NEW YORK – José Caballero is no fan of the pitch-timer rule that states that a batter “must be in the box and alert to the pitcher” by the 8-second mark. But the Yankees’ utilityman also believes he’s following it to the letter.
Caballero’s efforts to find a tactical edge on that front have prompted regular conversations with umpires, with manager Aaron Boone remarking that they seem to happen “once a series.” Now Caballero says he wants to know exactly where the line is.
“I just want to be clear on what they want,” Caballero said. “The new rules they make us play with.”
The pitch-timer rule has been in effect at the Major League level since 2023.
During the sixth inning Sunday in Toronto, home-plate umpire Steven Jaschinski took the unusual step of using his microphone to address the Rogers Centre crowd, announcing that Caballero was being warned for “intentionally delaying” the game.
If it happened again, Jaschinski said, Caballero would be charged with a strike.
That prompted a conversation of more than 2 minutes between Caballero, Boone, Jaschinski and crew chief John Tumpane, with the Yankees claiming Caballero did raise his head toward Toronto reliever Spencer Miles at exactly the 8-second mark.
The chat ended with Boone saying he would seek clarification from the league office. Speaking before Tuesday’s series opener against the White Sox, Boone seemed satisfied with what he heard back.
“I feel like we have a good handle on it,” Boone said. “I certainly understand what [Caballero is] trying to do. He has a rhythm and a process to help him get locked in. We all think it’s within the rules. I talked to them and tried to get very specific, so I’ve given José some instruction on where we should be OK.”
Asked how he explained it to Caballero, Boone said: “Just make sure you’re alert. Some might interpret looking up as not being alert yet. So making sure that he’s looking up with plenty of time to be alert by 8 seconds.”
But Caballero still doesn’t seem quite clear. As he said, his tactic is to wait until the final legal moment to engage, thereby limiting the time a pitcher has to be comfortable. Caballero said he first came across that in the Minors, where he felt pitchers would hold the ball as long as possible.
“I got tired of it, so I was like, ‘I’ll do my thing,’” Caballero said. “Now I do my thing, and it’s an issue, which I don’t get. …
“I do the same thing over and over and over again. Go watch all my at-bats this year. I do the same thing. I watch the clock go all the way to 13, do my routine, put my head up. Now that’s an issue. I don’t get it.”
After Sunday’s game, Blue Jays manager John Schneider weighed in, saying: “There are a lot of Major League players in this league. There seems to be one guy that has an issue with it.”
Speaking to reporters, Miles indicated that the lengthy chat disrupted him.
“We’re supposed to be addressed at 8 seconds left,” Miles said, according to Sportsnet. “It seems like every time it’s at 10, he taps the plate, looks at you like a fake look, then looks back down.”
Caballero said he was “not worried about” the Blue Jays’ comments. His focus was on what to do in his first plate appearance on Tuesday.
"There's some gamesmanship to what he does, but he's a smart, gritty player," Boone said. "He's using the rules to the best of his ability to his advantage."