Larry in TN

It is not a DROPPED third-strike, it is an UN-CAUGHT third-strike. When you call it by its proper name it is easier to avoid confusion. For the strike to be "CAUGHT" it must qualify under the definition of "A CATCH". From OBR Rule 2.00 - DEFINITIONS: A CATCH is the act of a fielder in getting secure possession in his hand or glove of a ball in flight and firmly holding it; providing he does not use his cap, protector, pocket or any other part of his uniform in getting possession. It is not a catch, however, if simultaneously or immediately following his contact with the ball, he collides with a player, or with a wall, or if he falls down, and as a result of such collision or falling, drops the ball. It is not a catch if a fielder touches a fly ball which then hits a member of the offensive team or an umpire and then is caught by another defensive player. If the fielder has made the catch and drops the ball while in the act of making a throw following the catch, the ball shall be adjudged to have been caught. In establishing the validity of the catch, the fielder shall hold the ball long enough to prove that he has complete control of the ball and that his release of the ball is voluntary and intentional. The key in the definition is "of a ball in flight". Also from Rule 2.00: IN FLIGHT describes a batted, thrown, or pitched ball which has not yet touched the ground or some object other than a fielder. If the pitch is not caught in flight on strike three then the batter is NOT out unless first-base is occupied with less than two outs.

Coach-pitch, LL, 8yr old division. No walks, five pitch limit.

I'm just a lowly scorer here but here's how I'd look at this if I was scoring the game. 2 Outs. Uncaught third-strike. R3 advanced to home prior to R2 being tagged out. BR never attempts to advance to 1B. Since the BR never reaches 1B after his U3K I'm recording the strikeout. The strikeout is the 3rd out. R2 being tagged is the 4th out. No runs score. Where am I going wrong?

You have to be prepared for this ahead of time. As a scorer, we have to know how you'll handle it before it happens and have already agreed with the manager how you will get the information to him. As you noted, it just happens too fast to figure it out in real time. Best bet is to have a signal that you need him to call time with him willing to do so before he knows why you want him to call it. My problem, at the LL level, is getting a manager who's interested in working this out ahead of time. They don't think it'll happen and/or think that they'll "know" what to do when it does.

You appealed both too late AND too early. Assume the "official" lineup card said: 1. Baker 2. Abel 3. Charlie Abel bats first and reaches base. --Before another pitch is thrown, or play made, you can successfully appeal. Baker would be out, Abel removed from the bases, and Abel would be the next proper batter. You didn't notice it until BAKER had taken a pitch. STAY QUIET! Wait for Baker's plate-appearance to end. At this point you have the choice of appealing or waiting. If Baker got a hit then appeal and CHARLIE is out, because CHARLIE, not BAKER, became the next proper batter after Abel's P-A was legitimized. If BAKER was put-out then you can still choose to appeal, depending on who you want to be the next proper batter. i.e. not letting their slugger bat again. If BAKER's appearence is legitimized then ABEL would be the next proper batter and it's a pretty good bet he won't know that. NEVER appeal in the middle of a plate-appearance as the error, if any, will be corrected and no penalty will be applied. Go over this with your manager before the season, or tournament, starts so that you'll both be on the same page in such a situation. Timing of the appeal is critical. As scorer, I always ensure that I have the original copy of the other team's official lineup, as well as our own, as our league doesn't give a copy to the umpire, either. I keep it ready to produce if an appeal occurs.

What's the logic behind the "last half" aspect of the running lane? Is the thinking that if the runner is not yet half-way to first-base then the fielder has time to take a step or two to clear him before making the throw?

I received the following question for a LL coach with whom I have worked previously. Rule set is Little League Juniors division (modified OBR). Is an umpire permitted to direct a player to either stand up or throw the ball somewhere? For example, a runner is on base and dives back into the base. Is the umpire permitted to tell the player to stand up? On a similar play, is the umpire permitted to tell the baseman to throw the ball back to the pitcher? Or to tell the pitcher to stop stepping off the rubber or stop throwing the ball to first base? If so, under what rule in the rule book is the umpire permitted to direct the player's actions? If the player refuses to stand up or throw the ball back to the pitcher, then what recourse does the umpire have against the offending player or team? I immediately knew which umpire he was talking about and the situation. This particular umpire gets annoyed (as do I) when these 12-13yr olds act like they're still in T-Ball by requesting "time" every time they slide back to a base before standing up or the fielder holds a tag, seemingly indefinitely, on a runner who's already back on the bag waiting for him to call "Time" before throwing it back. I try to teach the kids to do it right and only call time when they really need it but many coaches want them to do this "just to be safe". Drives me nuts. Anyway, my answer to the questions were that no rule prevents the umpire from directing the player to throw the ball back to keep the game moving or requiring him to grant a time out request. If anything, 9.01© allows it. Is there anything else that's applicable? Comments on the umpire doing this to try to speed up the game? Thanks...

