maven

Balk. Free foot steps toward home before the spin. The move can be done legally, since a feint to 2B is legal.

We have a similar thread going for a similar play. Here it is: http://umpire-empire.com/index.php/topic/52840-out-at-home-part-ii/#entry164269

I ignore "the hand" until Meat looks at me (for not acknowledging his hand). Then I'll say, "Go ahead and get set, he (the pitcher) has to wait for you."

I agree that this is BU's call. The only advantage PU has is distance: with greater distance you CAN see both the tag and the foot in one glance. So, if you've got a tag (not a swipe and miss), make your best call. If a coach asks you to get help, ask PU (privately) if he has anything. That should be a very brief conversation: "Did he beat the tag?" "No." Signal the out. As usual, ask your partner a yes/no question, not "what did you see?" If you're setting up the recommended 18-21 feet from 1B, you should have a pretty good look. The closer you are, the worse the look.

Others have offered good advice. I'll add only that every umpire, at every level, can have a bad plate game. It's OK, and doesn't mean you're a bad umpire. If you're doing something wrong, you need to address that. If not, and it was just concentration, or fatigue, or life intervening — well, put it behind you and do better next time!

Many newer umpires get caught up in what F1 MAY NOT do, and they get a little lost. When we teach new umpires, I start with what a properly engaged F1 MAY do from either the windup or set: Pitch to the batter Legally disengage Step and throw/feint to a base The last requires more qualification, of course, and FED prohibits pickoffs from the windup. But it makes understanding the balk provisions a little easier if we clarify what's permitted first.

Depends on the attitude. As most have said, the coach is often aiming to show up the umpire. Buh-bye. Sometimes, the coach will approach you first, ask a rules question, then ask to help him find it in the rule book. I had a coach tell me he had spent 2 hours looking for a provision (INT with a batted ball) and couldn't find it. I'll help with that. I'll respond to douchery as needed, but I won't initiate it. :)

As you know, the DH and player he bats for share a spot in the lineup. The DH plays offense, the other player defense. When either one plays the other's role, you lose the role of the DH, and only one player may be in the game at a time. But you may not have both players on defense at the same time, as the OP seems to have had. And by rule (2-36-3c), if that happens it's the (former) DH who is the illegal player, must leave the game, and is restricted to the dugout. If the DH comes out to play defense and the other player stays on the bench, you are correct, that's a quasi-substitution ("quasi" because both players are starters and have re-entry privileges).

With respect: you're barking up the wrong tree. If it's not prohibited, it's legal. The question is always locating a prohibition, not a permission.

For FED, the DH is the illegal player. 2-36-3c Prevent this if you can. If discovered, the illegal player is removed from the game and restricted to the dugout for the remainder of the game. If subsequently discovered in the game, out (if on offense) and ejected. 3-1-1

The best part of that account: you called time to allow yourself a moment to replay it in your mind. Then you made your call and sold it. Good work: don't rush it, nothing else is happening! :)

That's a tough one, but it sounds as if you nailed it. Don't second guess yourself when you're in the best position possible and make the best call you can. Someone's gotta make a call — might as well be you! ;)

Your point (a) can vary by rule set. You're correct for OBR. FED has a lower standard, which allows F1 to throw to an unoccupied advance base to "put out or drive back a runner." Any credible bluff legalizes a throw to the base ahead.

A couple of points: 1. Intent is not required here: the ODB is not a runner, so like a base coach he can be liable for INT by negligently failing to get out of the way. He is allowed on the field, but must vacate any space needed by the defense. I don't go overboard looking for this: the defense has screwed up badly if the ball is in the on-deck circle. 2. As I've said, the OP is HTBT, and I would not second guess the no-call. If your BU is following the ball, he should be looking at whatever happened and have more info for you. 3. If you do call INT on this play, you cannot call R2 out or send him back to 2B. At the TOI, he has already scored. Since the BR is the only other runner, you'd have to call him out for the INT. Since he's beyond 1B when called out to end the inning, it's a time play and the run would score.

This is a judgment call that is HTBT. So I don't think we can second guess your no-call. However, I will say that if you judge INT, you must get an out. True in OBR and FED. For FED at least, you call out the runner likely to have been played on, and if in doubt, the runner closest to home. 8-4-2g

Don't be so paranoid, Rich, and recognize when someone is agreeing with you.

Rich Ives will be along to tell you that 'equipment' there refers to 'properly worn' equipment (helmet, hat, uniform, shoe). A bat lying on the ground isn't. JM can explain the agreement error in the rule. :)

Telepathic baseball. I'm with everyone else. Always verbalize. If near the line, "IFF if fair!" You don't wait to determine fair/foul to announce IFF. You've discovered why. ;)

Not that it matters much, but I think F4 made the great play. ;)

Sounds as if coach was badgered into coming out. Sounds to me as if you handled everything professionally. Brief, direct, accurate, respectful. Kudos!

Time for a new assignor?

My latest experience in this area: a varsity catcher requested time to signal to his infield the call for R1, R3. I asked why he wanted time: if the stupid runners took off, didn't he want that out? He said coach told him to do it. Maybe they'll talk about it. :)

If this was a HS game, Ohio does not allow protests. So no recourse there. FED rules do not permit one umpire to overrule another, so if you can't budge him off that call, you don't have many options. But that's such a bad one, I might work extra hard to rectify it. It's not clear from the OP, so I'll just mention it: be sure your conversation with your partner is private. If coaches are included, partners get defensive and confrontational. When I'm trying to get a partner off a call, I ask questions: are you sure that's the rule and not..., are you sure the player didn't do ..., etc. Give them a moment to collect their thoughts. Even still, some guys won't budge. Definitely sounds like someone not to work with!

Two concrete suggestions for this type of case. 1. When he points at you regarding his call, you've got a problem. Call time and go discuss it. Don't point back and forth, and certainly don't make any signal for his call. Even if you have info for him, go out and talk. 2. When you go out there, remind him that it's his call. If neither of you saw the runner miss the base, he cannot grant the appeal. He must signal his ruling on the appeal. If the coach complains, it's up to him to explain (though if he's a novice you can help there).

But that's just it: the hole is there in pro ball too, and they DON'T do the job just fine. They might cover better than the OP, or they might use an advanced mechanic such as the PU picking up the touch at 1B if possible. But it might NOT be possible, and they might miss it. And a third (pro) umpire would NOT miss it. I would not seriously suggest to a coach that he hadn't hired enough umpires. Hence the smilie in my original post. If you prefer never to employ humor with coaches, then don't use it. Certainly some coaches (and some umpires) have no sense of humor. In my experience, some do. Like everything else in game management, knowing when and how to joke is an art.