Base Umpire Calls Foul Ball after Batted Ball Hits Batters Foot!

[gaman1974]

I would like to know what Page in the NFHS Umpire Manual or Rule Book or Little League Umpire Manual or Rule Book where it talks about  how the Base Umpire is allowed to call a Foul Ball when a Batted Ball hits a Batters Foot while he is still in the Box. I called a Foul Ball that hit a Batters Foot and My Plate Umpire was Blocked.....

 

Thanks

[UmpJM]

garman,

 

It is a matter of mechanics, not rules.

 

If a BU clearly sees a batted ball hit the batter - and his partner PU has failed to make a call after a reasonable time - it is perfectly acceptable for the BU, if he is certain the ball hit the batter to make the call.

 

It is preferable that the BU call "TIME!" rather than "FOUL!".

 

JM

[UMP45]

garman,

 

It is a matter of mechanics, not rules.

 

If a BU clearly sees a batted ball hit the batter - and his partner PU has failed to make a call after a reasonable time - it is perfectly acceptable for the BU, if he is certain the ball hit the batter to make the call.

 

It is preferable that the BU call "TIME!" rather than "FOUL!".

 

JM

+10!

[BT_Blue]

JM beat me to it as well. Call time rather then foul. Time stops the play and any funny stuff can be administered. Foul kills everything and makes the funny stuff harder to deal with.

[Jocko]

PBUCUM 9.10 - FOUL BALLS IN THE BATTER'S BOX

"Whenever EITHER umpire sees a batted ball strike the batter while he is still in the box, THAT umppire should immediately call and sinal "FOUL" loudly and clearly."

[BalkHawk]

PBUC Manual 9.10 (not 9.1) says:

 

 ^^^what he said

[Guest Guest]

Thanks for all the answers but would any one fo you know where in the NFHS Umpire Manual or Rule Book it would be under,as I don't have a PBUC Manual

[Jocko]

PBUC2Man 10.12 is identical word for word.

[Big Red]

gaman & guest,

JM is correct....it is a mechanic, not a rule. PBUC is addressed above and can't speak for LL, but concerning Fed, this specific topic can be found on page 41 of the NFHS 2013 & 2014 Baseball Umpires Manual, under 2-man Mechanics General Duties and Responsibilites:

 

U2 (base umpire):

4. In Position A, call fair/foul on balls hit down the first-base line from the front edge of the bag to the foul pole, especially on balls bounding over the bag. Be alert to help U1 on a slow roller or bunt down the line where he may be blocked out by the catcher or batter-runner. If you see a batted ball contact the batter in the batter's box, call "Time!"

 

Majority of time, PL will know what this is for if he was blocked or didn't see it. Though U2 can signal/announce what he saw, if still not immediately clear, you now have the opportunity to confer.

[Guest Guest]

Thanks Big Red I found it........and Thanks to all for the Hints and Answers..I will have to Bring it up in our Meeting tommorrow night which way we want to call it because I have Umpired in 13 States and Every State everyone has called it a Foul Ball,No matter if it's Little League,Rec Ball or High School and it clearly is different in both.On the Little League site it says to call "Time to avoid confusion and funny buisness by the coaches" which is what happened this year that I must admit never happened before and I can understand that,but I understand it's still a Foul Ball and should be called that so I must admit I will bring it up and see what others think around here..Well thanks agian for all the Help...

 

[Big Red]

You bet and I understand your point.  I work PONY as well, which utilizes OBR and we call FOUL as Jocko mentions above.   Of course, we're talking Fed which seems to approach things from the worst contingency/lowest common denominator perspective. 

Our organization (TASO - Tx Association of Sports Officials) puts out a really good manual, "Baseball Umpires Manual -- Mechanics for 2, 3 and 4 Umpires."  It's a 294-page book that further defines  and clarifies Fed mechanics.

I looked through it this morning and found further info, and in line with what BT and yourself mention regarding other issues.

From page 5, under Base Umpire Positions:

 

"If the base umpire observes something, such as a batter struck by a batted ball, that would cause the ball to become dead, he should give the plate umpire time to make the call.  If the plate umpire does not do so, then the base umpire should, emphatically and loudly, call TIME.  Do not call a foul ball or anything else.  Simply TIME and then get together with your partner, explain what you saw, and sort out what happened.  The plate umpire may have seen something in addition to what the base umpire saw, such as catcher interference  or the batter being in fair territory, which may impact the play/call."

[Guest Guest]

Well that is Good to hear and Very Helpful Reading Material I will check and See if Georgia Does the same as I know the Local Association doesn't..I know I called my Local Little League/Home School Baseball U.I.C this morning and I told him and he said that he wants us to Follow the Pro Method and to Give the Plate Umpire the Chance to catch it but if not for the Base Umpire to Speak Loud and say"Foul,Ball hit batter in the Box" and that his thinking was because we play under time limits calling time on a play like that and my partner and me needing to spend time to get together takes away from Playing time and just for us to make sure we saw it hit the batter in the box and don't worry if the coach yells out that it's not my Call,to approach the coach and explain that it is your call and re-iterate to the coach to not yell out and to call time as instructed at the plate conference and to approach the umpire who made the call and calmly discuss it and that yelling out and acting a fool will not be tolerated...You know I have been calling ball for 13yrs and never had a coach question that it's not a base umpires call and thats what started me investigating this matter in detail and this coach acted a fool and I had to eject him after he refused to go to his bench and he covered Home plate with a bunch of dirt and threw 3rd base into the stands..(Quite Classless if ya ask me)..and the Home School Director approached me and my partner after the game and started yelling at us it wasn't my call and that no base umpire can see that call..but my U.I.C did say that he had a conversation with the Director and the Coach and covered with them it is our call and thats why their is two of us out their..Like I said it was quite something new I had incountered before and I think part of the problem is that as an umpire you won't see that Problem with Public H.S. Coaches because they are made to take the same classes as umpires in GHSA where Home School and Little League will let anyone coach,rather they know the rules or not..Well take care Big Red and good luck out their as well

[carolinablue]

Wow, it was a home school game ? Most of our home school leagues around here are very respectful, I love working their games.These people sound like douches.

