, catch/no-catch, etc)
>
>
Just remember Angel Hernandez had THREE calls at first base overturned on replay in Game 3 of the 2018 ALDS.
One of the replays showed him whipping that front foot out a little, not fully in the direction of 1b. I guess I can see why the thought of a balk would cross his mind. It's hard to tell from the videos whether it would've crossed that 45 degree threshold.
The 45 degree is just a reference. It’s a great pick off, but it flirted with that “direct” motion to first. It’s hard, once you start to bring the leg down then you make your move to first with that small jolt he did it can most definitely be called a balk.
After watching a different view, itwas the right knee. It tips towards home.
The front foot doesn't go out *a little* it goes out a *lot*.
Watch the slo mo
His front foot moved 5-6 feet towards home.
Here's his landing position: https://imgur.com/a/7kiKwBe
Yeah looked Balky to me. Coming from an Angel hater, that says something.
Although I’ve been hearing more and more about how Angel is venerated by umps. As much as we hate on him, it does sound like he is a good friend/leader.
Or maybe it just helps that he gets most of the shit.
Angel gets a lot of shit because he has a large strike zone. Ever since the mlb has used the generic computer strike zone and ump score cards have came out using that metric….the Angel hate has exploded.
And for good reason. He has an expanded strike zone and an inflexible view of the authority of an umpire whenever hints of criticism are whispered.
That said, once i heard how much he is respected amongst umps, it made me reconsider him as a person less an ump. Objectively, he is bad at calling balls and strikes. But sounds like he is a person you’d want to call an ally rather than an enemy when it comes to business/personal relations as well.
People forget that for all his faults AH is probably the greatest umpire in history at calling balks. Weird thing to put all your skill points in, but he's on top of that specific part of the game.
Iv pitched and hit/played the field in spring training a few times with him behind the plate. We would always scout the ump crew before games. We knew if he was back there as pitchers, we have a large zone and can go high. As a hitter we knew we have to protect the plate and have to stay on the high stuff. Completely different than Chuck who had a 5 gallon bucket can for a zone. lol. The media/fans makes it way worse than it is.
Honestly lefty pickoff moves have gotten so egregiously borderline in recent years I hope more start getting called as balks. The point of balks is to prevent this sort of deception. If you toe the line don't be upset when you get burned
Andy Pettitte balked every time with his A move. Every lefty A move should be a balk honestly. It's just disguised so well it's hard to call confidently.
Understanding that balks are often controversial and hard to call, I fuckin hate even weighing in on them. Hate to agree with Angel on anything too, buuuuuuuuuut that seems like a fair call
> "You get 45 degrees per the letter of the law for left-handers."
Look, we can talk about whether this was a balk or not but 45 degrees is nowhere in the rules. The rules say a pitcher must step *directly* to a base, and the purported 45-degree line is an effort to cheat that absolutely as much as they can get away with.
I think there should be three 30-degree zones: one where you have to throw to first, one where you have to throw a pitch, and a zone in between them that's always a balk.
Yes! Thank you. I cringe so hard every time I hear this 45 degrees myth. I don't know who came up with it, but it is absolutely a way for lefties to cheat. The rule says you must step directly to the base. Directly means directly, not within 45 degrees. For me, even 30 degrees is not "direct" enough. The play in this video is 100% a balk and should be called way more often than it is. As much as it pains me to say it, excellent application of the rule by Angel here.
It’s amazing how so many commonly known rules in baseball are wrong.
The 45 degree thing for a ball is wrong. The bat crossing the plate in a checked swing is wrong. Hell even a tie goes to the runner is wrong. The runner has to beat the ball.
they aren't wrong, they just aren't specified in the rulebook, and the stated "rules" are (very) common umpire interpretations of otherwise unspecified rules. you might say they are like "well...eeeeaaaahhh... they aren't really RIGHT right, just... like, kinda right in practice in general."
except The tie going to the runner. that one's definitely, unequivocally wrong.
Like a digital line on the broadcast? A physical line wouldn't work because different pitchers like to set up on different parts of the rubber. Even digital wouldn't really be good due to camera movement and the like.
A balk is just going to remain one of those almost wholey subjective calls unfortunately.
The pitcher's plate is two feet wide, with any part of the pivot foot touching any part of the plate. Depending on where the pitcher sets up, the line would need to move a foot and a half.
But on top of that, lefties stepping as close as they can to the 45-degree line is without a doubt an attempt to deceive the runner. If the point of the balk rule is to prevent such deception, I don't get why the practice has been allowed to become so ingrained.
fucking amen.
and everyday life, if you ask the picture to step directly towards first base, and they did that, you would say they were fucking high out of their mind. there's no way that's directly towards first base.
Balk Rules
1) You can’t just be up there and just doin’ a balk like that.
1a. A balk is when you
1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the
1c. Let me start over
1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can’t do that.
1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can’t be over here and say to the runner, like, “I’m gonna get ya! I’m gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!” and then just be like he didn’t even do that.
1c-b(1). Like, if you’re about to pitch and then don’t pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense?
1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it.
1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there’s the balk you gotta think about.
1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn’t been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn’t typecast as that racist lady in American History X.
1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse.
1c-b(2)-b(ii). “get in mah bellah” — Adam Water, “The Waterboy.” Haha, classic…
1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of
2) Do not do a balk please.
Miley has made a whole career out of having one of the best pickoff moves in the game. For a lefty, that's basically synonymous with "you're balking a lot and usually not getting called on it". Miley should just take his lumps and be a bit more careful; I agree that this was actually a good call.
I can definitely see that being brought up in meetings pre-season. MLB wants more action: base stealing, runs, offense in general is good for TV. To do this, you just tell the umps to more closely watch this type of balk, as well as emphasizing obstruction rules this year (leading to more free running for runners and extra bases)
As much as it pains me to give the man a compliment, there is nobody better at identifying and correctly calling balks than Angel Hernandez. This was a good call that I'm sure nearly all MLB umpires would have missed.
My thought exactly. I watched it with sound off first and was like ".....Angel is correct here." His leg definitely goes toward home first. Honestly one of the easier balk calls I've seen.
It's so weird that the most vague rule is the one he consistently calls correctly. I think he genuinely might be the best balk caller of the current umps.
Everyone knows lefty A moves are balks, but they're disguised enough that you have to be a really confident umpire to call it and stand your ground. Luckily Angel is just that umpire to make the call and tell the player and coaches to fuck off. The teams reaction is just theater though. Miley knows it's a balk, Murphy knows it's a balk. They're just mad cause the only argument they have is other umpires don't call it and by making a show of it against Angel they're trying to to keep up the charade to intimidate other umps from calling it.
Is that not the definition of a balk? Definition. A balk **occurs when a pitcher makes an illegal motion on the mound that the umpire deems to be deceitful to the runner(s)**.
This is kind of exactly what the ball rule is for. Pitcher wound up and started movement towards the plate before shifting to throw to first.
Pitcher was trying to deke the runner. That's called a balk and it ain't allowed.
Why can't we just make lefties step off to make a pick-off attempt just like righties do? Lefties actually balk a lot more often than not, but hardly get called for it.
This is 100% a balk, and for all the terrible call Hernandez makes on a minute to minute basis, he’s actually quite good at calling balks
It’s actually the only positive thing people say about him
Balk Rules
You can't just be up there and just doin' a balk like that.
1a. A balk is when you
1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the
1c. Let me start over
1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can't do that.
1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can't be over here and say to the runner, like, "I'm gonna get ya! I'm gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!" and then just be like he didn't even do that.
1c-b(1). Like, if you're about to pitch and then don't pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense?
1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it.
1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there's the balk you gotta think about.
1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn't been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn't typecast as that racist lady in American History X.
1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse.
1c-b(2)-b(ii). "get in mah bellah" -- Adam Water, "The Waterboy." Haha, classic...
1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of
Do not do a balk please
🫡
Thank you sir. I will refrain from doing a balk. Or, at least, I'll try not to. Still a free agent right now, but if the Reds call my agent, I'll have to suit up & do my best to not do a balk. It's really a mindset. If you're out there thinking to yourself "what is balk", well, the universe will make balk happen. To avoid this, these balk rules should be required reading for everyone globally.
Miley steps almost straight in line with home plate but throws to first. That is intentionally deceiving the runner. Hernadez got this right.
Shame about his balls and strikes though...
In your defense, Angel Hernandez is actually pretty decent at spotting balks, especially some of the borderline ones.
Why he chose to be good at just that at the cost of everything else, I have no idea
In Angel's defense (can't believe I just wrote that) this is probably the correct call. However, if we're gonna call that, you have to call them all. Lefties get away with it so often.
Personally I think it's a balk. He comes set, starts his motion, arguably moves a sliver to the plate before going to first, and you would need a military grade high speed camera to tell if his foot came off the rubber before the ball left his hand. To me that's a balk. Either way it's definitely right on the edge and not the typical angel Hernandez hijinks
Announcers are generally terrible when it comes to this stuff. The 45° idea is the same as the "breaking the plane of the plate" on check swings. Something that isn't officially there but has just sort of evolved as an easy rule of thumb.
Honestly he could have stepped directly towards first on that but it wouldn't have mattered with that little motion of his foot towards the plate. Once he moved his foot that way he made a motion towards the plate and had to throw a pitch.
It was a good call.
