What would you do next?

[soupcan]

This story is from a while ago, but it has bothered me since it happened and I am wondering how you guys would have handled this. OBR legion league.

 

I was the PU with a runner on 1st and one or no outs. R1 breaks for 2nd on the pitch and there is a popup between 1st and 2nd. I saw the popup and saw F4 prepare for the catch and started to watch the runner as the catch was going to the BU call. On his return to 1st, R1 collides with F3 and I call OBS and let play continue. The ball then drops between F4 and F3 (closer to F4) and everyone stops. After a few seconds, the BU calls time.

 

What would you do next?

[MidAmUmp]

Put up the tent, blow up some balloons for the kids, and start selling popcorn.

 

If everyone just stopped, enforce the obstruction, award R1 2nd base and put B/R on 1st.

[soupcan]

I guess I should add that when I went out to talk to the BU. He said "I think that is INT on R1".

[umpire_scott]

Not sure why the BU called "time", but at that point I think the only thing to do is exactly what MidAmUmp said.  Do you think everyone stopped because of your OBS call?

[JaxRolo]

Put up the tent, blow up some balloons for the kids, and start selling popcorn.

 

If everyone just stopped, enforce the obstruction, award R1 2nd base and put B/R on 1st.

I like this answer

[blue23ll]

What would I do next? Clean up the mess.

[umpire_scott]

I guess I should add that when I went out to talk to the BU. He said "I think that is INT on R1".

 

That does change a lot.  If F3 was making a play on the ball then I'd get R1 for interference instead of F3 for OBS.  I know that interference only protects one fielder, and perhaps this was more F4's ball, but I think interference cleans this up the nicest.

[soupcan]

My opinion was that F3 was not making a play and that F4 was the protected fielder. I wanted to award the OBS but the BU was our association head and had done many big tournaments in the state. I was new to the area and didn't have the balls to step on his toes. I had done a lot of games and had a lot of training, but I was young.

 

He said, "let's have a do over", AND I LET IT HAPPEN! I have been pissed about it for the last 15 years. Go ahead and bash away but I just wanted to verify that I had it right even though I let him walk on me.

[umpire_scott]

My opinion was that F3 was not making a play and that F4 was the protected fielder. I wanted to award the OBS but the BU was our association head and had done many big tournaments in the state. I was new to the area and didn't have the balls to step on his toes. I had done a lot of games and had a lot of training, but I was young.

 

He said, "let's have a do over", AND I LET IT HAPPEN! I have been pissed about it for the last 15 years. Go ahead and bash away but I just wanted to verify that I had it right even though I let him walk on me.

 

Well the problem as I see it isn't even whether OBS or interference was the right call.  "Time" was called when plays could still have been made if OBS was the call.  Once the play was killed with a runner presumably standing in the baseline between first and second base it's a mess.  If you go with your OBS call then the runner in OBR is only protected to the base you thought he would attain (in this case 1B because that's where he was headed).  Now if "time" had not been called and the players would have reacted as they should then what would have probably happened after the ball dropped is that R1 would have been forced out at 2B.  And your OBS call would not have changed that.  My question is do you think that F4 dropped the ball because he thought your OBS call created a dead ball situation?

[maven]

When BU calls time because everyone stopped, just undo it. "No! Keep playing!"

[sdix00]

When BU calls time because everyone stopped, just undo it. "No! Keep playing!"

 

[maven]

You know, I posted that as a joke, of course, but as I think about it I wonder whether it's worse than any of the other options...

[Kevin_K]

My opinion was that F3 was not making a play and that F4 was the protected fielder. I wanted to award the OBS but the BU was our association head and had done many big tournaments in the state. I was new to the area and didn't have the balls to step on his toes. I had done a lot of games and had a lot of training, but I was young.

 

He said, "let's have a do over", AND I LET IT HAPPEN! I have been pissed about it for the last 15 years. Go ahead and bash away but I just wanted to verify that I had it right even though I let him walk on me.

 

Wow.... I thought I held onto things a long time!

 

That's approaching the abilities of an Irish Catholic mother!