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I'm a 2012 TUS grad (at age 64 then). You'll have the time of your life there at Dodgertown - called Vero Beach Sports Complex when I was there. Your legs will definitely let you know about it after the first week, and you'll be given the same attention and treatment by the instructors as that toward the 20 yr olds there, too. I look forward to reading your blog...

From the very little actual 3-Man (but lots of training) that I've done, I'd do exactly what you have described. With an R2, I'd be positioned a ball's width off the line in foul territory a few feet behind the 3rd baseman. From there, I'd move toward the coach's box and position myself accordingly for the play.

Well, the three NCAA questions that I posted on/replied to here were indeed the three questions I missed: That video with the dropped ball back onto to the field - home run vs live ball in play; the "Last Time By" - gross miss of a base disregarded by NCAA; and the "double switch" substitution involving F1 and F9 (poor reading on my part). All three questions were discussed in length on this board. Perhaps I should have waited before turning in my test (maybe I could have gotten at least one right from the discussion that ensued on this board). And, of course, there was a "sloppy answer" I gave to one of the questions without paying attention to my worksheet where I had it correct (the no-penalty 20 second rule with runners on base). That's a total of 4 wrong. However, for all intents and purposes, this forum is a great place for analyzing/discussing questions on open book tests. Thanks for all those who posted. I enjoyed reading them...

As soon as the initial throw is caught w/o an out being recorded, I would make the ball dead. (There was no intention to play on R1.) Return runners to TOP bases, batter still up.

I don't have the WUM. Can you copy and paste here the reference play P336 from the WUM. I'd like to read it. Thanks in advance. Had to scan, pdf and convert to Word. Did you vote for me in member of the month? P335 Rl, one out, 2-1 count. With Rl stealing on the pitch, the batter hits a towering fly ball to center field. When the center fielder makes the catch, Rl has rounded second base. On his way back to first base to tag up, he just misses second on his way past it. Rl slides back into first base just before the ball reaches it, and he is called "safe" by the umpire. The defense then tags second base, appealing that Rl missed it. Ruling: Rl is out for missing second base. He is required to touch each base, each time that he passes it. P336' Same situation as above. However, when the ball is caught by the center fielder, Rl is half way between second and third base. Instead of attempting to touch second base on his way back, he cuts across the middle of the infield. The center fielder, seeing Rl will easly make it back into first base, throws the ball wildly past first base, where it enters the dugout. When the ball leaves the fielder's hand, Rl is in between first and second base. The umpire calls "time,", and awards Rl third base. Rl then continues back and touches first base, then advances and touches second base, and to third base. When the ball is put back into play the defense tags Rl, appealing that he missed second base. Rilling: Rl is not out for missing second base. When he was awarded third base, he completed his requirements of tagging up from first base, as well as the touching of all bases on his last time by them. Thanks for posting those plays (#335 & #336) from the WUM. Well, it sure looks like there are contradictory responses to this issue of "gross miss" on the MLB (MiLB also???) when you take into consideration those umpires coming out of the umpire schools circa 1990's/early 2000's and those coming out of the Wendelstedt school over the past 5 years. It'd be interesting to know Jim Evans' interpretation.... (...though the likelihood of this kind of third world play ever happening is remote. It seems more like something to keep umpires' minds busy during test time.)

no.. there is no such thing as a gross miss.... is the base runner a dumbass... yes.... but he fixed it the last time he ran by... who cares if he missed the base by 10 feet or 30 This last time by concept in the NCAA came in when Yeast was the national coordinator. In my discussions with him at the time, a gross miss was not corrected by LTB and the runner was still subject to be put out upon proper appeal. This philosophy was not designed to allow players to willfully break the rules. But I guess Dave Yeast never put his opinion into the "official interpretation" category, eg. AR or AO in the NCAA Rule Book. Fed has its Casebook interpretation and Pro rules have the Jacksa/Roder and the Fitzpatrick interpretations (though now I'm hearing about a WUM interpretation - play P336 - that appears to contradict Jacksa/Roder and Fitzpatrick). In my answer to the NCAA question, I had the runner called out on appeal, though I think I got it wrong because it appears via that NCAA Rule Book Last Time By "...corrects any previous base-running infraction." PS: I have figured out that it was my laptop or the Windows 8 of my laptop that prevented my quote of other posts. I'm using my Windows 7 desktop right now and the quote button works just fine...

noumpere: "... (There's some other test question that deals with what to do if you don't have 9 -- and it's an immediate forfeit)." It had to do with an injured F4 and there were no available eligible substitutes - immediate forfeit.