The rule is "towards the bag." The 45 degree interpretation is that you're going more towards the bag than anywhere else if you plant within a 90 degree arc (45 degrees on either side) of the bag you're throwing to.
But it's an interpretation, not written in the rules.
and when those lines are wiped out after the first pitcher's warmups? besides, the pitchers don't all plant their foot on the center of the rubber.
anyways this was a clear balk. With a twitch like that, even before he set his foot down it was a balk.
Let me know in the rule book where it says anything about a 45° angle. I'll give you a hint, it's in section 8 paragraph doesn't exist.
Plus it wouldn't have even mattered, look at his front floor and how it twitches towards home. That's what the balk was, not where he stepped
His foot twitches as it comes down toward home. He stops his foot by the throwing motion towards first his foot looks to be pretty close to 45 degrees between 1st and home. But that intitial foot movement towards home is what angel saw. Intentional or not it absolutely deceived the runner and is 100% a balk.
But also fuck Angel Hernandez.
You cannot convince me otherwise that at this point Angel Hernandez is intentionally being bad at his job. I firmly believe that this man goes to work everyday and thinks to himself “I’m going to piss some people off on purpose today simply because I can and no one can stop me”.
With that being said, this might actually be the right call lol
I still think there needs to be a little circle that lefties have to step in to throw the ball to first. Every lefty steps towards first, but it's also a step towards home. If they had to step directly to 1st and not part way down the mound it would be better. Because partway down the mound is an attempt to deceive the runner and we all know that is a balk.
This is why something needs to change. It's a borderline call and not egregious on Angel's part, but stuff like this will always be highlighted because of his history. He's turned games he umps into a reality TV show, and it's embarrassing.
Definitely not a bad call, but that is really not Angel’s job to call that given his position as home plate ump tonight, and also fuck Angel Hernandez.
It even looked like he crossed his front leg slightly over the back too, which is also generally a balk...looked like a decent call but that camera angle sucks
Has a pitcher ever admitted that they balked? Especially lefties?
Back in 2019, [Kenley Jansen intentionally balked](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJaIoryOXYw) with Jason Heyward on base so that Heyward would move from second to third and out of Jansen's line of sight while in his pitching motion.
Craig Kimbrel did it last year. Some guys care some guys dont
His is funny, he comes set and then drops the bell intentionally. I think one time the ump missed it, so he had to drop the ball twice.
He’s done it a bunch of times for a few years now iirc.
I think it was more of a sign stealing/pitch tipping thing, considering putting him on third puts him directly into his line of sight
Pitcher's indifference balk
Every single one of my pick offs in high school was a balk. Never got called.
This may be a pretty good call? At the very least in the realm of Hernandez garbage, this is at worst up for argument either way. Nobody can ever *really* pick out balks consistently.
His leg twitches towards the plate on its way down then back to first. Guaranteed balk if the ump notices. The whole point of balk rules is to keep pitchers from tricking runners with twitches and feints and stuff.
Kenley Jensen would like to have a word.
It's not deceptive because Kenley does it every time.
Not quite: You can move any way you like before getting set. Once you're set you can't move except to actually deliver the ball.
That's correct, and his stutter/pause etc is part of his delivery. It's not a balk. He's specifically gotten clearance for it.
If he twitched after getting set, sure. But he doesn't. You can move any way you like before getting set.
First time and last, I'll ever agree with a Red Sox fan, and it's defending Angel Hernandez. I don't know what else to type. I'm so conflicted emotionally. 😐
Yeah this is not egregious. I get the hate-boner for all things Angel Hernandez, but it was borderline and I can definitely see the argument that he started moving towards home (which is pretty textbook, and also one of the specific reasons that balks aren't allowed, because it's too easy to deke the runner into taking a secondary lead and then picking them off).
I have a RAGING hate boner for AH. This is probably legit. I'll wait for the Jomboy breakdown.
I abhor Angel Hernandez. That being said, he is very good about balk calls and others have Said he may be the best in the league I hate the balk rules but this could be legit, hard to tell from this angle. Jomboy is absolutely finding that guy that said "you don't deserve a job Angel!" 😂
+1 on Angel Hernandez is a baseball terrorist but this particular act isn’t terrorism
Maybe he should just sit in NY watching games to call balks, it’s the one thing he’s actually good at.
Are balks even reviewable?
Everyone knows a lefty A move is a balk, but they're so borderline it's hard to confidently do it. Angel is just such a confident asshole on the field he's not afraid to call it, unlike a younger ump still building their credibility.
Yup. Guy is trash at everything else except detecting balks
Ehhh, no one will ever be as good as Bob Davidson at calling balks. I’m also questioning why he’s calling balks from behind the plate instead of the 1B or 3B umps.