[semper_fi_72]

Wow, it was a home school game ? Most of our home school leagues around here are very respectful, I love working their games.These people sound like douches.

I got to see if there is a Home School League around here.

With Home Schooling 3 girls, I may want to start my own Home School Team.

[grayhawk]

I will simply add that this is something that should be covered in your pregame with your partner - right before, or right after you discuss your signal as BU for U3K.

[Jocko]

I had this in my 1st 2013 game Saturday. No runners. Batter gets a swinging bunt. I was blocked and came up pointing. My partner from "A" killed it. I heard him so looked up. He's walking up the line towards me said it got him in the box. Good call. Reset and go again. What's the problem? I can't stnd someone who has zero knowledge telling me how to do my job. I'd rather you just said thank you and went on your way. Either way, I don't give a DAMN WHAT YOU THINK YOU ARE ENTITLED TO

[carolinablue]

Wow, it was a home school game ? Most of our home school leagues around here are very respectful, I love working their games.These people sound like douches.

I got to see if there is a Home School League around here.

With Home Schooling 3 girls, I may want to start my own Home School Team.

The ones around here are in with some other home school teams and also play some private schools, mostly christian. The talent level is from high level varsity to average at best all mixed up on the same team. They usually have a couple of good pitchers and a decent catcher, which is what matters the most. Nobody has any illusions of grandeur so the games are very fun to work, usually.

[gaman1974]

I got a Double Header with the same Coach this coming Saturday and my U.I.C moved some Guys around and is calling the game with him and he also talked to the Home School Director about how this was my call and he also let the coach know that his actions would not be tolerated or he would be thrown out agian and on a side note I also do travel ball umpiring(USSSA) and this past wknd I had a Tournament and I had 3 seperate incidents where the ball hit the batter in the box and I from the A position twice and the B position once and I hesitated a second to see if my partner would kill it and when he didn't I killed it and not one of those times did a coach argue and one time after the inning the coach walked by and said "Good Call blue,their batter was still in the box" and so if a dad who makes himself a coach understands its my call then an Actual Varsity Coach should damn well know it..So I am looking forward to seeing this Duche Bag on Saturday and I will play it cool,but between you and I, he is gonna be on a very,very short leash and I know my U.I.C and the Home School Director( A Great Pastor from a Local Church) will both be their..

[sdix00]

I ran out of breath reading that in my head. 

[UmpJM]

Me too.

 

JM

[yawetag]

So I am looking forward to seeing this Duche Bag on Saturday and I will play it cool,but between you and I, he is gonna be on a very,very short leash

 

Between you and me, this attitude is the worst to have as an umpire. If you have any aspirations in moving up in officiating, my advice is for you to learn that incidents on the field are water under a bridge. Changing your style toward a coach due to past incidents will only make you look like a fool. The same goes for him, too -- if he wants to hold a grudge from a game in the past, he'll look like the ass on the field.

[noumpere]

I ran out of breath reading that in my head. 

 

 

Me too.

 

JM

I dont know what you guys are complaining about because it made perfect sense to me the was he said it all at once with none of those annoying special characters and stuff that just slows down both the reading and the typing in fact it read a lot like I like to write until you guys learned me better about what is expected here so I think we should all just cut him a break and maybe we should all try it his way for a while

[JaxRolo]

So I am looking forward to seeing this Duche Bag on Saturday and I will play it cool,but between you and I, he is gonna be on a very,very short leash

Between you and me, this attitude is the worst to have as an umpire. If you have any aspirations in moving up in officiating, my advice is for you to learn that incidents on the field are water under a bridge. Changing your style toward a coach due to past incidents will only make you look like a fool. The same goes for him, too -- if he wants to hold a grudge from a game in the past, he'll look like the ass on the field.

I agree. You can't carry over what happens in past games. If you do you won't last long.

Each game is a new beginning.

[Jocko]

So I am looking forward to seeing this Duche Bag on Saturday and I will play it cool,but between you and I, he is gonna be on a very,very short leash

 Between you and me, this attitude is the worst to have as an umpire. If you have any aspirations in moving up in officiating, my advice is for you to learn that incidents on the field are water under a bridge. Changing your style toward a coach due to past incidents will only make you look like a fool. The same goes for him, too -- if he wants to hold a grudge from a game in the past, he'll look like the ass on the field.

100% agree. Each game is its own entity. Runs, outs, innings don't carry over. Neither should any sentiment (good or bad). Bygones, myy friend. It's more than professionalism, it's character as well. Can't be a good umpire with a chip on your shoulder and drawing lines in the sand.

[Thunderheads]

I had this in my 1st 2013 game Saturday. No runners. Batter gets a swinging bunt. I was blocked and came up pointing. My partner from "A" killed it. I heard him so looked up. He's walking up the line towards me said it got him in the box. Good call. Reset and go again. What's the problem? I can't stnd someone who has zero knowledge telling me how to do my job. I'd rather you just said thank you and went on your way. Either way, I don't give a DAMN WHAT YOU THINK YOU ARE ENTITLED TO

Am I missing something here?  What are you talking about here?

[Jocko]

The Home School coach yelling about who's call it is.