Baseball Umpire

[Guest James]

1) A line drive hits the first baseman deflects off the runner and is caught by the pitcher. This is a legal catch?

2) On ball four the pitch rolls under the backstop and out of play. The batter is only awarded first base?

3) Is a foul tip a live ball?

4) If a thrown ball accidently touches a base coach is the ball still alive and in play?

5) A ball is a pitch which does not enter the strike zone in flight or struck at by the batter?

6) The left fielder makes a catch, immediately bangs into the wall and drops the ball.  Is this ruled a catch?

7) For the defense to appeal a missed base must the ball be alive? 

[noumpere]

Are you taking a test?  You'll get better answers (from us) and learn more, if you try yourself and then post your answers and reasoning here.

[maven]

Here are the answers, not in order:

No
Yes
Probably
Depends on the code
Yes
No
Yes

Also, a thrown ball can't do anything intentionally, as it has no intentions, so it's misleading to characterize its behavior as accidental as well.

[Aging_Arbiter]

4 minutes ago, maven said:

not in order

LOVE IT!!    As only @maven could do.............

[CJK]

Some other answers, which may apply to these or other questions on your test:

R2 is ejected and the ball remains live.
Enforce the penalty; the offense has the option to accept the result of the play instead.
It's the name of the sled.
Don't talk to the fence.
This is a live ball appeal and a time play; score the run.
Kill the rivet, reposition the shoulder flaps, and secure them with Chicago screws.
Not a fumble, according to the Tuck Rule (which has since been repealed).
I do not recall.
Inform the head coach that his assistant has received a written warning and is restricted to the bench.  Resist the urge to offer the assistant a binky.
42.
 

[beerguy55]

1.Everything can be caught legally - release rules vary by state and season

2. The batter may be awarded a pat on the back, a high five, and compliments from his teammates for having a good eye

3. "Don't eat yellow snow" would be a foul tip

4. If the base coach is offended, it won't matter if it was an accident or not, and the ball should get a good lawyer

5. A ball is the spherical object used as a projectile in many different sports

6. Make up your mind...if he made a catch why are you asking if it was a catch?   If I make a cake, is it a cake?

7. The ball is an inanimate object and can never be alive...unless you have the good LSD.

[Kevin_K]

1 hour ago, beerguy55 said:

3. "Don't eat yellow snow" would be a foul tip

 

Fixed it for ya

[Aging_Arbiter]

and never forget....................

 

Day game or night game?

[roothog66]

On 5/15/2018 at 9:48 AM, CJK said:

Some other answers, which may apply to these or other questions on your test:

R2 is ejected and the ball remains live.
Enforce the penalty; the offense has the option to accept the result of the play instead.
It's the name of the sled.
Don't talk to the fence.
This is a live ball appeal and a time play; score the run.
Kill the rivet, reposition the shoulder flaps, and secure them with Chicago screws.
Not a fumble, according to the Tuck Rule (which has since been repealed).
I do not recall.
Inform the head coach that his assistant has received a written warning and is restricted to the bench.  Resist the urge to offer the assistant a binky.
42.
 

Hah! (whispers: *Rosebud*)

[Stan W.]

On ‎5‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 2:47 PM, Aging_Arbiter said:

and never forget....................

 

Day game or night game?

My all time favorite.......

 

[ilyazhito]

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

1) A line drive hits the first baseman deflects off the runner and is caught by the pitcher. This is a legal catch?

2) On ball four the pitch rolls under the backstop and out of play. The batter is only awarded first base?

3) Is a foul tip a live ball?

4) If a thrown ball accidentally touches a base coach is the ball still alive and in play?

5) A ball is a pitch which does not enter the strike zone in flight or struck at by the batter?

6) The left fielder makes a catch, immediately bangs into the wall and drops the ball.  Is this ruled a catch?

7) For the defense to appeal a missed base must the ball be alive? 

Some of the questions are obvious, like questions 3 and 5. Others are not so obvious (The answer to Question 7 depends on the rules used. In high school rules, there exists an option for a coach to verbally appeal a baserunning infraction while the ball is dead. In other rule sets, the ball must be alive).

No intent = no interference, if the base coach is where he ought to be (in the coach's box). If not, then strict liability applies (any contact with a thrown ball by base coach = out).

Yes, for ball 4 the batter is only awarded 1B, because the award for a pitch that goes out of play is one base for any runner. Because Ball 4 entitles the batter to become a runner and awards him 1st base, he receives the right to run to 1st base without jeopardy of being put out. The fact that the pitch goes out of play is irrelevant, and only requires the plate umpire to toss the pitcher a new baseball, and put said baseball into play.

6 should also be obvious, because the left fielder failed to demonstrate control, and did not release the ball intentionally or in a voluntary manner.

If you want to ask rules questions in the future, be more clear as to context (test vs real-life application), rules code (HS vs OBR (pro rules), etc.  That way the other posters won't poke fun at you. Umpires do have a weird sense of humor, sometimes .

 

[maven]

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

1) A line drive hits the first baseman deflects off the runner and is caught by the pitcher. This is a legal catch?

No. The ball is no longer in flight once it touches anything other than a fielder.

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

2) On ball four the pitch rolls under the backstop and out of play. The batter is only awarded first base?

Yes. The status of the ball is still a pitched ball, not a batted or thrown ball.

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

3) Is a foul tip a live ball?

Yes. This answer applies to a foul tip properly so called, not necessarily to every ball the batter tips foul (that announcers call "foul tips").

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

4) If a thrown ball accidently touches a base coach is the ball still alive and in play?

Yes. Base coaches are permitted (in some codes, required) to be on the field, so provided they do not intentionally interfere the ball usually remains live (hopefully not "alive," which is a scary prospect).

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

5) A ball is a pitch which does not enter the strike zone in flight or struck at by the batter?

That's a sufficient condition. A ball can also be awarded by penalty, for example for an illegal pitch without runners or when F1 delays the game.

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

6) The left fielder makes a catch, immediately bangs into the wall and drops the ball.  Is this ruled a catch?

No. By rule, a catch must display 2 features: the fielder must gain secure possession of the ball in hand or glove, and the fielder must release the ball voluntarily.

On 5/15/2018 at 9:44 AM, Guest James said:

7) For the defense to appeal a missed base must the ball be alive? 

The answer depends on the code: in games governed by HS rules, no; otherwise, yes.

[Rich Ives]

On 5/15/2018 at 11:48 AM, CJK said:

Some other answers, which may apply to these or other questions on your test:

R2 is ejected and the ball remains live.
Enforce the penalty; the offense has the option to accept the result of the play instead.
It's the name of the sled.
Don't talk to the fence.
This is a live ball appeal and a time play; score the run.
Kill the rivet, reposition the shoulder flaps, and secure them with Chicago screws.
Not a fumble, according to the Tuck Rule (which has since been repealed).
I do not recall.
Inform the head coach that his assistant has received a written warning and is restricted to the bench.  Resist the urge to offer the assistant a binky.
42.
 

 Rosebud was in the test? 

[beerguy55]

11 minutes ago, Rich Ives said:

 Rosebud was in the test? 

And Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy...umpiring situations can be quite diverse.

[stevis]

4 hours ago, beerguy55 said:

And Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy...umpiring situations can be quite diverse.

You haven't lived until you've officiated a game of Brockian Ultra Cricket.  You're rarely allowed to live afterwards either, but that's another matter.