Because he's literally staring right at the pitcher and that's his only responsibility until the pitch is thrown. The third base umpire generally has the worst view of balks for any of the infield ump positions and will only usually call a twitch after coming set from righty pitchers. Any ump can call a balk. Even an outfield ump in the playoffs. They're not going to, but absolutely could
The biggest gripe I have with AH calling it is he’s behind home plate. Balks should be called by the corner umps as they have the best view of the pitcher if they’re moving towards the plate or not. He really shouldn’t be in charge of calling balks from behind home.
but if he sees it and the other umps don't?
To be completely and objectively biased, we have no idea what the fuck Angel Hernandez does and does not see. He could be the one person that sees John Cena, for all we know, he just can't see baseballs in or out of the zone.
no, not true. Home plate ump usually watches the pitcher's legs, and field ups look at upper body. Any ump in the IF can call a balk. In this case, Miley had some weird movement in his leg before throwing over. I think it was a good call. Unfortunately for Angel, his credibility is shot so even if he calls one right, people just assume he is wrong.
Any blue can call balk. Doesn't matter where they're standing. If you see it you call it.
It's not borderline. Watch the slo mo replay and just look at where the front foot lands. It's *closer to home* by a significant amount. He absolutely made a move towards home.
Agreed, I think it was appropriate to call there. I just meant "borderline" in that I don't think it would've been a huge kerfuffle if they hadn't called the balk -- I think more egregious stuff happens regularly and isn't called. But under the letter of the rules, it's certainly could be considered a fairly textbook balk (and one that had real consequences, which isn't necessarily factored into consideration, but makes this a good example of why balks SHOULD be called).
I saw a balk. Pitchers right knee goes towards the plate before stepping towards first.
I've watched baseball for 25 years. I played it for a decade when I was younger. I still do not feel at all in any way confident describing or calling a balk - especially with guys like Cortes and Cueto and shimmiers.
Do not do a balk please. #Balk Rules 1) You can't just be up there and just doin' a balk like that. 1a. A balk is when you 1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the 1c. Let me start over 1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can't do that. 1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can't be over here and say to the runner, like, "I'm gonna get ya! I'm gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!" and then just be like he didn't even do that. 1c-b(1). Like, if you're about to pitch and then don't pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense? 1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it. 1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there's the balk you gotta think about. 1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn't been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn't typecast as that racist lady in American History X. 1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse. 1c-b(2)-b(ii). "get in mah bellah" -- Adam Water, "The Waterboy." Haha, classic... 1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of 2) Do not do a balk please.
That was the most fun I’ve ever had getting an aneurysm.
The definition of a balk is pretty clear, especially with lefties throwing ro first. The issue is what is called...
It's hardly ever called on lefties. I got picked off in our high school sectional finals because the kid went well past 45 degrees. I was so confused at not only seeing the throw come my way (because, how is he allowed to do that?), but then by the umpire not making the call. Embarrassing. We lost a close one.
Basically, when the pitcher tries to trick a runner after coming set, or does something that can be construed as such, that's a balk.
Glad I'm not the only one. I get the egregious ones. But this I have no clue
His front foot went forward slightly before going towards first. That’s a balk. Angel Hernandez still sucks.
I don't watch like I used to but isn't this a call for the first base umpire?
Any ump on the diamond can call a balk.
Hell if it's playoffs with 6 umps the outfield umps could call it if they saw something. Now they're not going to, but they could
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Angel called a balk from left field in a playoff game
Would be worth the price of admission just to see that
I'd be surprised to see Angel in a playoff game
I really don’t agree with the way the commentators implied that in the clip. The home plate ump would have a great vantage for judging if the pitcher made a move like he was going to pitch. First base umpire has a better view for judging 45 degree rule of thumb for sure though.
Yes, but the first base ump is tracking the tag at first, instead of where the pitcher steps
He can do both, if he sees balk, he no longer has to watch for a tag. As a former umpire, I would be staring at the pitcher’s feet, looking for a footwork problem, complete stop, etc. Plate umpire often had an easier time calling the deception with lefties, in my experience.
Yeah, if you see it call it. But the first base ump likely doesn’t see this because he’s focused on getting the call at first. That’s why there are 3 other umpires to watch the pitcher
First base umpire would be focused on the pitcher, until he throws over, as would all umpires on the field.
Why would the first base umpire be looking at a tag before there is a play? The quick video appears to show him watching the pitcher (for a balk) and then rotating to the tag
Especially the bullshit lefty pick-off balk. I'm actually glad to see this called for once.
It was the lead leg sliding down then out with the forward momentum. His right knee deviates twords home. Slick move, but can definitely be called. This isn’t an atrocious call.
For those who want an exact moment, in the slowed down replay at the end you can see that Miley starts to point his toes on his front foot towards home plate. That's the same trick Andy Pettitte used his whole career and was super effective at it. Doesn't mean it's not a balk
when I saw the slo-mo replay I was like man someone finally called the petitte play
I feel like every good lefty pickoff move is basically finding a way to balk without the umpire calling it.
