Calling Time for Injured Player

[baseballfan]

Found this quiz online today and have been intrigued by questions 4 and 33. It says that even if a player is knocked unconscious during a play due to a throw, for example, that play must continue, and the player can be tagged out. What do you all think of this, especially in light of 5.10© and (h) in the OBR.

 

Plus, if you have any situations you have come across with players being injured during a play, I would love to hear them.

the link to the quiz:

 

http://www.bostonbaseball.com/whitesox/baseball_extras/makecall.html#mc33

[HeadHunterLA]

Injuries happen and if they happen during a live ball then yes, of course a player can be tagged out, conscious or unconscious.  Let the play happen and kill it as soon as you possibly can.

[BRUMP]

Injuries happen and if they happen during a live ball then yes, of course a player can be tagged out, conscious or unconscious. Let the play happen and kill it as soon as you possibly can.

If anyone is knocked unconscious during one of my games I'm calling time immediately. It would be a situation bigger than the game at hand.

[baseballfan]

^{Injuries happen and if they happen during a live ball then yes, of course a player can be tagged out, conscious or unconscious.  Let the play happen and kill it as soon as you possibly can.}

 

^{Right, but 5.10© says an umpire should call time for an accident that incapacitates a player or umpire; then (h) says this is one of the 2 situations in which an umpire can call "Time" with a play in progress. So, in light of that, I have to disagree with you here that a ball can be kept live during any and every injury.}

[Larry in TN]

5.10(c ) doesn't seem to answer part of the question.

 

5.10 The ball becomes dead when an umpire calls Time. The umpire-inchief shall call Time -- 

(c ) When an accident incapacitates a player or an umpire;

(1) If an accident to a runner is such as to prevent him from proceeding to a base to which he is entitled, as on a home run hit out of the playing field, or an award of one or more bases, a substitute runner shall be permitted to complete the play.

 

It does not address what happens to a runner who has past the base that he is entitled to but is injured and the injury prevents him for either proceeding to the next base or returning to the previous base and "time" is called.  For example, B1 hits a ball into the outfield and rounds first-base to try for second.  He trips and is seriously injured in between fist-base and second-base and the umpire halts play per 5.10(c ).  What happens to the BR?  

 

Is he out even though play was stopped before the defense could tag him out?

 

Is he safe with a PR replacing him?  if so, At which base would the PR be placed?

[mr magoo]

Well I had a second baseman that got hit in the face when a ball took a bounce. I had the plate and when the BR reached first I called time put the runners back to the bases at the time out call. I am willing to put up with a s#it storm when it comes to player safety. Can you imagine the  lawsuit if someones injury got worse because they got tangled up in a play ?  I guess I was lucky because nobody said a word, how about that, some common sense for a change

[carolinablue]

 If the injury is such that it may be life threatening, such as line drive to the head, I'm really not going to give a darn wheteher I get the rule right or not. I don't think anyone else will either. However, in 99% of the cases, I will let it play out before calling time.

[Dannytheman]

I only do LL now.  I kill the play when I see the injury. Make note of where the runners are and place them. I have had some complaints about me being to fast on my calls of time, but I remind everyone that it is Little League. 

[BigUmp56]

I don't think this is as complicated as I've seen it made over the years. If a player gets injured and the play can be allowed to continue WITHOUT putting that player at further risk of injury, let the play continue until action relaxes. If the coaches want to come out and attend to the player during live ball action, let them. If they interfere with a continuing play, call time and place the runners WITHOUT penalizing the team whose coaches created the play stoppage. And always err on the side if caution. No play in any game we umpire is as important as player safety.

Tim.

[BigUmpire]

I don't think this is as complicated as I've seen it made over the years. If a player gets injured and the play can be allowed to continue WITHOUT putting that player at further risk of injury, let the play continue until action relaxes. If the coaches want to come out and attend to the player during live ball action, let them. If they interfere with a continuing play, call time and place the runners WITHOUT penalizing the team whose coaches created the play stoppage. And always err on the side if caution. No play in any game we umpire is as important as player safety.

Tim.

This is a real umpire talking here boys!

Great answer Tim.

Thanks.

[Kevin_K]

HS varsity game on turf in late March.

 

RH batter laces a one hopper to F5 who stops the ball with the bridge of his nose. The ball ricochets to his right and rolls to the left field fence beyond third base.

 

R1 advances to 3B and BR to 2B as F5 is on his hands and knees with a considerable amount of blood coming out of his nose onto the carpet. F6 ran to retrieve the ball and started to run it in to the infield. Once he got to the inside of the infield and the runners stopped their advancement, I killed it.

 

Nary a peep from anyone as the home team cleaned up the blood from the carpet. F5 came out of the game and we moved on.

