So, it’s probably most accurate to say that the balk rule means that you can’t deceive the runner in a manner which MLB has deemed to threaten player safety, or in a way that would disrupt the balance between base runners attempt to steal and the pitcher’s attempt to get outs. Most of the comments to the prohibited pitcher action rules mention player safety as a primary consideration, which makes sense given the pitcher is often hurling a hard sphere at 95 mph. The rule does prohibit some actions that would serve the purpose of deceiving the runner, like stepping towards a different base or pitching without facing the batter (a line Johnny Cueto and Hideki Okajima both straddled at various times during their careers). That’s because a pickoff, generally speaking, means the runner was fooled. And really, that makes sense: if deceiving the runner were illegal across the board, all pickoffs would be illegal too. But as you can see, while that’s certainly the purpose of the rule (MLB’s official glossary even says so), it’s also not the actual language of the rule. We generally think of a balk as an attempt to deceive a baserunner.
(13) The pitcher delivers the pitch from Set Position without coming to a stop. (12) The pitcher, while giving an intentional base on balls, pitches when the catcher is not in the catcher’s box (11) The pitcher, while touching his plate, accidentally or intentionally has the ball slip or fall out of his hand or glove (10) The pitcher, after coming to a legal pitching position, removes one hand from the ball other than in an actual pitch, or in throwing to a base (9) The pitcher, without having the ball, stands on or astride the pitcher’s plate or while off the plate, he feints a pitch (8) The pitcher unnecessarily delays the game (7) The pitcher makes any motion naturally associated with his pitch while he is not touching the pitcher’s plate (6) The pitcher delivers the ball to the batter while he is not facing the batter (4) The pitcher, while touching his plate, throws, or feints a throw to an unoccupied base, except for the purpose of making a play (3) The pitcher, while touching his plate, fails to step directly toward a base before throwing to that base (2) The pitcher, while touching his plate, feints a throw to first or third base and fails to complete the throw (1) The pitcher, while touching his plate, makes any motion naturally associated with his pitch and fails to make such delivery If there is a runner, or runners, it is a balk when: For our purposes, we’re concerned with Rule 6.02(a), which defines “Pitcher Illegal Action.” So let’s find out if Pettitte’s move was generally legal or not. Pettitte retired as the active leader in pickoffs, despite baserunners often arguing that his move was really a balk. Pettitte’s pickoff move became legendary over the course of his long career, and led to teams essentially abandoning the running game against the lefty until late in his career.
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