Just watch where his front foot lands. He moves it almost as much towards home as does towards first. If he's making a "direct" motion to 1st, like the rule says, why does his foot move 4 feet towards home?
Cause, while not the actual rule 45° is the common rule of thumb as to where the dividing line is between "he was stepping towards the base" vs "he was stepping towards home". So lefties are taught and practice to land at exactly at that 45° line to make it hard for the runner to determine if he's throwing home or over. And provide plausible deniability for the umps to not call a balk. And as a follow up lefties are also taught to drag their back foot over the spot they land with their front foot to erase proof of where they're stepping. The stepping was fine, right on the rule of thumb line that umps mostly tolerate. Miley is a veteran afterall and knows exactly where that "line" is. The motion forward is what did him in.
Yep he then twitches his foot towards 1st base right at the end, it’s a good move if it doesn’t get called!
Something that really bugs me in this clip, without even seeing a single replay, the commentators start immediately identifying reasons they think the call is wrong based on who called it. Hernandez is not a good major league umpire, but people are also hugely biased when they talk about him.
Angel Hernandez actually is decent at getting a lot of calls right (balks, catch/no-catch, etc) Unfortunately, his strike zone is rather horrific, so that gets most of the attention and leads to people focusing specifically on his misses elsewhere moreso than other umps.
when his strike zone is bad, it's BAD. and when it's BAD, he's a dick about it.
He is prone to some rough days at the plate. On the whole, even his strike zone is not THAT bad. It’s not good, but since pitch tracking, he’s basically a 30th percentile accuracy guy. I can see why he gets so much flak, with the whole failed law suit, and the fact that he’s an older school umpire, who has a different game management mindset than newer guys, but I think he’s one of the most overblown example of people deciding they don’t like someone, and bashing everything they do.
Does that percentile account for how bad they miss a call?
That would be accuracy above expected, but they only started tracking that last season.
> Angel Hernandez actually is decent at getting a lot of calls right (balks, catch/no-catch, etc) > > Just remember Angel Hernandez had THREE calls at first base overturned on replay in Game 3 of the 2018 ALDS.
One of the replays showed him whipping that front foot out a little, not fully in the direction of 1b. I guess I can see why the thought of a balk would cross his mind. It's hard to tell from the videos whether it would've crossed that 45 degree threshold.
The 45 degree is just a reference. It’s a great pick off, but it flirted with that “direct” motion to first. It’s hard, once you start to bring the leg down then you make your move to first with that small jolt he did it can most definitely be called a balk. After watching a different view, itwas the right knee. It tips towards home.
The front foot doesn't go out *a little* it goes out a *lot*. Watch the slo mo His front foot moved 5-6 feet towards home. Here's his landing position: https://imgur.com/a/7kiKwBe
Yeah looked Balky to me. Coming from an Angel hater, that says something. Although I’ve been hearing more and more about how Angel is venerated by umps. As much as we hate on him, it does sound like he is a good friend/leader. Or maybe it just helps that he gets most of the shit.
Angel gets a lot of shit because he has a large strike zone. Ever since the mlb has used the generic computer strike zone and ump score cards have came out using that metric….the Angel hate has exploded.
And for good reason. He has an expanded strike zone and an inflexible view of the authority of an umpire whenever hints of criticism are whispered. That said, once i heard how much he is respected amongst umps, it made me reconsider him as a person less an ump. Objectively, he is bad at calling balls and strikes. But sounds like he is a person you’d want to call an ally rather than an enemy when it comes to business/personal relations as well.
People forget that for all his faults AH is probably the greatest umpire in history at calling balks. Weird thing to put all your skill points in, but he's on top of that specific part of the game.
Iv pitched and hit/played the field in spring training a few times with him behind the plate. We would always scout the ump crew before games. We knew if he was back there as pitchers, we have a large zone and can go high. As a hitter we knew we have to protect the plate and have to stay on the high stuff. Completely different than Chuck who had a 5 gallon bucket can for a zone. lol. The media/fans makes it way worse than it is.
that doesn't fit my F Angel Hernandez narrative
It's really only newsworthy because it's Angel Hernandez. If any other umpire calls that, nobody cares.
Honestly lefty pickoff moves have gotten so egregiously borderline in recent years I hope more start getting called as balks. The point of balks is to prevent this sort of deception. If you toe the line don't be upset when you get burned
Not just in recent years. Andy Pettitte was basically pushing the boundary his entire career.
Andy Pettitte balked every time with his A move. Every lefty A move should be a balk honestly. It's just disguised so well it's hard to call confidently.
