HIGH SCHOOL

TSSAA to create baseball pitch count rule after NFHS decision

Tom Kreager
tkreager@dnj.com
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MURFREESBORO — The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association must develop a pitch count rule for the 2017 baseball season following a National Federation of State High School Associations decision released to schools this week.

Currently the TSSAA has an innings rule. Pitchers are not allowed to throw more than 10 innings over a two-day span. The exception is if a pitcher started a game and hadn't thrown the previous day. In that situation, pitchers are allowed to throw as many innings as they want without penalty.

That rule will be obsolete with the NFHS' recent decision.

"I think it's something long overdue," Riverdale baseball coach Barry Messer said. "The innings never made sense to me. I think you have to have some policy in place. I think with pitch counts you should implement it all the way down to the middle school level."

Bernard Childress has served as TSSAA executive director since 2009.

TSSAA executive director Bernard Childress wasn't surprised by the NFHS' decision as it had been in discussion. He said the NFHS informed the TSSAA staff Tuesday that the rule must be in place for next season.

"It will totally change," Childress said comparing the TSSAA's inning rule and the pitch count mandate. "It's more about pitch count and how many pitches each pitcher is throwing and how much rest they need between appearances."

Childress said he hopes to meet with the state's baseball coaches association prior to the Aug. 15 Board of Control meeting in Hermitage. Childress said a pitch count policy will be on the board's agenda.

Siegel baseball coach Craig Reavis said he'd like the TSSAA to take a look at Alabama's policy, which goes into affect in 2017.

Alabama's rule sets the maximum amount at 120 pitches in one day. Pitchers must be given three calendar days rest after throwing 76-120 pitches in one day. The maximum for a junior varsity pitcher is 100 in a day, and the maximum for middle school pitchers is 85.

Childress said the TSSAA staff is looking at every state's pitch count policy, including Alabama's.

Reavis, whose Siegel team won the Class AAA state title in May, said there would be questions needing answered.

Those questions included who keeps track of pitch counts and how would it be monitored.

"Regulation will be the hardest part," Reavis said.

Reavis said he looked back at last season and saw just a couple games where he had a pitcher throw more than 120 pitches. That came in the regular season when his starters were on the mound just once a week.

"Most of the research now is days rest after you throw," Reavis said. "It's not how many you throw, it's getting the proper rest."

The pitch count rule would affect postseason, especially the state tournament, where pitchers often throw on short rest.

"Zac Pearson had 78 pitches on Day 1," Reavis said. "Then he got just two days rest. We would have to have pulled him three pitches earlier.

"We were down in that game, so we could have done that."

Reach Tom Kreager at 615-278-5168 and on Twitter @Kreager.