Mike Scioscia 3

Some catchers block the plate, and then there was Scioscia, who would let runners lope all over the stadium as long as they didn't come near the plate. Decent hitter. It should be noted that blocking the plate the way Scioscia did it and the way most catchers do it is a violation of the rules of baseball. Under those rules it is illegal for any fielder to block the advancing runner's access to the next base without the ball in his possession. There are no special rules for catchers, enabling them to set up ten feet down the line and wrestle the runner until help arrives. I feel that it is dangerous to have rules that are not enforced, because it has the potential of leading to a disaster. It has happened before in baseball, notably in the George Brett pine-tar incident and with Merkle's Boner which decided a pennant race. Having rules that are erratically enforced is similar to living in a totalitarian police state. They have all kinds of rules, most of which aren't enforced until you piss some authority off, then bang, you just broke thirty rules. My feeling with the plate blocking situation is that they should either enforce the existing rule or eliminate it.