Ban The Balk!

Bill James on baseball’s most incomprehensible rule:

↵↵I have always felt that the entire balk rule is a mistake ... It is a mistake because the intent of the balk rule is to prevent the pitcher from deceiving the baserunner. It is contrary to the nature of sports to prevent one team from deceiving the other … The balk rule is exactly like a rule in basketball to prevent a player from faking a shot before he actually shoots, or a rule in football against faking a handoff before a pass. Faking out the other team is a normal part of the game ... a better rule would have been a rule that limited the pitcher to one (failed) throw to first per plate appearance ... if you throw over unsuccessfully a second time, the runner gets second base.

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