Yeah, that’s a dumb title, right? But what do you expect from a guy who spends his morning doing a new little update to his script to find a few unusual plays. In this case, the balk—which, at the end of the day is maybe not that unusual in their rarity, but still. I got interested, so the balk is what you get today.
A quick Google says over the past 20 or so years of baseball in the world where we actually live and breathe there have been between 100 and 200 balks a season—or say, 4-6 pre team. Since the BBA has a few extra teams, if our environments were reasonable comparisons, you would expect our numbers would fall between 110-210 in the BBA, say, and 40-60 in the UMEBA.
At present, we’ve had 17 balks in the BBA, and 6 in the UMEBA. Do the math with BBA teams having played 12 games and UMEBA teams averaging 11 at this point, and the projections are:
BBA Balks: 229.5
UMEBA Balks: 88.4
In other words, BBA/UMEBA pitchers are balking a bit more than expected, but not a lot.
I’m certain that this information will allow you to gain more pep in your step in the days that follow, and sleep better in those same nights.
You’re welcome…
Here are the games and teams involved in each balk event (Inning Half: 1=top, 2=bottom):
BBA BALKS
Type | League | Game | Inning | Half | Home | Visitor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Balk | 100 | 10 | 2 | 1 | Omaha Cyclones | Chicago Black Sox |
Balk | 100 | 24 | 4 | 2 | San Antonio Outlaws | Edmonton Jackrabbits |
Balk | 100 | 38 | 3 | 2 | Mexico City Aztecs | Boise Spuds |
Balk | 100 | 51 | 3 | 1 | New Orleans Crawdads | Montreal Blazers |
Balk | 100 | 73 | 7 | 2 | Louisville Sluggers | Des Moines Kernels |
Balk | 100 | 83 | 5 | 1 | New Orleans Crawdads | Montreal Blazers |
Balk | 100 | 89 | 1 | 2 | Louisville Sluggers | Des Moines Kernels |
Balk | 100 | 133 | 1 | 2 | Long Beach Surfers | Valencia Stars |
Balk | 100 | 145 | 4 | 1 | Chicago Black Sox | Yellow Springs Nine |
Balk | 100 | 146 | 3 | 2 | Des Moines Kernels | Twin Cities River Monsters |
Balk | 100 | 149 | 1 | 1 | Long Beach Surfers | Valencia Stars |
Balk | 100 | 166 | 3 | 1 | Rockville Pikemen | Charm City Jimmies |
Balk | 100 | 166 | 4 | 1 | Rockville Pikemen | Charm City Jimmies |
Balk | 100 | 167 | 4 | 1 | Boise Spuds | Las Vegas Hustlers |
Balk | 100 | 177 | 8 | 2 | Valencia Stars | Portland Lumberjacks |
Balk | 100 | 188 | 7 | 1 | Louisville Sluggers | Twin Cities River Monsters |
Balk | 100 | 192 | 4 | 1 | Seattle Storm | Long Beach Surfers |
UMEBA BALKS
Type | League | Game | Inning | Half | Home | Visitor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Balk | 120 | 12215 | 3 | 2 | Mumbai Metro Stars | Cairo Pharaohs |
Balk | 120 | 12236 | 1 | 2 | Beirut Cedars | Manama Pearls |
Balk | 120 | 12241 | 2 | 2 | Baghdad Kings | Riyadh Red Crescents |
Balk | 120 | 12263 | 1 | 1 | Cairo Pharaohs | Tripoli Piranhas |
Balk | 120 | 12280 | 6 | 2 | Cairo Pharaohs | Athens Fighting Centaurs |
Balk | 120 | 12281 | 8 | 1 | Jerusalem Hebrew Hammers | Riyadh Red Crescents |