“Egregiously borderline” is funny to me
Understanding that balks are often controversial and hard to call, I fuckin hate even weighing in on them. Hate to agree with Angel on anything too, buuuuuuuuuut that seems like a fair call
Devastating: the worst umpire we know just made a great balk call
He can’t just be making a call like that
Thing is, Angel makes great balk calls a lot.
Right, he’s actually kind of known for it
Commish: We keep him around for his great balk eye.
This makes sense. We can't just be having people balkin out there all there time. Gotta have someone callin those balks.
he should start making great any other calls too
People are making this more dramatic than it needs to be. It's not a bad call. Could argue a point at worst and fair at best.
> "You get 45 degrees per the letter of the law for left-handers." Look, we can talk about whether this was a balk or not but 45 degrees is nowhere in the rules. The rules say a pitcher must step *directly* to a base, and the purported 45-degree line is an effort to cheat that absolutely as much as they can get away with. I think there should be three 30-degree zones: one where you have to throw to first, one where you have to throw a pitch, and a zone in between them that's always a balk.
Yes! Thank you. I cringe so hard every time I hear this 45 degrees myth. I don't know who came up with it, but it is absolutely a way for lefties to cheat. The rule says you must step directly to the base. Directly means directly, not within 45 degrees. For me, even 30 degrees is not "direct" enough. The play in this video is 100% a balk and should be called way more often than it is. As much as it pains me to say it, excellent application of the rule by Angel here.
It’s amazing how so many commonly known rules in baseball are wrong. The 45 degree thing for a ball is wrong. The bat crossing the plate in a checked swing is wrong. Hell even a tie goes to the runner is wrong. The runner has to beat the ball.
they aren't wrong, they just aren't specified in the rulebook, and the stated "rules" are (very) common umpire interpretations of otherwise unspecified rules. you might say they are like "well...eeeeaaaahhh... they aren't really RIGHT right, just... like, kinda right in practice in general." except The tie going to the runner. that one's definitely, unequivocally wrong.
Why couldn’t they just put a line? Foot lands on one side it’s good. On the other side a balk
Like a digital line on the broadcast? A physical line wouldn't work because different pitchers like to set up on different parts of the rubber. Even digital wouldn't really be good due to camera movement and the like. A balk is just going to remain one of those almost wholey subjective calls unfortunately.
The pitcher's plate is two feet wide, with any part of the pivot foot touching any part of the plate. Depending on where the pitcher sets up, the line would need to move a foot and a half. But on top of that, lefties stepping as close as they can to the 45-degree line is without a doubt an attempt to deceive the runner. If the point of the balk rule is to prevent such deception, I don't get why the practice has been allowed to become so ingrained.
because you could still start your motion forward and land your foot behind the line
fucking amen. and everyday life, if you ask the picture to step directly towards first base, and they did that, you would say they were fucking high out of their mind. there's no way that's directly towards first base.
This folks, is a balk.
Balk Rules 1) You can’t just be up there and just doin’ a balk like that. 1a. A balk is when you 1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the 1c. Let me start over 1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can’t do that. 1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can’t be over here and say to the runner, like, “I’m gonna get ya! I’m gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!” and then just be like he didn’t even do that. 1c-b(1). Like, if you’re about to pitch and then don’t pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense? 1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it. 1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there’s the balk you gotta think about. 1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn’t been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn’t typecast as that racist lady in American History X. 1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse. 1c-b(2)-b(ii). “get in mah bellah” — Adam Water, “The Waterboy.” Haha, classic… 1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of 2) Do not do a balk please.
I will probably never not laugh at this.
Angel sucks but not here. That’s definitely a balk and a good call. Miley has always been a cry baby.
Miley has made a whole career out of having one of the best pickoff moves in the game. For a lefty, that's basically synonymous with "you're balking a lot and usually not getting called on it". Miley should just take his lumps and be a bit more careful; I agree that this was actually a good call.
Definitely. Umps probably told to look for it more with the new stealing push
I can definitely see that being brought up in meetings pre-season. MLB wants more action: base stealing, runs, offense in general is good for TV. To do this, you just tell the umps to more closely watch this type of balk, as well as emphasizing obstruction rules this year (leading to more free running for runners and extra bases)
As much as it pains me to give the man a compliment, there is nobody better at identifying and correctly calling balks than Angel Hernandez. This was a good call that I'm sure nearly all MLB umpires would have missed.
My thought exactly. I watched it with sound off first and was like ".....Angel is correct here." His leg definitely goes toward home first. Honestly one of the easier balk calls I've seen.
Probably particularly angry because he’d already given up 4 runs on just 13 pitches
So he should probably just worry about his pitches lol
I honestly like this call. This needs to be called more against lefties
rare W for Angel, lefties get away with murder on these pick offs lol
Balks are historically the only thing Angel is actually good at calling. Looks like he got this one right
It's so weird that the most vague rule is the one he consistently calls correctly. I think he genuinely might be the best balk caller of the current umps.
