Give up on a tag?

[keydetpiper]

I know a runner is out if he runs out of the basepath to avoid a tag, but I had a situation that stumped me. This was in a LL minors game. 

 

R2, 0 out. Ground ball to F6, fields cleanly and makes attempt to tag runner going to third. Runner dodges the tag but doesn't blatantly run out of basepath, F6 gives up on the tag and throws to first to retire BR. 

 

I called safe with no tag because F6 did not pursue the play. Did I blow it?

[noumpere]

I know a runner is out if he runs out of the basepath to avoid a tag, but I had a situation that stumped me. This was in a LL minors game. 

 

R2, 0 out. Ground ball to F6, fields cleanly and makes attempt to tag runner going to third. Runner dodges the tag but doesn't blatantly run out of basepath, F6 gives up on the tag and throws to first to retire BR. 

 

I called safe with no tag because F6 did not pursue the play. Did I blow it?

Was the runner out of his basepath or not?  Make the call when it happens either way so all know how to react.

[HeadHunterLA]

Was there a tag or wasn't there a tag?  I have no idea what F6 did not pursue the play means.

[UmpJM]

keydetpiper,

 

I have no idea whether or not you got the call right, but I can assure you that the shortstop's decision to abort his tag attempt has absolutely no bearing on the question.

 

JM

[JaxRolo]

What's this pursue thing?

[keydetpiper]

Looks like I didn't explain myself very well. As soon as the runner moved to avoid the tag, F6 stopped trying to tag him and threw to 1B, abandoning any play on R2. There was no tag. 

 

The runner left his original path, but whether he went more than 3 feet outside of it I can't say; I didn't have my tape measure handy. It was close.

[mstaylor]

If it isn't obvious let it go

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

[maven]

Often this is an easy call to make. If the fielder with the ball is between the runner and his base and attempting a tag, if the runner goes wider than the fielder's arm then you have an out (his arm is about 3 feet long). This kind of case is the garden variety application of this provision.

 

If a fielder is chasing a runner, then it can be harder to judge, and it sounds as if this is your sitch. Two things to bear in mind here: (1) the runner may legally run wherever he wants prior to the tag attempt (he can start avoiding F6 before F6 has the ball), and (2) you must have a bona fide tag attempt in order to invoke this rule. The fielder merely running toward the runner is not in itself a tag attempt (your judgment).

 

It sounds as if you let it go because you judged there was no tag attempt. I can imagine that: F6 gets the ball on the edge of the grass, starts to run to intercept R2 but realizes he won't catch him, so throws to 1B. That's not a tag attempt until he's in the runner's vicinity, so the basepath provision does not apply. If that's what happened, I'd say you nailed it!

[Dragon29]

The runner left his original path, but whether he went more than 3 feet outside of it I can't say; I didn't have my tape measure handy. It was close.

 

Uh - If you can't say, who can?  (Answer?  Nobody!)

 

The only reason I bring it up like this is that I'm enviioning the conversation you might have with the DM after this play:

DM: Hey, Blue - didn't that runner go more than 3' out of his basepath?

You: I can't say . . . . .

?

[bluegorilla]

Three foot arms on a Little League minor is a scary thought !

[maven]

Three foot arms on a Little League minor is a scary thought !

 

I don't do LL, but I do know that, in baseball, all arms are 3 feet long and all lines are straight!