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[This is part of a series exploring the Baseball Tarot. If you would like to prompt for a part of the game or a card from the deck, there's still plenty of space. Leave a comment with a prompt. All other comments are still welcome, of course.]
A balk is bad mojo. Very rarely seen, very bad mojo. Because a balk is a mistake. Not the kind of thing where a batted ball hits a stone on the infield and a fielder can't react fast enough to change, or a player looks up and loses the ball in the lights, or an errant throw sails wide of its intended target, which are still errors, but they can be explained as physical situations or accidents. A balk is a mental error with the consequences of every runner on a base being advanced one base, which can score a run in the same groaning fashion that walking them in does.
The balk is a penalty that can only be charged to a pitcher, and it happens when a pitcher tries to do anything other than deliver the pitch to the plate once they are committed to the pitch, or if the manner of delivery of the pitch is illegal. If a runner tries to steal or look like they are and the pitcher throws anywhere but the batter while a foot is in contact with the pitching rubber, it's a balk. (Which is why great pickoff moves quickly move the foot away from the rubber as their first act.) If the pitcher's non-planted foot crosses over the rubber during the windup and the ball is thrown anywhere but to the batter, it's a balk. (Left-handed pitchers try to use this to their advantage by lifting their foot as they would for a windup, but consciously not crossing their feet, which allows them to set the foot down, move the other foot off the rubber, and throw over to the base, trying to catch a runner who is supposed to be trying to steal once the pitch starts. (Or just move the other foot and then throw.) Any pitch thrown to the plate where the ball is released while the is no contact with the pitching rubber is a balk. A pitcher that fails to get to a set (nonmoving) position and hold it for at least a second before delivering the pitch commits a balk. And so forth.
It's rare in the professional game because by that level, most pitchers aren't rattled by the various things runners can do to try and generate a distraction or otherwise to get the pitcher to pay attention to them when they shouldn't. At younger levels, it's possible to see more frequent balks because of that lack of experience and inability to focus. Ultimately, a balk happens because of a lapse of concentration on the pitcher's part, because the pitcher is trying to juggle the competing tasks of keeping the runner close enough to the base to prevent an easy steal and delivering quick and accurate pitches to the batter so as to get them to hit into outs, strike out, or to give the catcher a shot at throwing out the runner on a steal attempt. Failing to remember that the game is not completely on their shoulders generates pressure, which can lead to balks.
In the Tarot, unsurprisingly, the presence of a balk in a reading indicates decisions must be made, and that waffling between options will do no good. It can also indicate that someone's current approach to decision-making isn't effective, isn't working, or otherwise needs improvement. If you're on the mound, you have to commit to the action you intend and not change your mind until after the pitch (or pickoff) is done and you have the next opportunity. Be confident in your decision and execute the plan. There will be time for a new plan soon if you feel it needs tweaking.
A balk is bad mojo. Very rarely seen, very bad mojo. Because a balk is a mistake. Not the kind of thing where a batted ball hits a stone on the infield and a fielder can't react fast enough to change, or a player looks up and loses the ball in the lights, or an errant throw sails wide of its intended target, which are still errors, but they can be explained as physical situations or accidents. A balk is a mental error with the consequences of every runner on a base being advanced one base, which can score a run in the same groaning fashion that walking them in does.
The balk is a penalty that can only be charged to a pitcher, and it happens when a pitcher tries to do anything other than deliver the pitch to the plate once they are committed to the pitch, or if the manner of delivery of the pitch is illegal. If a runner tries to steal or look like they are and the pitcher throws anywhere but the batter while a foot is in contact with the pitching rubber, it's a balk. (Which is why great pickoff moves quickly move the foot away from the rubber as their first act.) If the pitcher's non-planted foot crosses over the rubber during the windup and the ball is thrown anywhere but to the batter, it's a balk. (Left-handed pitchers try to use this to their advantage by lifting their foot as they would for a windup, but consciously not crossing their feet, which allows them to set the foot down, move the other foot off the rubber, and throw over to the base, trying to catch a runner who is supposed to be trying to steal once the pitch starts. (Or just move the other foot and then throw.) Any pitch thrown to the plate where the ball is released while the is no contact with the pitching rubber is a balk. A pitcher that fails to get to a set (nonmoving) position and hold it for at least a second before delivering the pitch commits a balk. And so forth.
It's rare in the professional game because by that level, most pitchers aren't rattled by the various things runners can do to try and generate a distraction or otherwise to get the pitcher to pay attention to them when they shouldn't. At younger levels, it's possible to see more frequent balks because of that lack of experience and inability to focus. Ultimately, a balk happens because of a lapse of concentration on the pitcher's part, because the pitcher is trying to juggle the competing tasks of keeping the runner close enough to the base to prevent an easy steal and delivering quick and accurate pitches to the batter so as to get them to hit into outs, strike out, or to give the catcher a shot at throwing out the runner on a steal attempt. Failing to remember that the game is not completely on their shoulders generates pressure, which can lead to balks.
In the Tarot, unsurprisingly, the presence of a balk in a reading indicates decisions must be made, and that waffling between options will do no good. It can also indicate that someone's current approach to decision-making isn't effective, isn't working, or otherwise needs improvement. If you're on the mound, you have to commit to the action you intend and not change your mind until after the pitch (or pickoff) is done and you have the next opportunity. Be confident in your decision and execute the plan. There will be time for a new plan soon if you feel it needs tweaking.
