I don't believe the fake-to-third-throw-to-first will be considered a balk if the pitcher is not in contact with the rubber because if you're not on the rubber, you're even allowed to fake to first or second. I don't know how the play ever became legal for pitchers who were in contact with the rubber, but sometime in the 1970s or '80s, umpires stopped calling balks on the play.
|