Talk:Checked swing

CSD
hangon xaosflux  Talk  / CVU  04:26, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

I cleared the CSD notice, this article appears to qualify as a stub, and is in line with most of the other articles in: Category:Baseball_terminology. This article also contains more information then the Wicktionary entry. If you still think it should be deleted, please bring it through AFD. xaosflux Talk  / CVU  04:37, 30 January 2006 (UTC)

Official definition
The position of the pitched ball does not matter in the event of a check-swing.

There are two interpretations of when a swing is truly checked:

On an attempted swing, the bat cannot break the front plane of home plate.

or

On an attempted swing, the bat may not travel past the plane of the player's belt buckle. This plane runs perpendicular to the batter, bisecting him at the belt buckle.

An either/or method is used in the case that the batter's natural stance is not traditional.

Anyone think this is good? --Axion22 19:24, 22 February 2007 (UTC)

The details on rule §9.02 use the term "half-swing." Can it be concluded that the a successful check-swing is anything less than a half-swing? --Axion22 19:35, 22 February 2007 (UTC)
 *  More Research 

I have several problems with this article.
 *  Definition, Source, and Existence 

The only reference given is to an article on MLB's web site that talks about the batting practice game of pepper. There are no other references that define or otherwise even confirm the existence of the term "checked swing". The use of the word "check" is supposed to be a verb, meaning "to stop." e.g. The batter checked his swing. Modern announcers have morphed the word into an adjective, e.g. checked swing, or check-swing. The problem here is the implication that a check-swing is a distinctly different thing than another type of swing, when the baseball rules do not define it as such. The reason that MLB rules do not define the term is because there essentially is no such thing. Upon a pitch, whatever a batter does is ruled by the home plate umpire as either a swing or not a swing. There is no 3rd option officially called a check-swing. MLB rules section 9.02 mention the term half-swing. This term is used at the moment where the batter's action in response to a pitch has not yet been officially determined to be either a swing or not a swing. The home plate umpire will, in his judgment, make this call, which can then be appealed and overruled in accordance with section 9.02. Once the ruling is made, the batter's action is now a swing or not a swing, there is no longer a half-swing. I propose that the entire article be re-written to clearly state that the term is an informally used term/phrase to describe a batter's action, but that in terms of baseball rules that there is no such thing as a checked swing or check-swing.

SomeJoe7777 (talk) 19:46, 23 May 2010 (UTC)


 * I have substantially re-written the article in an attempt to reflect @SomeJoe7777's May 2010 comments regarding the true nature of a checked swing ultimately being just a swing that the batter attempted to stop. The article could still use some actual citations about what a swing is (if these exist--MLB handbook 2024 does not define it, which is the crux of the problem with a checked swing to begin with) or about how umpires are understood to make such decisions. I am not a baseball expert and would love more eyes on this.
 * I propose the entire article be moved under another article, ideally one that defines what a swing even is in baseball, or something similar. Anything that would clearly clarify a checked swing is just a descriptor, not a call itself.
 * I also want to call out that this article might deserve more attention than it currently gets; it is the top search result in any googling of this topic, and, because it is a difficult-to-understand topic, may carry disproportionate weight for anyone trying to understand it. Bessbdow (talk) 04:07, 16 April 2024 (UTC)

This article is lacking in describing what all factors play into the decision that umpires make. As in, does standing in the front of the batter's box cause the umpire to make decisions on if you broke your wrist, or does he still go by the bat crossing the plate. Also, the same applies if someone is standing in the back of the batter's box.</li> <li>If the home team manager sets the ground rules for the game; does he also tell the umpires how to judge a "checkswing"</li> Jakeblocker01 (talk) 17:26, 22 September 2011 (UTC)
 *  General Factors 

"Check" swing?
Is it a "check" swing or a "checked" swing? I have only heard the phrase "check swing", and Wiktionary defines "check swing", with "checked swing" listed as a synonym.--TroyGab (talk) 13:20, 31 July 2016 (UTC)