I know this is a simple question, but I've gotten a lot of different answers to this question. Every diagram I've ever seen of the strike zone is a rectangle from the midpoint of the belt and armpits to the knees and the width of the plate. So I was wondering, is the strike zone a three dimensional "zone" the shape of the plate, or is it a rectangle at the front of the plate? A side arm curve could cut across the plate, but not touch the front of the plate. An Ephus pitch could fall into the zone at the back point of the plate, but be too high at the front of the plate.

Is the strike zone different for different rule sets (FED, OBR, LL, etc.)? Softball vs. Baseball? (I know unofficially it is, but I was wondering if the different rule sets actually defined the strike zone differently).

Forget the rules for just a moment. Take your daily newspaper and open the sheets so that the front/back page are totally open. Take that as the width of the strike zone. Now, I'm taking into account the BLACK of the plate plus the width of a baseball. OK? That gives the width.
Now the height is a different issue. That's very subjective and I'll leave that to others to describe. Knees to letters? "Hollow of knees to belt"?

The depth of the strike zone is the plate. IMHO, if it clips any part of the strikezone I'm gonna call it. I don't care if a catcher takes it on a bounce if it's a 12-6 breaking ball it's a strike if it catches ANY part of the strike zone.

That's my 2 cents.

A pitch that bounces, by rule, can not be a strike.
The strike zone is different at different levels plus the size and ability of the players change. One rule set uses the knee, another the hollow, the top is difined slightly different but in real time we use the same guidelines for all the ages. Now how tightly we call it depends on the ability. Obviously you are going to hold a D1 pitcher to a higher standard than a 9/10 just learning. This is true of other rules as well.

To answer one part of the question, the strike zone is 3D, and not just a rectangle at the front of the plate.

And just for clarity, though perhaps obvious, a bounced pitch which the batter swings at can be a hit, a foul, or a strike.

I had a feeling that this was going to get nit-picked. What I was trying to say was that a ball that passes THROUGH any part of the strike zone but bounces to the catcher (think about that before replying) is a strike.

Coaches can only see high/low and not inside/outside. Worse, the lower the level the more that I've heard b*tching about a called ball they thought was a strike because of WHERE the catcher caught it and NOT where it passed around the strikezone (vs. a strike for passing THROUGH the strikezone).

I have no problem with commenting but please make sure you read what I've written carefully.

Lastly, describing the strikezone is like pornography in the sense that I know a strike when I see it (as long as I'm behind the dish) although I sometimes have a time describing it outside of citing the rulebook.

Oh, one more thing, we all have a customized strike zone because we're human (at least most of us are). I've heard excellent coaches say that you've seen his zone now work with it. That's an excellent comment that I wish more coaches would follow.

Bottom line: CONSISTENCY

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To answer one part of the question, the strike zone is 3D, and not just a rectangle at the front of the plate.

And just for clarity, though perhaps obvious, a bounced pitch which the batter swings at can be a hit, a foul, or a strike.

Thank you, the 3D answer is the one I was looking at. I asked this of a major league pitcher, albeit not a long-serving one, and he said it was always judged from the front of the plate, which caused my confusion. I had always imagined it to be a 3D Pentagonal prism.

Technically, I guess a swung at bounced pitched ball could also be a hit by pitch, dead-ball strike (which is still a strike, as you said).

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Originally posted by therefump:
What I was trying to say was that a ball that passes THROUGH any part of the strike zone but bounces to the catcher (think about that before replying) is a strike.

IMO, Unless the catcher is set up WAAAAY deep (outside the box deep) you shouldn't call this pitch a strike. It sets you up for a bad day. It is a "gross error"; one in which EVERYONE knows you blew it.

When have you ever seen a pitch that bounces in to the catchers glove called a strike by seasoned umpire?

I'm not an umpire, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night (no joke, business travel in DC area).

I believe it is a strike if any part of the ball passes through any part of the strike zone, which is three dimensional view of the plate (including black) between the X and the Y.

I'll leave X, Y and bouncing for the pro's. (I only stayed one night).

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IMO, Unless the catcher is set up WAAAAY deep (outside the box deep) you shouldn't call this pitch a strike. It sets you up for a bad day. It is a "gross error"; one in which EVERYONE knows you blew it.

When have you ever seen a pitch that bounces in to the catchers glove called a strike by seasoned umpire?

