How about TWO umpires calling balls and strikes?

On a check swing the plate umpire sometimes asks for help from a base umpire: first base ump for a righty batter, third base ump for a lefty batter.  They have an unobstructed side view of the strike zone.

So instead of the plate umpire continuing to guess about the imaginary three dimensional strike zone, why not have those same base umpires determine the vertical part of the strike zone?  Then the plate umpire only needs to guess about the horizontal part and may improve on the horizontal once relieved of concurrent responsibility for the vertical.

Of course my real preference is to eliminate the catcher and have strikes determined by whether or not the pitch hits a fixed target behind home plate.  Something like an archery bull's eye.

Strike Zone too low? Check the rule. And what the heck is the "hollow beneath the kneecap"? Saturday, February 14, 2015