Does everyone agree that if the ball is FOUL at the time of the potential INT, and the ball stays FOUL, then there is no INT called? How about if the ball is FAIR at the time of the potential INT but the ball ends up FOUL? i.e. the defender may have had the opportunity to reach the ball while it was still fair? And lastly, what about a ball that is FOUL at the time of potential INT but the ball ends up FAIR? What I'm getting out of the discussion so far is "Nothing", "INT", and "INT".

It'll be interesting to see what changes are made to the IR system in the off season. As it is now, the IR system at the LLWS runs a lot faster and smoother than the one in the MLB.

When the interference occurs the fair/foul status of the batted-ball has not yet been determined. The fielder is running attempting to get to the ball and is stopped in his tracks by the BR. If the ball is fair he has lost his chance to get the ball before it might go foul. If the ball is foul he has lost his chance to touch the ball in foul territory to kill the play before it might go fair. Either action is a legitimate play on the ball by the defender. I am not aware of any rule which allows for a delayed interference call based on what happens after the interference occurs. That's why I asked. What's the rule support for your contention that it's only interference if he would have a play once reaching the ball?

That's what I thought. I'm trying to figure out why INT wasn't called in a LL Senior division game. All the umpire would say was that it was a judgement call and at most he had only "incidental contact". F1 was running to reach the rolling ball and had to stop hard to avoid the collision with BR. I've talked to him in the past about INT calls and, if I understand correctly, if the fielder chooses to pull up to avoid the collision then he won't call the INT. So I guess I have to teach the kids to plow through the runner. To Ricka's comment, he interfered with the fielders right to reach the batted ball and touch it foul, or wait to see if it came fair, as he might choose.

BR hits a bunt down the 1B line. F1 coming over to field it has to pull up hard to avoid being leveled by the BR running to 1B. Does the rolling ball's position fair/foul have any affect on the interference call?

I get a headache every time I watch one of these 7.13 plays...

What is the signal for spectator INT?

This new rule gives me a headache. The ball arrived before the runner. Once F2 has the ball he can block the plate, right? Was the ruling that his blocking the plate before the ball arrived was the violation?

Braves scored on another suicide squeeze yesterday. The clip only shows one angle but R3 broke for home before the pitch was released. http://m.mlb.com/video/v34831279

Thanks!

Off on a slight tangent... In this case R1 had already touched 2B and had retreated toward 1B in error. When he corrects his error and is once again advancing toward 2B must he be tagged out or is the force still in play at 2B? Was the force removed when he touched 2B the first time?

Saw one where it made a big difference who made the call--both did, but they were opposite! LL Int (50-70) tournament game. BU in A. Grounder down the 1B line with F3 moving over the bag to field the ball. Ball hits the front of the 1B bag and rebounds into foul territory. PU points fair, BU calls and signals foul. Not sure why BU even made a call as he later said that he couldn't see the ball because F3 had him blocked. He "just saw it come out rolling toward the dugout".

So why were reviews allowed on these two plays? When would a "neighborhood play" be unreviewable?

Here's the second reviewed play. http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/70467870/v34533033

I know that there's no official definition but thought that coming off the bag early to clear the incoming runner was also a "neighborhood" play? The wikipedea entry includes it. "In baseball, a neighborhood play is a force play where a fielder receiving the ball in attempting to force out a runner at second base, catches and quickly throws the ball to first base in a double play attempt without actually touching second base, or by touching second base well before catching the ball." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_play

Maybe I don't understand the definition of the neighborhood play, then. Not something I can look up in 2.00, either. They just had another "neighborhood play" reviewed and overturned in the ATL@CUBS game. This time the overturn went in favor of ATL with the out being called recorded at 2B, starting the double-play, which was originally called safe from a pulled foot. Once again, it was a good throw. Will have to look for that video when it gets posted. So, can anyone give me a better understanding of what the definition is and what is going on in those two situations?

Why was this reviewable? The throw was right on target. http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/63817564/v34382077

That's not true. From the dugout all we can see is high/low, not in/out. If a pitch that looks right on the top/bottom line is called a ball we don't know if it missed high/low or missed in/out. Finding that answer helps us understand how the high/low ball is being called.