jnazz

No. Always award the next base if OBS occurs during a rundown.

Since there was a play being made (ie: the rundown) and there was no mention of the ball being in flight (having a possible overthrow), the only answer that works for me is C. I say you kill the play immediatly on the obstruction award R1 second base and R3 home if in your judgement he would've scored without the obstruction. The thing that gets me is that R3 is thrown out at the plate so you know he wouldn't have scored. So......... Maybe I have R2 and R3 on this one after the obstruction.

If I'm not mistaken, only the plate shoes come in a low and mid option. I believe the base shoes are low only. Jim? Help?

I tried on many different CPs (probably 7 or 8 various hard and soft shell CPs) before I finally decided on the Platinum. I was torn between the WV Gold and the Platinum. They are both top end protectors but in the end I liked the more compact feel of the Platinum (the Gold seemed a little bulky for my liking). I know several local guys who swear by the Gold. Either way, you can't go wrong. Note: if you're at all interested in a soft shell CP, a partner whom I work 50ish games with a season loves his Honig's Zero Gravity. He's always been a soft shell guy and raves about the CP. He said it took a few games to get the proper fit and get used to it (like any CP).

In this case you must wait until continuous action ends. My instincts say you kill the play once the ball enters DBT and then award BR 1st on the CI and allow the option if the offensive manager chooses. So......... C. Ok, if I'm correct in my answer, what is the mechanic on this one? Do we even acknowledge the ball out of play? Or do we call it as if the runner had never scored? "TIME, the ball's out of play. BUT, since I've got Catcher's Interference. YOU, first base. YOU, back to third." and then wait. Would this be the proper mechanic? Or would we not even mention the ball out of play?

Thanks for the tip.

I saw your pic. Is this harness available for individual sale or did you rob it from another CP?

I've owned my WVP for a year now and love it. I do have one issue, though. I find my straps tend to tangle (get twirrled around). Now if I'm dressing with a partner I always get him to check me out but, as most of us know, your base partner sometimes doesn't show up until the last minute. Any suggestions? Is there a harness available for order that is more user friendly? If so, where can I find it? Thanks All Jason

They read MADE IN CHINA

It's funny, the website says, "Mask no longer getting dirty from being laid down on the field." Has anyone ever seen an umpire that is taken seriously drop his mask to make lineup changes? This clip must be marketed to unprofessional umpires looking for a way to look even more absurd.

I've got the book on my bookshelf and it hasn't been cracked yet. Maybe it'll be my next read. I tend to dive into the umpire reading as the season approaches.

In the most organized association I work for, our assigner allocates all the games for the 90' diamond (13 yr olds all the way up to Sr. Mens). The leagues involved are Babe Ruth, American Legion and Men's at various levels. He receives 10% of our game fee which is directly paid to him in his monthly cheque (he also works some games and we all get paid monthly). Since the Men's league pays in cash, he chooses not to take a cut of these games but allocates them anyways. Just a side note, all the games are played at two parks only so it's not like he's making a living at it. The remainder of the associations I work for are fairly unorganized and are allocated by the local UIC and sometimes even the coaches. These leagues have no fee.

Great. I knew I'd seen this photo before but wasn't sure if the UA shirt was one of them. Thanks Pete.

I know the Majestic and the Honig's are very similar in shade and have seem to become the standard. I was looking at the Ump Attire shirt today and was wondering if anyone on the site that has one has any opinions. Is it a match to the Majestic and the Honig's Polo Blue? I've heard the UA shirts are the best on the market so maybe I'll pick up a few if they're a match.

Interesting............ it does look way bigger than my Evans bag.

Our association has our yearly provincial Super Clinic at the end of the month (29th and 30th) in Surrey (suburb of Vancouver) British Columbia . It's an advanced (level 3) clinic. Baseball Canada uses Official Rules of Baseball but no FED. Check out the website bcbua.ca

Great that helps. Now in the JR manual pg. 137 it talks about pitchers illegally switching arms and the penalties imposed. It then goes on to talk about a batter switching boxes in violation of this rule and the penalties imposed. What is this illegal switching?

I was reading the JR manual last night and one of the rules got me thinking. It's in regards to the batter switching to the other box. I was able to find 6.06b (switching boxes when the pitcher is ready to pitch). In the picher section of the manual (after touching on an ambidexterous pitcher switching hands after making it obvious which hand he will pitch with) it lays out the penalty for illegally switching boxes. So, my question is: Once a batter declares a box to bat from, may he switch boxes during an at bat (assuming there is no pitching change during the at bat)? I somehow remember allowing one change per at bat, but this may be an old wives tale. Also, can anyone cite the rule reference? Thanks everyone!

Agreed! Teaching lessons is walking a slippery slope. He's lucky the coach didn't jump all over him. There are a lot of "umpire hater" coaches out there that are just drooling for an umpire to pull something like this. Be very careful!

I'm loving the site. The new look top notch.

Thanks guys. I'll be ordering tomorrow.

Ask Rick directly --- rick@rulesofbaseball.com I think if you order it now, you'll be safe for a year or two.

Is there any way to tuck this jacket in? I'm ready to buy 2 of each color if I can tuck it in. I'm not a fan of the elastic band hanging out when working the plate. And, would it be possible for a tailor to remove the band and extend the jacket without it looking like $#!+ ?

New shirts feel GREAT. Very comfortable and has good stretch. Collars also seem durable. Only drawback is that the polo is not an exact color match to Majestic (my shirt is more on the purple side compared to the Majestic). I also ordered a few +POS black shirts (they are their "new style" shirts). They are very similar to the new Honig's shirts in material used. These new shirts are true to size unlike the old +POS shirts (no need to order a larger size). As far as I know, Dan only has the black shirts in the new style so far. He told me more colors will be available in the New Year. He also just received charcoal slacks and new jackets which soon will be posted on their website. It will be interesting to see the charcoal pants' color and quality.

As far as a new umpire goes hustle, communication and eagerness to improve are all musts. The rest can be learned IMHO.