 

That said, the level of play, the age of the players, and common sense all have to be considered. Every situation that anyone contributes is a HTBT and unique.

[ump570]

I actually had this happen with 9 year olds last month. OC was a real jerk, and was whining about calls all day. Anyway, there's a ball hit in the gap and with runners on 1st and 2nd. Runner from 2nd is coming home and throw comes in and hits catcher square in the nose, blood everywhere. He crumbles in a heap right in front of home plate. I see next runner round 3rd and the catcher is lying right in the base path, clearly injured. Fearing further injury and realizing these kids are 9, I kill the play and put the runner back at 3rd. I explain to the coach that I feared that the catcher risked further injury and I'm not putting a 9 year old kid's safety in jeopardy. Surprisingly, the coach didn't say a word. It was the only call that went against his team that he didn't argue.

[noumpere]

5.10(c ) doesn't seem to answer part of the question.

 

5.10 The ball becomes dead when an umpire calls Time. The umpire-inchief shall call Time -- 

(c ) When an accident incapacitates a player or an umpire;

(1) If an accident to a runner is such as to prevent him from proceeding to a base to which he is entitled, as on a home run hit out of the playing field, or an award of one or more bases, a substitute runner shall be permitted to complete the play.

 

It does not address what happens to a runner who has past the base that he is entitled to but is injured and the injury prevents him for either proceeding to the next base or returning to the previous base and "time" is called.  For example, B1 hits a ball into the outfield and rounds first-base to try for second.  He trips and is seriously injured in between fist-base and second-base and the umpire halts play per 5.10(c ).  What happens to the BR?  

 

Is he out even though play was stopped before the defense could tag him out?

 

Is he safe with a PR replacing him?  if so, At which base would the PR be placed?

the runner is going to be out when he's tagged.  No pinch runner.

 

And I'm sure without seeing it that the quiz in the OP was for MLB so the answer of keep the ball live is correct.  If someone wants to do different in youth ball I guess I don't really have a problem with it but I have always exposed the same answer as BigUmp of keeping it live no matter what but letting the coach / trainer come out during play as long as they don't interfere.  They generally in the levels I do wont get to the foul line before the ball is recovered and play relaxes and I can call time.

[Larry in TN]

the runner is going to be out when he's tagged.  No pinch runner.

 

If the umpires kill the play immediately then the injured runner is never tagged because the defense never had the opportunity to tag him.  I can't find a rule that addresses how that should be handled.  It only addresses situations where the injured runner is already entitled to the next base (home run, walk, etc.)

[BigUmp56]

You wont find a rule to cover an injured runner not being in jeapordy if they're injured while beyond an entitled base. If they're tagged before time is called they're out. Like I said before, as ling as they're not at risk of further injury, you need to let the play continue. It's a too bad, so sad situation, but they don't get rewarded for being injured.

Tim.

[LMSANS]

I think we might be legitimately wading in the pool of 9.01c.

[Larry in TN]

If they're tagged before time is called they're out.

 

Right, but what if time is called before the defense has had the opportunity to tag them out?

 

I'm not an umpire, I'm a scorer, so I don't get to decide when time is called.  I just record what happens.  In the game that i was scoring where this happened (broken ankle), time was called immediately and a pinch-runner was placed on 1B.  Didn't seem right to me as the BR was on his way to 2B on a ball-in-play and never made it.

[mstaylor]

I think we might be legitimately wading in the pool of 9.01c.

If you kill it with an injured player between bases then it is certainly a 9.01c play. The secret is not to do this if possible. I am a firm believer of keeping it live if possible unless it is life threatening or further injury is possible.

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

[mstaylor]

I think we might be legitimately wading in the pool of 9.01c.

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

[mstaylor]

I think we might be legitimately wading in the pool of 9.01c.

Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2

[BigUmpire]

This is what we tell our young umpires to do, right out of our manual:

 

1. Safety is more important than anything. If a player appears to be injured AND is in the vicinity of play that IS still going on call “time†LOUDLY and get close to this player BUT let coaches deal with the injury NOT YOU. If a player appears injured and is NOT in the vicinity of play wait until play has stopped and call time. Example: first baseman goes down BUT the runner is past first OR the pitcher goes down BUT is not in jeopardy.

[LMSANS]

I think we might be legitimately wading in the pool of 9.01c.

If you kill it with an injured player between bases then it is certainly a 9.01c play. The secret is not to do this if possible. I am a firm believer of keeping it live if possible unless it is life threatening or further injury is possible. Sent from my C771 using Tapatalk 2 That's what I mean, definite htbt situation.

[Larry in TN]

If you kill it with an injured player between bases then it is certainly a 9.01c play. The secret is not to do this if possible. I am a firm believer of keeping it live if possible unless it is life threatening or further injury is possible.

 

Thanks.  That's what I was looking for.