Slide situation

[dleavitt39]

Had this at my game Sunday, still trying to figure out if I got it right.

R1 , # of outs don't matter. FED rules

R1 attempts to steal Second. F4 goes to take the throw, but is taken approx. 15 feet to the 1b side of the base, and right into the baseline. He drops to his knees to field the ball, and the runner, instead of running through/aroundF4, hurdles him. I call time, and think over the situation, I know I've seen in the rulebook somewhere about hurdling a fielder. In FED book, it's 8-4-2.b.2. I didn't remember the penalty for it, so I sent the runner back to 1st for hurdling a fielder that wasn't lying on the ground.

I come home, pull out the rulebook, and see that the rule is under the "sliding" section. My 2 questions are this:

1. Was the hurdle legal since it was no where near the vicinity of where the runner would slide into a base?

2. If it was illegal, it says that penalty is runner is out. Do you call out a 10 y.o. when no one has a clear grasp of the rule, and at that age, the players don't have a good grasp on the game?

Thanks!

DL

[UmpJM]

dleavitt,

1. Under FED rules, hurdling a fielder who is not lying on the ground is illegal ANYWHERE on the field, regardless of how far or close to a base that it occurs.

2. Yes, if the rules being played under call for it, you call the 10 year old out. That's how they learn.

Note, the runner has to go "over the top" of the fielder to be illegal. If he hurdles/jumps over an outstretched arm or something, he is not in violation.

JM

FVB73

[Umpire in Chief]

UmpJM has it right.

[Jboval]

Is there a difference in the rule being applied in a situation where the runner is trying to avoid a defensive player making a play on the ball vs. the runner trying to avoid a tag? I can't see penalizing the runner for avoiding the player trying to catch the ball, when the bad throw brought the guy into his running lane, possibly causing an obstruction call in some situations. Now obviously, if he had the ball and was ready to make a tag, then he's out, but the way you described it, it could of been just an avoidance manuever to get around the player, not the tag.

[fbara]

Jboval, I don't think it matters. It's a safety rule. In part, they're trying to protect the fielder from getting a spiked shoe to the head, so it doesn't matter if the fielder is trying to tag the runner or making a play on the ball. The runner is not allowed to do jump a fielder who is not lying on the ground.

[noumpere]

Is there a difference in the rule being applied in a situation where the runner is trying to avoid a defensive player making a play on the ball vs. the runner trying to avoid a tag?

No. It's a safety rule.

[noumpere]

Do you call out a 10 y.o. when no one has a clear grasp of the rule?

Apparently not.