Baseball Question/Confession

I'm not quite as much of a baseball aficionado as my friend Soccer Dad, but I do enjoy following the sport. I found last night's Astros-Marlins contest interesting because the game turned on an unusual call. The umpire claimed that the pitcher touched his mouth on the mound, resulting in a called ball four and an unintended walk.

I have always wondered why pitchers don't use this rule to their advantage when they want to intentionally walk someone? Why wouldn't a pitcher just touch his mouth four times, instead of throwing four actual pitches? It would mean that much less stress on his arm, and remove the (admittedly minor) risk that one of the pitches would get past the catcher and allow a runner to advance.

On another baseball note I hereby confess that I have switched loyalties this year. For the first time in thirty years, and much to my son Shalom's displeasure, the Yankees are no longer my main team. Yes, I have returned to my Silver Spring roots and am a born-again Washington Nationals (née Senators) fan! I will still plug for the Yanks in the AL, and will always have a soft spot for their champion teams of my youth (76-78), but the Nats have stolen my heart.

Sorry Shalom... like a forbidden love affair, sometimes these things aren't planned, they just happen...