Leading off today: In honor of Madison Bumgarner's splendid performance Wednesday night, we interrupt today's regularly scheduled fall sports blog to talk some baseball. Regular programming will resume with our next blog, perhaps as early as tonight if we need to catch up on noteworthy happenings from the past 24 hours.
N.Y. proposal moves forward: The dominoes are falling across the country as state associations work to comply with the National Federation of State High School Association's new policy requiring the use of pitch counts in time for the 2017 season.
On Sunday, Texas' University Interscholastic League medical advisory committee consolidated its previous proposal so that all high school pitchers from ages 14-19 will work on the same scale. All pitchers will be limited to 110 pitches in a game under recommendation made by the committee. A player would also be limited to a total of 110 pitches total in a postseason series. Junior high players will be limited to a total of 85 pitches.
Pitchers reaching 86 to 110 throws could be required to take four days of rest before returning to the mound. Throwing as few as 66 pitches in a game would require three days off.
The proposal must be passed by the UIL legislative council, which meets in two weeks. The legislative council has never rejected a medical advisory committee recommendation.
The Illinois High School Association's baseball advisory committee has proposed requiring four days rest for a player after throwing 76 to 115 pitches during a game. A pitcher who maxs out and returns after just four days off in the regular season would get capped at 90 pitches.
The IHSA proposal goes before the board of directors for final approval at its meeting Oct. 14.
The South Carolina High School League has dumped its existing innings-based regulation, voting two weeks ago to set its maximum at 110 pitches per outing. Pitchers reaching 90 pitches in a game must be given five calendar days of rest before pitching again.
In conjunction with that change, the state has built extra days off into its postseason schedule, which usually concludes around May 20.
And now we know what the New York State Public High School Athletic Association has in mind. When the organization's Executive Committee convenes Oct. 19, representatives will discuss a proposal requiring four nights of rest after 105 pitches in a varsity game and three nights of rest for between 81 and 104 pitches.
A few notes:
• A pitcher reaching the pitch-count limit in the middle of an at-bat will be allowed to finish that hitter.
• Schools will retain every pitching chart and report the status of its pitchers to that day's opponent before the game.
• Warm-ups, pick-offs and balks will not be counted on the chart, which the two dugouts will confirm at the end of each half inning, much like basketball scorebooks are checked at the end of quarters.
The first two violations will result in suspensions of one and two games, respectively, for the head coach. A third offense results in a one-year suspension and the game being declared a forfeit.
Here are the details on pitches, with required nights of rest in parentheses:
| Varsity |
JV/Frosh |
Modified |
| 105 (4) |
85 (4) |
N/A |
| 81-104 (3) |
61-84 (3) |
51-70 (3) |
| 56-80 (2) |
36-60 (2) |
31-50 (2) |
| 31-55 (1) |
26-35 (1) |
16-30 (1) |
| 1-30 (0) |
1-25 (0) |
1-15 (0) |
The NYSPHSAA Safety Committee has given a thumbs-up to the proposal by coordinators from the association's 11 sections, though the Championship Advisory Committee meeting on Sept. 28 led to questions about potential changes to limits in the postseason and/or to playoff schedules.
If no substantial questions arise during discussions on Oct. 19, the Executive Committee could give formal approval at its January meeting.
Catching up: The Times Union checked in a few days ago with a feature on 518sports.com, the student-driven website
