Understanding Balks & Illegal Motion in Fast Pitch Softball (ASA Rule 6)

Question
one of my pitchers in u14 was called for a balk because she pump faked at a runner inside the circle is this a rule i have never heard of it

Answer
Hi Jim,

Thank you for your question.  I know that you are a student of the game, or you wouldn't be taking the time to delve into the pitching rule, (ASA) Rule 6.  I hope you don't mind if I fine tune your use of the baseball term BALK.  In the softball organizations I'm familiar with, the term for a pitching infraction is ILLEGAL PITCH, not balk.

I'm getting a little bit better at reading between the lines, I think.  You don't mention where your pitcher was standing in the 16' pitching circle, or what she was doing when she made her pump fake (fake throw) at a runner, but I have a feeling that she wasn't in possession of the ball on the pitcher's plate and ready to pitch.  I have a feeling that she was in possession of the ball off the pitcher's plate and, therefore, not ready to pitch.  She was operating entirely within the rules when she made a fake throw at a runner.  This is not an illegal pitch.  In fact, a fake throw is a very effective method of prompting a runner, between bases, to either advance or return to the nearest base.

Scott Kelly