Pitching limitations in high school baseball

Because I umpire, lots of times, I get people asking me about pitching limitations for high school pitchers. To be honest, I don't really concern myself with that too much. My job is fair/foul, safe/out, ball/strike. But it is in the rule book. I just got an email from the association that lays it out pretty well, so if this interests you, here ya go...

In summary, the pitching limitation rule is nine innings on any given day, followed with two calendar days rest. If a pitcher pitches more than four innings, up to a maximum of nine innings, on any two consecutive calendar days, he will follow with two calendar days rest. The maximum number of innings a pitcher may pitch in a week is 16.

NOTE: As part of the pitching limitation rule, one pitch constitutes an inning having been pitched.

EXAMPLES: a) A pitcher pitches nine innings on Monday. How many days rest are required? Two calendar days rest, meaning Tuesday and Wednesday; he may next pitch on Thursday.

b) A pitcher pitches four innings Monday. How many innings can he pitch on Tuesday? He may pitch the maximum of five innings on Tuesday followed by two calendar days rest, meaning Wednesday and Thursday. He may next pitch on Friday.

c) A pitcher pitches three innings Tuesday, two innings Wednesday. He must now follow with two calendar days rest (Thursday and Friday). He can next pitch on Saturday.

d) A pitcher pitches nine innings on Saturday. He must now follow with two calendar days rest (Sunday and Monday). He can next pitch on Tuesday.

e) A pitcher pitches seven innings on Tuesday. When can he pitch again? He can pitch on Wednesday for the maximum of two innings. He must then follow with two calendar days rest, meaning Thursday and Friday. He may next pitch on Saturday.

f) A pitcher pitches two innings Thursday and five innings on Friday. He will now follow with two calendar days of rest (Saturday and Sunday). He can next pitch on Monday. Remember, pitching in any combination of innings greater than four innings up to the maximum of nine innings on any two consecutive days will result in two calendar days rest; OR pitching the maximum of nine innings in any one day requires two calendar days rest.

g) A pitcher pitches two innings Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Legal: He has pitched 12 of his allowable 16 innings for that week.

h) A pitcher pitches one inning Tuesday and eight innings Wednesday. Legal and he will follow with two calendar days of rest, meaning Thursday and Friday. He can next pitch on Saturday.

i) A pitcher pitches eight innings on Monday; does not pitch on Tuesday, however, does pitch on Wednesday. How many can he pitch on Wednesday? He can pitch the maximum of eight innings on Wednesday because those eight innings, added to the eight innings he pitched Monday, give him his maximum of 16 innings for the week. Had he only pitched seven innings on Monday, he could have pitched the maximum nine innings on Wednesday and reached his maximum 16 for the week.

j) A pitcher pitches six innings Wednesday; does not pitch Thursday, but does pitch on Friday. How many innings can he pitch on Friday? He can pitch a maximum of nine innings, which would give him a total of 15 innings for the week.

k) A game begins Tuesday, July 25, at 10:45 p.m. and is completed at 12:35 a.m. the following morning. The starting pitcher pitches; (a) 7 innings; (b) 9 innings. Under the IHSAA pitching rule, the game would be considered played July 25th, even though the game did not end until early the following morning. In (a) the pitcher would be able to pitch 2 innings on Wednesday, those 2 innings combined with the 7 innings pitched on Tuesday make 9 innings pitched on two consecutive days. The pitcher would now have to take two consecutive calendar days off, Thursday and Friday. He may pitch again on Saturday. In (b), the pitcher would have to take two consecutive calendar days off, meaning Wednesday and Thursday. He could pitch Friday. This is all providing he does not exceed 16 innings in a week and stays within the prescribed guidelines (Sunday through Saturday).

l) A pitcher pitches 7 innings on Friday and 2 innings on Saturday, the pitcher must follow with two calendar days of rest, meaning Sunday and Monday. He may next pitch on Tuesday. The confusion with a few coaches was that Saturday ended the week by reference, and with that in mind they thought this individual could pitch again on Monday. The rule is for the safety of the individual and when two calendar days of rest are required, the pitcher is unable to pitch again until day three when category B of the pitching rule applies.

Sun Country Wine Cooler-80s style

Back in the 80s, Sun Country Wine Coolers had a good run of popularity. Not really sure where they went to, but I don't think they still make it. I don't remember them selling it in individual bottles either. I only remember them in plastic 2 liter bottles. After checking out some ads, they apparently had single serving bottles, but like I said, I don't remember them. Here is the ad I remember best, with "Addicted to Love" as the backing song.

Other ads typically had celebrities, in a polar bear outfit. Like this one. Here's The Four Tops.

So anyway, I was having an 80s themed party, and wanted some Sun Country Wine Cooler. So I wanted to make my own. I found some recipes on the net. Tried 'em, didn't like 'em. One of them was to use pinot grigio wine. Don't! Tasted like crap.

Try this for a sampler to see if you like it. I had several people at my party say they really liked it. So stay to the same ratios if you want a bigger batch, but make yourself a glass first to try:

4 oz. Welch's Orange/Pineapple/Apple Juice Cocktail

4 oz. Pink Moscato wine. (though any Moscato would probably work)

6 oz. Ginger Ale

I thought it had the right amount of fizzy, fruity, winey.

Rich Olive

Sorry to see that Rich Olive passed away. Not a surprise, as he has been battling cancer for awhile. But still a sad deal.

I can't call Rich a friend, but certainly an acquaintance. I was in some Judge Story plays with him, being a Roland city councilman and mayor, I had times to cross paths with him on his work with Story City economic development, and I would talk to him occasionally as he was voice of the Norsemen football over the PA, while I did my radio work on The Rocket.

So I can't quite comment like his friends could. But he is a guy that any town would be happy to have.

Reading his obituary, I saw that he had lived in Story City since he was 2. I was aware that he graduated from school here, ended up as a coach, and then ran his own small business.

Normally, somebody that has lived their whole life in a town, I worry about being a "townie". My definition of a townie is somebody that has lived their whole life in a town, hangs out at the bar, is not in any civic organizations, and bitches about all the problems in the town (and he probably likes the Hawkeyes and worships Hayden Fry)

Rich met the first criteria for being a townie. But the reason why he was not a townie and instead was great for Story City was his civic-mindedness. He volunteered his time for stuff that made Story City and Roland-Story better. And with his economic development work, he made the area better, by helping bring in jobs.

I didn't know Rich enough to know if he bitched about stuff. But even if he did, he was out there trying to solve the problems of the community.

Not every town is lucky enough to have a guy like that. So his death is a loss for his family, but it is also a loss for the community as well.

Favorite Airline Liveries

While not a hobby, I do have an interest in the aviation industry. In a long ago job, I used to fly a lot. And I always asked for a window seat, so I could watch the goings on in the airport as bags were loaded and all that, as well as to enjoy the view while flying. Going to the airport was fun. Mostly because it gave a chance to look at planes. And part of that is how they were painted, also known as their livery. Seems like a strange word to me, but a plane's livery is simply their paint job.

So that paint job is how an airline was branded, and would be obvious to a flyer as to whose plane is was. American Airlines had an obvious one. They weren't painted. They had their bare aluminum skin.

I was thinking about my favorite liveries, so decided to make a blog post about it. In reviewing some, I think in general I like stripes across the windows, airline name above the windows. The wrong logos on the tail, I'm not a fan of either. While not a list in order, I'll start with some I don't like.

Here is one from now defunct PeoplExpress. An upstart after airline deregulation, they eventually went under. I don't like the brown, the highlighted windows, or that lame logo on the tail.

I don't like the airline name wide across the body. The Polish airline LOT has always done that. Northwest did it for awhile too.

And I'm just not a fan of the Eskimo on the tail of Alaska Air. It also has the airline name big across the body, so if one has to be chosen as my least favorite livery, this is it.

So on to my favorites. And in pondering, maybe I'm just nostalgic, but every livery I've chosen is no longer in use. In positions 4 & 5, the airline is still operating, they just look different now. My gold, silver, and bronze are all defunct airlines. So without further ado, coming in at #5 most favorite livery is the 1980s Delta Airlines. Here's a Delta DC-10. It has the stripe across the middle, the swept back airline name, and the tail adds some character without being too flashy. I never flew Delta when this was their livery, but I always liked the look. Bonus for the black nose cone too.

Coming in at #4 is the 80s/90s United Airlines with the "tulip tail". United has changed their livery over the years probably more than anyone. And they've never had a bad one. Of current liveries, I think they have the best one. On their tail is a nod to Continental Airlines, and their logo, after United took over Continental. So anyway, below is a 80s 737, and then as an added bonus, a 737 with their current livery.

Coming in at #3 and #2 are similar. At #3 TWA, and #2 PanAm. TWA is now a part of American, and I think Pan Am just kinda went under. I flew on TWA some, and never flew on PanAm. But they, to me, were the classy international airlines. If I ever had a chance to go to Rome or Prague or Cairo, it was going to be on TWA or PanAm. Now my experience on TWA was flying to Sioux City and not Rome. But in any case, I think I looked good doing it. TWA went thru some different liveries over the years, but I liked the version with the red block "Trans World", and the black under the windshield. A TWA 747 was just a bad ass jet. As for PanAm, I really liked the 60s and 70s look. White with blue and their recognizable logo on the tail. I include a photo of the 707, the first and best international travel jet--which was also on the the main characters in the movie Airport.

Now for my winner. North Central Airlines. North Central ended in the early 80s after merging with Republic, who merged with Northwest, who merged with Delta. Never had a chance to fly them. But I recall a trip my parents took me to the Minneapolis Airport, and with North Central headquartered there, there were plenty of those planes to look at. I remember seeing them on a trip to the Sioux City Airport as well, as a kid. I think their teal and silver look sharp, and their font on "North Central". They also had a distinctive logo on the tail. It even had a name, Herman the Duck. So here is a Convair 580 (I got to fly on one of those a few times-curtains in the windows even), their DC-9, and even an promo film for them.

So wahat airline livery to you like?

I'm on a fixed income!

Gonna just give a minor rant on something. I hate it when old people complain about the cost of stuff and say, "I'm on a fixed income!"

I call BS. A fixed income sounds good to me. I could get thrown out on my ear tomorrow. My income is not fixed. Gramps, you are still gonna get your check next month, and the next month, til forever, and not ever have to worry about it. Plus, if inflation is high, you get a bump in pay.

Then if you still don't like it, get a frickin' job. That's a way to increase your income.

My sorrow for you is less than or equal to zero.