I don't have the WUM. Can you copy and paste here the reference play P336 from the WUM. I'd like to read it. Thanks in advance.

I would choose "a." I look at this as a thrown ball (not a batted ball), so the interference has to be intentional. Since it's unintentional (my judgement), live ball, play on. I remember seeing something like this in a game last fall. BR on his way to 1st b/c of an uncaught 3rd strike. As the BR moved out of the box toward 1st, he unintentionally (judgment) tossed his bat into foul territory. The bat hit the ball and no INT was called.

Both Pro Rules (thru Official Interpretation) and Fed Rules (CaseBook) disallow "last time by" if there is a "gross miss" of a base prior to retouching it on the runner's "last time by" that base. For example, a runner on a batted ball who touches 2nd on his way to 3rd but then sees that the deep fly ball has been caught runs back to 1st by cutting across the diamond (thus missing 2nd base by a large distance). The throw from the outfield to 1st goes out of play, so the runner is awarded 2 bases. The runner retouches 1st, touches 2nd and then goes to 3rd. "Last time by" will not protect the runner from being called out on appeal in Pro and HS baseball. However, NCAA says nothing about this "gross miss." Therefore, it is safe to conclude in NCAA that no matter how much distance a runner misses a base by, the "Last Time By" rule (NCAA 2-51 AR) will protect him from being called out on appeal if he touches that missed base on his last time by?

Right, GerryB, "breaking the plane..." makes it a lot easier to call than getting hung up over whether the ball or gloved ball strikes an object beyond the fence line. "Breaking the plane..." would make any fair fly ball that passes over and beyond the fence AND doesn't result in a Catch a home run regardless whether the ball falls from the glove into the stands or falls back onto the field. Note again: I've been using the "Quote" button all along, but it seems this new Toshiba laptop, IE and Windows 8 is not doing the trick for me...

johnnyg08, I've seen many Tori Hunter gems on Sports Center, but they were all catches. I don't believe I ever saw one where his glove reached over and beyond the fence line making contact with an object there (fan, bench, branch, etc.), and while in contact with that object, the unsecured ball bounced from there straight out of his glove onto the playing field. That's sort of what I'm seeing in this NCAA video question. So what I am reading here from everyone else is that the BALL itself has to touch something in HR territory, NOT the unsecured ball inside a GLOVE that's touching something directly inside the home run area from whence the ball bounds out of the glove back over the fence onto the field of play. You men are saying that's still a live ball in play (where I am seeing it as a home run). PS. Can someone explain to me how I can get another person's quote pasted into my reply. I'm trying....

Sorry men, I meant 8-3h: "If a fair ball goes over the fence in flight..." I was thinking along these lines also as support. Supposing a fielder leaps high into the air and his outstretched glove in contact with a recessed foul pole (above the fence line) receives the fly ball in glove only to have it bounce out his glove while it is in contact with the pole. Live ball also? I was thinking that this would (in the same vein) be a home run also. Oh well, I probably missed this question...

I had this NCAA video question on the NCAA test. I'll try to describe it as best as possible since it's not possible to capture the video and paste it here: Batter hits a fair fly ball that passes over the high outfield fence. Fielder leaps up into the air; the ball passes over the fence and into the outstretched fielder's glove; and his glove contacts the leaves, ivy, whatever is green just beyond the fence. (You can see the greenery moving in the video as a result of the fielder's glove contacting it.) As his glove begins to move forward while he is still high off the ground, the ball falls out of his glove onto the field of play. Is this (a) a catch, (b) ground rule double, © live ball in play, or (d) a home run. I chose "d" - Home Run based on NCAA Rule 8-3h. Anyone else have this video question?

Sorry, Alex, for failing to quote the situation you presented (I thought I did). My post referred to you post 12:48 pm today: "Question 6. R2, R3, squeeze play..." PS Note: I see the quote mechanism isn't working for me or I don't know how to engage it...