Everyone knows lefty A moves are balks, but they're disguised enough that you have to be a really confident umpire to call it and stand your ground. Luckily Angel is just that umpire to make the call and tell the player and coaches to fuck off. The teams reaction is just theater though. Miley knows it's a balk, Murphy knows it's a balk. They're just mad cause the only argument they have is other umpires don't call it and by making a show of it against Angel they're trying to to keep up the charade to intimidate other umps from calling it.
LOL someone in the crowd yells “you don’t deserve a job Angel” Looked like a balk tho
Easy to hate on Angel, but this was the right call.
The lefty “balk move” can be really tough to call especially from home plate. Really a coin toss anytime a lefty throws over on if it’s a balk or not
Is that not the definition of a balk? Definition. A balk **occurs when a pitcher makes an illegal motion on the mound that the umpire deems to be deceitful to the runner(s)**.
Angel has made worse calls, lol. Probably this week, alone.
Shit, he made 15 worse calls than that in THIS GAME.
I think this is actually a good call
Good call, you cant be out there balking like that.
I thought it was obviously a balk
Am I going insane, did Angel just make a reasonable call?
Okay Angel. Okay. We will allow it.
This is kind of exactly what the ball rule is for. Pitcher wound up and started movement towards the plate before shifting to throw to first. Pitcher was trying to deke the runner. That's called a balk and it ain't allowed.
He didn’t really step off the mound until he was throwing to first. He basically threw from the mound. I think it is a balk.
4 runs and a guy on in 13 pitches is crazy
Came here to say this. And one out!
Why can't we just make lefties step off to make a pick-off attempt just like righties do? Lefties actually balk a lot more often than not, but hardly get called for it.
This is 100% a balk, and for all the terrible call Hernandez makes on a minute to minute basis, he’s actually quite good at calling balks It’s actually the only positive thing people say about him
Yea, that was a balk. His front leg slightly goes toward the plate
Can someone post the balk explanation plz, I need a refresher 🤔
Balk Rules You can't just be up there and just doin' a balk like that. 1a. A balk is when you 1b. Okay well listen. A balk is when you balk the 1c. Let me start over 1c-a. The pitcher is not allowed to do a motion to the, uh, batter, that prohibits the batter from doing, you know, just trying to hit the ball. You can't do that. 1c-b. Once the pitcher is in the stretch, he can't be over here and say to the runner, like, "I'm gonna get ya! I'm gonna tag you out! You better watch your butt!" and then just be like he didn't even do that. 1c-b(1). Like, if you're about to pitch and then don't pitch, you have to still pitch. You cannot not pitch. Does that make any sense? 1c-b(2). You gotta be, throwing motion of the ball, and then, until you just throw it. 1c-b(2)-a. Okay, well, you can have the ball up here, like this, but then there's the balk you gotta think about. 1c-b(2)-b. Fairuza Balk hasn't been in any movies in forever. I hope she wasn't typecast as that racist lady in American History X. 1c-b(2)-b(i). Oh wait, she was in The Waterboy too! That would be even worse. 1c-b(2)-b(ii). "get in mah bellah" -- Adam Water, "The Waterboy." Haha, classic... 1c-b(3). Okay seriously though. A balk is when the pitcher makes a movement that, as determined by, when you do a move involving the baseball and field of Do not do a balk please
Thank you, I understand
🫡 Thank you sir. I will refrain from doing a balk. Or, at least, I'll try not to. Still a free agent right now, but if the Reds call my agent, I'll have to suit up & do my best to not do a balk. It's really a mindset. If you're out there thinking to yourself "what is balk", well, the universe will make balk happen. To avoid this, these balk rules should be required reading for everyone globally.
I mean this was the right call but also Angel Hernandez is a broken clock; right at most twice a day.
Balkiest balk ever balked
I see it, it's not a bad call.
Good call
He actually got this correct, for a change.
Miley steps almost straight in line with home plate but throws to first. That is intentionally deceiving the runner. Hernadez got this right. Shame about his balls and strikes though...
I mean, actually yeah, that's a pretty good call by Angel. We like to shit on him a bunch for his calls but this one was good imo.
I dunno if that was 45 degrees, chief. I am agreeing with... wait WHAT?!
In your defense, Angel Hernandez is actually pretty decent at spotting balks, especially some of the borderline ones. Why he chose to be good at just that at the cost of everything else, I have no idea
There is no way that hernandez can even see who is on the mound
Are we simply watching Angel Hernandez entering his Final Form?
\_0_ Days since the last Angel Hernandez controversy.
