It’s a big spring for MLB umpires.
As the game invites seismic change, umpires are the ones tasked with handling a slew of new rules, from a ban on infield shifts to a refined definition of a balk. There’s been plenty said about how to interpret and enforce these rules. But one more thing: How will umpires signal them?
Maybe that sounds unimportant. But how a decision is communicated on the field matters—everyone needs to understand what’s happened simply and clearly, even fielders at a distance and fans in the stands. Think of how straightforward the existing signals are. There are the outstretched arms of “safe” and the simple, declarative fist of “out.” There’s the whirligig motion to signal a home run, reminiscent of a runner going around the bases, and the simple finger arithmetic that indicates the count. If anyone didn’t already know what these signals meant—if they hadn’t all been around for decades—it would be easy to guess. Which is precisely the point.
