CollegeParentNoMore posted:"You'd be surprised at how many coaches want every pitch in the dirt to be blocked and will penalize catchers for picking rather than blocking."
To each his own level of understanding and/or comfort. There don't seem to be a lot of college or hs catching coaches that truly appreciate the need to develop a young catcher by allowing him to be aggressive with his throwing which in turns builds confidence, which in turns builds a lot of key outs rather then just letting the opposition take a free base.
In terms of giving up a second base on a pick attempt if the ball goes to the backstop, I am not sure its statistically any different then what happens with "blocked" pitches that bounce high off a shoulder pad or facemask and roll into a dugout etc.
CPNM, I would argue that the percentages are better with the block than the pick but that goes back to which pitches the catcher attempts to pick. If C has a knack for recognizing depth properly and knowing his pitchers' movement, I'm with you. There is certainly some "chicken or the egg" to this.