That's Strike 3

Ask five people what a balk is and you'll get five different answers, and most of them will be wrong. This week on That's Strike 3, I'm breaking down the most misunderstood rule in the book, straight from the actual rulebook language.

We start with the one thing you have to know before you can even think about calling a balk: is the pitcher in the windup or the set position. That single distinction changes everything downstream, including what counts as a legal pickoff attempt and what doesn't.

From there we walk through the full list of what actually constitutes a balk, not just the two or three violations everybody already knows. We also get into why umpires freeze up on borderline calls, and it's not a knowledge problem, it's a courage problem. And we close with the mechanic that trips up even good umpires: why a balk with no runner on base isn't actually a balk at all.

If you've ever felt unsure calling this rule, or you're a fan who's always wondered what's really going on when that flag goes up, this one's for you.

Out now on Amazon Music.

You're on Day 13 of a 14 day tournament streak. Your body is tired. Your mind doesn't want to be there. And somehow you still have to make good calls.

In this episode, we break down the three things that actually keep you functional during the longest stretches of tournament season:

1. Mental Awareness — It's OK to not be having a good time. Accept the grind instead of fighting it. The moment you stop trying to be positive all weekend is when you actually reset.

2. Physical Foundation — 2 to 6 hours standing in heat will destroy you if you're not hydrated and fueled going in. Your body failing means your mental game fails. Hydration, water, snacks. Non negotiable.

3. Personal Recovery Strategy — You need to know what you need off the field to be your best on the field. For some that's staying fully immersed in baseball. For others it's completely disconnecting. There's no one right answer. But knowing yourself? That's vital.

This is how you survive tournament season without burning out. This is how you call good games on Day 13 when everything says you shouldn't be there.

Listen on Amazon Music. New episodes every Wednesday.

After nearly three decades behind the plate, I've seen it all from catchers. The good, the bad, and the stuff that makes me want to call time and have a conversation.

This week is all about catcher icks. The habits, behaviors, and little annoyances that catchers bring to the plate that drive umpires crazy. From framing pitches that bounced in the dirt to turning around to argue balls and strikes, we're naming names (well, not literally) and breaking down why these habits hurt catchers more than they help.

But this isn't just a venting session. We'll talk about what great catchers do instead, how the umpire and catcher relationship actually works, and why the catchers who treat their umpire like a partner tend to get the benefit of the doubt all season long.

If you're an umpire, you'll be nodding along the whole episode. If you're a catcher or coach a catcher, consider this your scouting report on how to stay on your umpire's good side.

New episodes every Wednesday on Amazon Music.

In this episode we break down base umpire positioning in the two-man system — where to be, when to be there, and why it matters.

What we cover:

• Position A, B, and C — the right spot for every runner situation
• Angle over distance — the rule that wins when you can't have both

Positioning is visual. Follow along with the MechaniGram diagrams in the 2025-2026 NFHS Baseball Umpires Manual, available at store.referee.com.

That's Strike 3 is built for baseball umpires around three pillars: Mental Game, Craft, and Rules Knowledge.

Most umpires think they're further along than they actually are. This episode is about what happens when reality checks in.

A few years ago, I asked for feedback — genuinely asked for it — thinking I was operating at a level I hadn't actually reached yet. What I got back was tough. Honest. And it forced a decision that every umpire eventually has to make: do you use the feedback to get better, or do you convince yourself the feedback was wrong?

This episode is about that moment, and what it taught me about growth in this game.

What we cover:

• Why self-assessment as an umpire is often more generous than accurate
• What it actually feels like to receive hard feedback you weren't ready for
• The two roads every umpire faces when criticism lands
• Why baseball demands continuous improvement — and why that doesn't happen without honest feedback
• How to build a mindset that turns tough evaluations into fuel

The bottom line: You can't get better in a vacuum. The umpires who level up are the ones who learn to sit with hard feedback instead of dismissing it.

Perfect, that's a great reference. So you want the session note rewritten to match that style — punchy opener, first person, no headers for the talking points, just flowing copy with a "what we cover" bullet list and a bottom line closer?

