Comp wrote:Obviously if the batter prevents the ball from entering the strike zone you would have a dead ball strike, regardless of if they attempted to swing or not. My original response was to a comment about it would be a hit by pitch and award of 1st base if the ball was not in the strike zone even if the batter were swinging. That is not the case, a swing at a pitch is a strike no matter where the pitch may be, and if it hits the batter it is a dead ball strike. As for the batter attempting to avoid a pitch, if they are swinging at the ball, I seriously doubt they are attempting to avoid the pitch. Both results are a dead ball, if the batter wasnt swinging and didnt attempt to avoid they remain at bat and its a ball. If they were swinging, its still a dead ball but a strike.
Keep in mind that for those codes that require an attempt to avoid being hit, batter's just can't disappear. If the batter naturally has some foot movement or arm movement at the time of the pitch, she can't be expected to disappear if the ball comes up and in.
Using the present progressive of the verb "swing" is leading to confusion or at least clouding the issue. It doesn't matter if the batter is "swinging;" what matter is if she actually "swung."
If the batter SWUNG, it's a strike regardless. For what it's worth, you can't have a dropped third strike since the ball is dead.
If the batter has not swung, then the ruling depends on the code.