The pitch-count rule invoked by the PIAA this year is certainly understandable.

There’s no need for a high school kid to throw too many pitches in a game — or in a week — and sometimes coaches hungry for a win need to be protected from themselves.

But that rule could stand some tweaking, particularly in the common sense department.

The rule states that once a guy reaches 100 pitches in a high school game, he has to be rermoved from the mound. If he throws his 100th pitch during a hitter’s at-bat, that pitcher is permitted to keep pitching until that at-bat is completed.

Sounds OK enough.

Buit in the case of Rocky Grove pitcher Travis Perry, that rule was nearly disastrous to him and his team.

The Orioles were leading Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic 2-0 in their PIAA Class 2A semifinal game recently. The 6-foot-4, hard-throwing Perry was working on a gem. He took the mound for the final inning working on a two-hitter and with 10 strikeouts.

But Perry entered that last inning with 96 pitches. He struck out the first batter on three pitches. That gave him the opportunity to face a second batter. He struck him out as well.

One out short of a complete-game shutout, Perry had to depart because of the 100-pitch rule. The relief pitcher was greeted with a double, then he hit a batter.

A second relief pitcher surrendered a run-scoring single. With the tying and winning runs on base, Rocky Grove right fielder Tyler Clayton made a diving catch of a line drive slicing down the line.

If he doesn’t catch that ball, CWNC wins the game — and a tremendous comeback victory it woluld have been.

But it would have been horribly unfair to Travis Perry.

Yes, one can argue that a team needs to have more than one pitcher and if another arm can’t record a single out in that situation, so be it.

My feeling is that if a pitcher enters the final inning with less than 100 pitches, he should have the opportunity to face three batters regardless of number of pitches. In other words, give the kid a shot at finishing his own game.

If the kid is over 100 pitches and the game goes beyond those three batters, out he comes.

It’s hard having an absolute 100-pitch count rule. Throwing 100 pitches in 40-degree weather is radically different from throwing 100 pitches in 80-degree weather, for one thing.

And if a kid has pitched six innings in less than 100 pitches, it’s unlikely he’s laboring on the mound.

Rocky Grove went on to become the first District 10 baseball team to win a state championship. It was almost denied that opportunity because its pitcher threw 103 pitches rather than 99.

That would have been a shame.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle