I have seen recently the Yankees have a switch-pitcher that actually throws right handed to righty and left handed to lefty.

My question is what is the ruling when a switch-hitter is up against him ... does the pitcher or batter need to declare which way they will play the at bat ???

Otherwise, there would just be endless time outs called with both sides trying to gain an advantage.

I have been very curious about this ever since I read about this pitcher.

Thought your rule was no gay stuff

^lmfao.

Pitcher and hitter can start off, jockeying around however they want to.....but, once dude steps in the batter's box, that is it for him. Since defense controls the ball, hitter declares (by going up right or left), then pitcher can deliver how he wants. Of course, hitter can call time BEFORE the ball is pitched (the first time), and change then. But, that's if time is granted...

Regardless, neither one can switch once an at bat starts.

Confused? F*cking baseball rules.

fret

Ever since I heard about this guy, I have been very intrigued. It's been 100 years since there has been such a pitcher.

I have been wondering many things about this.

One thing I've been trying to figure; is the glove situation. No doubt he has 2 gloves, but as PPP stated; what about switch hitters; that would take the advantage away. Unless, he has a custom glove?

So I guess that would answer Marcs question, the switch hitter would just look to see what glove he has on, right or left, then bat accordingly.

Da76guinness

There was actually an incident like this a few years ago, can't remember if it was in the major leagues or not. The batter was a switch hitter, and the pitcher could pitch with either hand. It went back and forth over and over, the pitcher switching hands, the batter switching sides. The pitcher had a special glove that fit either hand.

There was much talk about it because there was no rule to deal with it. I can't remember what became of it though.

I do remember it being talked about on SportsCenter though.

IIRC, the minors developed a rule that allowed each to switch once. That way you wouldn't have an interminable battle with a switch-hitter jumping from box to box each second. I don't believe that the major league rule book has a rule covering that, however.

Even more intriguing is the idea of a hitter switching during the at-bat. Granted, it could be tough to do, especially if the pitcher pitches from the stretch or uses a slide-step. And, the batter is out if he hits the ball while touching home plate. However, if the guy goes into a wind-up, batter has a helmet with two ear flaps, and no rule prevents it, I could foresee situations with a batter jumping home plate and getting into a stance from the other side.

Incidentally, this particular pitcher has a glove with places for six fingers...or more likely, two thumbs and four fingers. He can wear it on each hand, just leaving one of the slots in the glove empty.

Actually, it appears my recollection is correct...I found this article, which predates any entry into the majors, BTW...I'm not sure if he has been cut by the Yankees yet or not:

Hence, the establishment of the Venditte Rule, recently adopted by the Professional Baseball Umpires Corporation (PBUC) after consulting with Major League Baseball's Rules Committee.

Basically it states that the pitcher must visually indicate to the ump which arm he'll use at the beginning of the at-bat and the hitter can then select from which side of the plate he'll swing. After one pitch is thrown, the hitter and pitcher can only switch one time during the at-bat.

Base on that, I'd expect any major league rule to read the same if one has not already been adopted.

#5 I'm pretty sure you're thinking of the minor leagues...while there was one pitcher back in 1995 or so that switched arms on 3-4 batters, the last major mention of such skills were rumored from the 1880s. There was said to be a couple guys in Japan who were working on that, but I never heard of that going anywhere.

It's hard to fathom, frankly. I've seen guys, very good hitters, try to bat from the opposite side and fail badly. I taught myself to hit left-handed years ago (I'm a natural righty) and while I hit for decent contact, I had far more power from the right side when I played. I've hit left-handed in practice and at batting cages, but I don't think I ever had enough confidence to try it in a real game.

It was a pretty sweet show-off thing, however. When I was dating the current Mrs. Pacman, she, myself and a good buddy of mine went to a batting cage. I bashed a few right-handed, then switched sides. She asked my buddy why I was doing that...he said "because he can".

Now THAT is a good friend! BTW, I've also seen several good pitchers and position players try to throw with their opposite arm. Every damned one of them threw like a girl when using the wrong arm. Same here...I've had a strong throwing arm from the right side for years, but I couldn't hit a barn from five feet away with my left hand.

The pitcher has to declare which arm he is going to pitch with before the first pitch, both the batter and the pitcher are allowed to switch once during an at bat. BTW the pitcher on the yankees has a 6 finger glove that can be used on either hand.

What happens when an ambidextrous pitcher faces off against a switch-hitting batter?

This may sound like an abstract philosophical query along the lines of "If a tree falls in the forest..." but on Thursday night in Brooklyn, this baffling conundrum became all too real.

The Staten Island Yankees were leading the host Cyclones, 7-2, in the bottom of the ninth inning when Pat Venditte came in to close out the ballgame. Venditte, a 20th-round Draft pick who happened to be making his professional debut, is ambidextrous. The Creighton State product even uses a specially-made six-fingered glove that can be worn comfortably on either hand.

Pitching right-handed, Venditte induced a pair of groundouts to start the inning, and Nicholas Giarraputo then singled to center field to keep the game alive. This brought switch-hitter Ralph Henriquez to the plate, and that's when the fun began.

Henriquez had been swinging left-handed in the on-deck circle, so Venditte switched his glove to his right hand in order to face the 21-year-old backstop. Seeing this, Henriquez instead came to the plate batting from the right side. So, Venditte switched his glove back to his left hand. Henriquez then decided to bat lefty, and Venditte switched his glove yet again.

And on and on it went. This rather absurd (and highly amusing) game of chicken ultimately led to a prolonged conference between the umpires and coaching staffs of both teams. After much debate, Manriquez was made to bat right-handed against Venditte throwing right-handed. Manriquez then struck out on three pitches to end the game.

But the debate has just begun: How, exactly, is the New York-Penn League supposed to deal with Venditte's unique talents?

"We're entering uncharted territory at this time, and right now it's simply our goal to be as fair as possible," said Justin Klemm, the executive director of the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation (PBUC). "There is no reference to this type of situation in the MLB rulebook, but in the PBUC manual there is a rule which states that, 'In the rare occasion of an ambidextrous pitcher, pitcher and batter may change positions one time per at-bat.'"

While this is a step in the right direction, Klemm admits that there is still much to be sorted out. After all, it doesn't really matter how many times the pitcher and batter are allowed to change positions. What matters is who gets to make the final decision.

"The batter has generally been seen as the person who sets the precedent for the ball to be put in motion," remarked Klemm. "So, it's a possibility that the batter will have to commit first. What we're doing now is working through different scenarios in order to establish rules that are fair and won't make a travesty of the game."

New York-Penn League President Ben Hayes understandably shares Klemm's concerns regarding this rare situation, but also made a point to stress just how amazing Venditte's ability is.

"It's a very unique ability just to get to pro baseball in and of itself," said Hayes. "To be able to do so ambidextrously is just extraordinary."

mlb.com

I can just see his agent now...my client deserves double the pay. He does the work of two pitchers!

Better still, he can get injured in one arm and still pitch while rehabbing the other away from games. I bet most pitchers would give their left arm...er, nut for that kind of security.

Re: #9.

Interesting. I thought differently in my post....no switching once the at-bat begins.

It makes the most sense that the offense starts the at bat, and therefore needs to declare first. The batter has to enter the box for the pitcher to be able to deliver the ball. If allowed to change, then to the point above, the defense can then change seeing what the batter does.

I dunno, though. Why doesn't the pitcher just throw at the guy's ribs if he continues to move around?

fret