Let me rewrite it:

THAT'S STRIKE 3 — End of Season Reflection

This season reminded me that growth doesn't announce itself. It shows up quietly, in the middle of a playoff game, in a conversation with a partner after the last out, in the moment you decide to stop worrying about the seventh inning and just call the next pitch.

I had a good season. Two district playoff games, both plates, a zone I'm proud of. But the lessons I'm taking out of this year aren't really about the results — they're about the decisions I made before the results were possible.

This episode is about those decisions, and what they taught me about what it actually takes to grow in this game.

What we cover:

• The mantra that changed how I approach plate work — and why the mental game is won or lost one pitch at a time
• Why you're never going to feel ready for the big moment, and what happens when you take the plate anyway
• How I approached feedback this season — who I asked, what I did with it, and why not implementing all of it was the right call
• What a rising tide actually looks like inside an umpire association
• Why the umpires who grow fastest are the ones who stay curious after every single game

The bottom line: The zone doesn't lie. Neither does the scorebook. If you want to get better, you have to be willing to ask hard questions — of your partners, of your mechanics, and of yourself.

The NFHS Baseball Rules Committee approved the double first base during their annual meeting in June, with the NFHS Board of Directors signing off shortly after. The base is available for use in the 2026 season and becomes mandatory for all high school baseball programs beginning in 2027. In this episode, we break down the purpose of the rule, how it works, the interference and obstruction implications for umpires, and additional rules changes from the same committee meeting.

RULES REFERENCED

• Rule 1-2-9 — Definition and physical requirements of the double first base
• Rule 2-5-1h — Fair ball: batted ball hitting or bounding over the white portion
• Rule 2-16-1h — Foul ball: batted ball hitting or bounding over the colored portion
• Rule 8-2-2a — How the batter-runner and fielder shall use the double first base
• Rule 2-10-3 — Definition of a player-to-player defensive meeting
• Rule 3-4-6 — Defensive player meetings as charged conferences
• Rule 1-6-3 — Prohibition of audio and video devices during the game

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The double first base was adopted to eliminate violent collisions at first base and address running lane violations
• The white portion is in fair territory; the colored portion is in foul territory, divided by the first base foul line
• On an initial play at first, the batter-runner uses the colored side; the fielder uses the white side
• Once the batter-runner reaches first safely, he must always return to the white base — leading off, on a pickoff, or tagging up
• Batter-runner touching only the white portion on a force play and colliding with the fielder is interference
• Defensive player touching only the colored portion and colliding with the batter-runner is obstruction
• Each team is now limited to one player-to-player defensive meeting per half-inning
• No player may wear any audio or video device during a game

SOURCES

• NFHS Baseball Rules Committee Annual Meeting, June 8-10, Indianapolis
• NFHS Official Baseball Rules Book
• Elliot Hopkins, NFHS Director of Sports and liaison to the Baseball Rules Committee
• NFHS website: www.nfhs.org

ABOUT THAT'S STRIKE 3

That's Strike 3 is the official podcast of EBUA, covering rules, mechanics, philosophy, and everything that matters to baseball umpires at every level. New episodes dropping regularly.

In this episode of That’s Strike 3, we shift from rules to relationships and focus on what it means to be a good partner on the field. Whether you’re working a two-umpire system or part of a larger crew, strong partnership is what separates a functional game from a well-officiated one.

We break down the core elements of effective umpire teamwork — communication, trust, positioning, and knowing when to get help. From pregame responsibilities to handling difficult calls, we discuss how partners can support each other without overstepping, maintain credibility, and present a unified presence throughout the game.

This episode is built for umpires at any level who want to improve consistency, confidence, and crew chemistry — because getting the call right matters, but how you work together to get there matters just as much.

In this episode of That’s Strike 3, we tackle one of the most misunderstood rules in baseball: what actually constitutes a catch. Using the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) rule book, we break down the criteria umpires use to determine a legal catch — including secure possession, control, and the requirement to maintain that control through contact with the ground.

From diving plays to bobbles on the transfer, we walk through common game situations that spark debate and clarify why what “looks like” a catch isn’t always ruled as one. This episode is designed for coaches, players, umpires, and fans who want a clearer, rule-based understanding of one of the game’s most argued calls.