Jose Caballero Follows the Rules and MLB Doesn't Like It
Generally, I’m a rules-follower. I don’t cut lines. I use crosswalks. I pay transit fares even when I know no one’s checking. Abiding by agreements is valuable because when fewer people honor just agreements — which is what most rules boil down to — then trust degrades and that way lies disorder, chaos, and misery. Which brings me to Yankees utility player Jose Caballero and MLB’s pitch clock.
This week, Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Dennis Santana (who has since been designated for assignment) confronted Caballero on the field because he was upset that Caballero routinely waits until the last possible moment under the rules to be ready for the next pitch.
If you watch the video, it’s important to note that Caballero addresses the pitcher and is ready to hit at the 8 or 9 second mark of the pitch clock every time. The rule, as explained on MLB’s website, is: “Batters must be in the box and alert to the pitcher by the 8-second mark or else be charged with an automatic strike.” But there’s a bit more to it than even that, as this video, made after Caballero was dramatically warned by umpires earlier this season, explains that the batter can’t just put his head down whenever he wants, because the league doesn’t want batters faking pitchers into coming set too soon.
For his part, Santana, quoted by MLB’s site, said, “It was the game speed. I’m not used to that… People waiting too much at home plate; it frustrated me a little bit. With baseball, you have to be quick. It’s nothing against him. It’s just a game. I got caught up in the game.”
Or, by my reading, Santana was a big baby about this and didn’t like that the rules give him “only” 8 seconds to come set and deliver a pitch, if a batter chooses to wait that long.
However, MLB and the umpires for that series decided to do something worse and shockingly unfair. They appear to have changed the rules interpretation without telling Caballero or the Yankees. Wednesday, I was watching when home plate umpire Quinn Wolcott called Caballero for a pitch clock violation even though he had clearly raised his head and was ready to hit by the 8 second mark of the clock.
The YES network broadcast audio picked up a bunch of the ensuing conversation, in which Caballero accused the umpires of “picking on me” which I think is absolutely correct, given that after the game Wolcott explicitly told a pool reporter, “He's not allowed to do an inordinate amount of time looking down, trying to get the pitcher to cause a violation… There's no other hitter that gets in the box, takes the amount of the time that Caballero does while looking down, not making eye contact with the pitcher. Obviously, it's caused a lot of problems in the past. It's not going to be allowed anymore.”
In a statement quoted by ESPN, MLB said this new enforcement was about preventing batters from deceiving pitchers.
All of that is horseshit. It’s horseshit because the rule is that a batter has to be alert to the pitcher by 8 seconds, which Caballero does, no “deception” necessary. Pitchers might not like it, but that’s their problem. If you look at the video of the most recent incident, Pirates pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski comes set before Caballero raises his head, which should be a clock violation against him.
But it’s doubly horseshit that, according to Yankees manager Aaron Boone as quoted in that ESPN story, MLB instructed umpires to change their enforcement of the rule on Caballero without telling the Yankees they would do it, and crew chief Adrian Johnson openly stated that Santana’s confrontation led the league to change the rule for Caballero.
We don’t have to cry for the Yankees, but as a rule-follower, my blood boiled reading about this because it’s a clear case of Caballero playing within the rules, yet MLB is bowing to redasses who are unable to make a minor adjustment. If you’re a pitcher annoyed by how long he takes to get ready, the solution is simple: get your sign earlier and be ready to come set at 8 seconds!
Imagine a football team getting mad that the opposing offense only snapped the ball with one second remaining on the play clock. Imagine a basketball team getting mad that their opponents made a habit of inbounding the ball at the four-second count. It’s ridiculous.
But most importantly, it betrays a fundamental insecurity on the part of MLB’s leaders. Why would they crack down on Caballero instead of telling other teams to knock off the complaining and just follow the rules?
I wonder if it’s because they don’t actually believe in rules as agreements, but rather as directives. I have little to no evidence of this beyond years of reading and hearing commissioner Rob Manfred’s views on baseball, but I suspect that instead of creating a framework within which to conduct a competition that is entertaining to viewers, Manfred et al hold the perspective that the league’s rules are more orders to the players and umpires for how the game ought to be played. Thus, also, the aggressiveness and punitive approach to Caballero’s routine in the batter’s box; regarding MLB leadership, this doesn’t feel like reminding all parties of the agreements in place to ensure a fair and entertaining competition, but about putting a player in his place because his strategy is disruptive.
Caballero’s mistake was that he sought an edge that makes pitchers feel uncomfortable without bringing a bunch of other hitters with him. I think if this move were more widespread, it would be seen as the strategic maneuver it is, whereas at the moment pitchers and MLB appear to think he’s a norm-flouting asshole. But even then, singling him out and changing the rules for him, alone, without informing him or his team in advance, is a pretty wild abuse of authority.
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Thanks for reading, you crazy kids. Let’s do this again, sometime.
(Photo: Screenshot of the YES network broadcast of the Yankees-Pirates game on Wednesday, July 22, 2026. Jose Caballero is at the plate, alert to the pitcher, Carmen Mlodzinski. The pitch clock shows 9 seconds remaining.)