Can You Draw A Line In Baseball? (3 Reasons Why Not)
Have you ever seen a baseball player draw a line with his bat on the ground when batting? If so, you probably have noticed that it’s usually followed by an argument between a player and the umpire. This makes you wonder whether drawing a line in baseball is allowed or not.
Technically you can draw a line in baseball as it isn’t directly illegal. However, drawing a line often leads to the player’s ejection as arguing and resisting the umpire’s decisions is illegal. That’s why some baseball players decide to draw a line, whereas others don’t.
Arguing with the umpire isn’t the smartest move as they don’t like one bit if you haven’t noticed. In addition, the baseball rules state that resisting the umpire’s decisions is illegal. However, if the umpire’s call is wrong and seen by all, then you should try to correct the umpire.
Anyways, back to the subject. Why on earth would a player get ejected from drawing a simple line in the sand, and why do they do it? Let’s take a closer look.
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Contents
What Does Drawing A Line Mean In Baseball?
Many people don’t even know what drawing a line in baseball means, as it doesn’t happen in every game by a long shot. In fact, it’s quite rare to see.
Still, drawing a line does happen, so what does it mean?
When a baseball player draws a line with their bat, they mark the spot where they think the pitcher’s throw crossed the home plate. Drawing the line happens when the batter has stuck out, so he can state the pitch’s path to the umpire. This is considered arguing and will often lead to ejection.
When you see an ejection from drawing a line, they are angry moments for both the umpire and player.
What Happens If You Draw a Line In Baseball?
Drawing a line in baseball is more tolerated by certain umpires, whereas others won’t stand it at all. Generally, umpires don’t eject people for no reason, and a bit of arguing can be okay. However, drawing a line has become almost taboo, and baseball umpires take it disrespectfully. Because of this, a player that draws a line is often immediately ejected.
Still, there are cases where a player has drawn a line, argued, and so on without an ejection. These are rarer as an ejection will be the prize of drawing a line most times.
When it comes to the players, it’s a bit of the same. Some players will draw a line even when they know it can result in ejection, others don’t even know that they can be ejected for it, and some don’t even bother arguing at all and accept the umpire’s call no matter what. I wouldn’t bother arguing, at least by drawing a line.
When looking at the fan’s standpoint, most of them look at drawing a line as arguing. When you’re in the fan crowd, you don’t want to see long augments and ejections by a player that can’t take the umpire’s decision. Although arguing is justified, the call is unfair and ridiculous. In these cases, it is seen by many more than just the batter.
Check out the short video below, where you can see it all. The line will be drawn, the umpire will lose it, and the player get’s super angry as he gets ejected.
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Should You Draw a Line In Baseball?
Now that you know what drawing a line is and what may be its result, you need to think about whether you should do it?
You shouldn’t draw a line in baseball in any circumstances. Umpires take drawing a line as disrespect and won’t tolerate such behavior. If you feel that the umpire’s judgment is wrong, you can state it to them without drawing a line and placing yourself at the risk of ejection.
Think about it. Will drawing a line on the field make the umpire see his judgment differently? I would bet not as the decision has been made. When you draw a line on the field, the umpire will see you as stuck up or boastful, which isn’t something you want to be in the umpire’s eyes, especially if you are about to argue with them.
Related: 7 Best Eye Blacks For Sports
Famous Michigan Player Ejection for Drawing a Line?
If you have ever researched the topic of drawing a line in baseball, the chances are that you have come across the video where a Michigan player gets ejected for drawing a line.
This is hardly anything new; however, it gained so much popularity as it’s so unclear whether the player, in fact, draws a purpose line to argue or just regular preparation stuff for the next swing.
To decide this yourself, you need to watch the famous video below. Take a look!
After watching this video multiple times, I still can’t determine whether the line was drawn on purpose. It kind of looks intentional as he looks to the ground so much, but on the other hand, it looks innocent fooling around with the bat.
After all, the player was still ejected, and the umpire didn’t change the call. So even when the line drawn isn’t intentional, it makes the umpires so angry as it can still lead to the ejection because most umpires would be convinced that it is intentional.
This case makes you think can baseball umpires change their calls? To learn more about it, be sure to read my concise article about it, where you will learn much more than that.
Why Do Baseball Managers Get Ejected So Often?
Same as the players get ejected by the umpires, so do the managers. Although, not as often. However, as the umpires won’t draw any lines on the field, why do they get ejected?
Baseball managers are often ejected because they aggressively argue and disagree with the umpires about their judgments. There are three reasons why managers argue with umpires; They disagree with their call, a player disagrees, and a manager steps in or energizes the team.
Let’s review what these mean in action;
- Manager disagrees: If the manager himself disagrees with the umpire, he will often make it known. This is done by going to the umpire and talking them out of the judgment. In ejection cases, the manager has most likely screamed and refused to believe the umpire.
- Player disagrees & manager steps in: The umpire will often step in when a player disagrees with him. This is done mainly to prevent the player from ejection, which works quite well.
- Trying to energize the team: Last but not least, a manager can argue with the umpire and get himself ejected, so the team would get angry and respectful to the manager and will likely play better. When your manager gets ejected, you will see the manager’s love and support which gives you adrenaline!
It can be quite fierce if you have ever seen a manager raging at the umpire! There will be dirt kicking, yelling, and throwing the baseball cap on the ground. Naturally, umpires won’t love that, and the manager can get ejected.
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