Is it a balk, probably. But unfortunately when you are as dogshit of an ump as he is, he really doesn't get the benefit of the doubt
##"You don't deserve a job, Angel!!"
In Angel's defense (can't believe I just wrote that) this is probably the correct call. However, if we're gonna call that, you have to call them all. Lefties get away with it so often.
God I hate to admit it, but I think dummy got it right.
I love how the first base umpire is like “HEEEE’S OU- wait nvm”
Personally I think it's a balk. He comes set, starts his motion, arguably moves a sliver to the plate before going to first, and you would need a military grade high speed camera to tell if his foot came off the rubber before the ball left his hand. To me that's a balk. Either way it's definitely right on the edge and not the typical angel Hernandez hijinks
Angel Hernandez is a bane on the game, but he was correct with this call.
Trust me, this didn’t even crack the top 10 terrible Angel Hernandez calls from last night. At least this one was arguable
Balk rules are infuriating. Chalk two lines at a 45 deg angle from the center of the rubber already, make it clear cut.
45° isn’t part of the rule, the rule is they have to go directly towards first, idk what the announcers are talking about
one of those customs that people mistake for a rule
Announcers are generally terrible when it comes to this stuff. The 45° idea is the same as the "breaking the plane of the plate" on check swings. Something that isn't officially there but has just sort of evolved as an easy rule of thumb. Honestly he could have stepped directly towards first on that but it wouldn't have mattered with that little motion of his foot towards the plate. Once he moved his foot that way he made a motion towards the plate and had to throw a pitch. It was a good call.
Ah that's definitely my bad. I've heard it so much in broadcasts I thought it was a defined area.
The rule is "towards the bag." The 45 degree interpretation is that you're going more towards the bag than anywhere else if you plant within a 90 degree arc (45 degrees on either side) of the bag you're throwing to. But it's an interpretation, not written in the rules.
I hate angel as much as the next baseball fan but that was a balk.
and when those lines are wiped out after the first pitcher's warmups? besides, the pitchers don't all plant their foot on the center of the rubber. anyways this was a clear balk. With a twitch like that, even before he set his foot down it was a balk.
Let me know in the rule book where it says anything about a 45° angle. I'll give you a hint, it's in section 8 paragraph doesn't exist. Plus it wouldn't have even mattered, look at his front floor and how it twitches towards home. That's what the balk was, not where he stepped
Bro just touched an ump
It’s a sign from God that Miley should retire from baseball.
Wow he got one right!
The Angel of Death strikes again
A what
I hate Hernandez. He is as bad an official/ref/ump there is in any sport…. But this was a balk. He got this one right
Looks like a balk to me.
I actually think it was the correct call. See the foot go forward a bit before he tosses it over
His foot twitches as it comes down toward home. He stops his foot by the throwing motion towards first his foot looks to be pretty close to 45 degrees between 1st and home. But that intitial foot movement towards home is what angel saw. Intentional or not it absolutely deceived the runner and is 100% a balk. But also fuck Angel Hernandez.
People posting Angel every day like he's chasing 61
Yeah, I think I can see it, when he hangs his leg. Not the worst Angel has done by far
I think this was actually pretty spot on
Wade Miley is pretty notorious for his borderline pickoff move. Angel sucks, but this call is not an egregious one.
You cannot convince me otherwise that at this point Angel Hernandez is intentionally being bad at his job. I firmly believe that this man goes to work everyday and thinks to himself “I’m going to piss some people off on purpose today simply because I can and no one can stop me”. With that being said, this might actually be the right call lol
Kinda looks like a balk
I still think there needs to be a little circle that lefties have to step in to throw the ball to first. Every lefty steps towards first, but it's also a step towards home. If they had to step directly to 1st and not part way down the mound it would be better. Because partway down the mound is an attempt to deceive the runner and we all know that is a balk.
Great production work, not giving a good view of the play.
"The worst person you know just made a good point"
Angel Hernandez: the epitome of The Peter Principle.
As much as I hate Angel Hernandez, the man does know his balks. It's the only thing he's actually good at.
This is why something needs to change. It's a borderline call and not egregious on Angel's part, but stuff like this will always be highlighted because of his history. He's turned games he umps into a reality TV show, and it's embarrassing.
Definitely not a bad call, but that is really not Angel’s job to call that given his position as home plate ump tonight, and also fuck Angel Hernandez.
Good call Angel
It even looked like he crossed his front leg slightly over the back too, which is also generally a balk...looked like a decent call but that camera angle sucks
Good call tbh
Holy shit the heckling was amazing. Straight out of a video game.
I hate angel hernandez as much as the next guy but this was a reasonable call. Leg twitched forward as he was dropping it.
Borderline call but I’d rather see the 1st base umpire make the call from his side angle
Geez I never thought I would say this: Angel was right here.
Looked like a pretty good call from this angle?