Watch any good pitcher in the majors and occasionally you'll see a catcher catch one on the bounce that is a CALLED strike. C'mon. A 12-6 breaking ball? Jeez, even Jamie Moyer occasionally will throw one.

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I'm not an umpire, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night (no joke, business travel in DC area).

Good one. I think I must've worked with you once.

Have seen lots of pitches called far a strike that hit the plate .Also I have seen some called strikes hit a batters back foot resulting in a HBP.
You will get more calls at the front of the plate. Some LHP have the ability to sweep across the left front corner against LH batters. The catcher ends up receiving the ball a few feet off the left side of the plate. A called strike.

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Originally posted by NavyUmp:

IMO, Unless the catcher is set up WAAAAY deep (outside the box deep) you shouldn't call this pitch a strike. It sets you up for a bad day. It is a "gross error"; one in which EVERYONE knows you blew it.

When have you ever seen a pitch that bounces in to the catchers glove called a strike by seasoned umpire?

I Agree. Whenever I have a catcher setting up this deep, I wait 'til he throws the ball back to the pitcher, and stand in his spot. This almost always gets him to set up closer to the plate. I won't tell catchers how to catch. That is the coach's job. I have never had to do this at HS varsity level or higher.

And if a major league umpire ever calls a pitch in the dirt a strike (from Jamie Moyer or anyone else), he is going to get considerable abuse, and rightfully so.

Just wondering if you have two pitchers of obvious different abilities. One very good and the other seemingly new to pitching. Do you have different strike zones for them?

In HS baseball....My goal for every game is that I have one consistent zone for all the pitchers and batters for that game.....

IMHO, adapting your zone to the abilities of the pitcher is wrongly inserting yourself into the game. You set the best zone you can, and call the pitches where they are....

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And if a major league umpire ever calls a pitch in the dirt a strike (from Jamie Moyer or anyone else), he is going to get considerable abuse, and rightfully so.

C'mon. You're not doing your job if you are more worried about the abuse than calling a STRIKE. Maybe you need a new side profession. I'm NOT talking about a ball bouncing off the plate and calling it a STRIKE.....however possible that may be, I'm talking about a ball that drops very quickly after "falling" through the strike zone and bounces into the catches mitt (yes, he could be setup too far back!)

I know it's hard to "read" this but that's taking things a bit far.

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In HS baseball....My goal for every game is that I have one consistent zone for all the pitchers and batters for that game.....

IMHO, adapting your zone to the abilities of the pitcher is wrongly inserting yourself into the game. You set the best zone you can, and call the pitches where they are....

I agree wholeheartedly in theory. What about a sitch where it's 18-1 after 1 inning. Up here in the NE we had so much rain that HS were playing games 5 in a row and were out of pitchers. I hate it but I relaxed the zone after confering with the winning team. I also would note that it screwed up my strike zone for my night game for about 1 inning. I need consistency just like everyone else.

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Originally posted by therefump:

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And if a major league umpire ever calls a pitch in the dirt a strike (from Jamie Moyer or anyone else), he is going to get considerable abuse, and rightfully so.

C'mon. You're not doing your job if you are more worried about the abuse than calling a STRIKE. Maybe you need a new side profession. I'm NOT talking about a ball bouncing off the plate and calling it a STRIKE.....however possible that may be, I'm talking about a ball that drops very quickly after "falling" through the strike zone and bounces into the catches mitt (yes, he could be setup too far back!)

I know it's hard to "read" this but that's taking things a bit far.

I'm not talking about kiddie ball. HS varsity and above - you want a strike? Then catch the **** pitch (with some obvious exceptions). At the higher levels, when a catcher mishandles a pitch and doesn't get the call on a pitch that could have been a strike, he usually says "My Bad" to the pitcher. And if the coach has any comment, it usually is "You've got to catch that pitch" to the catcher.

therefump:
I would agree that if he is set up too far back then it is possible for a ball to bounced slightly and be a strike. However, if a catcher is where he is supposed to be it is impossible to go through the zone and hit the dirt.

Michael, You are probably right for high school and above, but I think I've seen lots of 9 year old 35 MPH gravity fed lob ball pitching to a 4' kid hit the dirt past the pitcher and still go through the strike zone. The only other exception I would think would be an epheus pitch - which if it's a strike, it's usually a back-up-third situation.