Fielder falls into stands after catch

[baseballfan]

A textbook application of OBR 7.04( c) tonight during the Blue Jays-Angels game. Jose Bautista hits deep fly ball into LF with R1. Shuck makes the catch, robbing Jose of a homer, but falls into the stands in the process. Umpires awarded Maicer Izturis 2nd on the play. Saw the highlight on MLB Gameday just now. 

[dumbdumb]

A textbook application of OBR 7.04© tonight during the Blue Jays-Angels game. Jose Bautista hits deep fly ball into LF with R1. Shuck makes the catch, robbing Jose of a homer, but falls into the stands in the process. Umpires awarded Maicer Izturis 2nd on the play. Saw the highlight on MLB Gameday just now. 

Doesn't this rule cheat the offense, so aren't they suppose to keep the rules fair and balanced? R1 on second in Minute Maid park. Deep fly ball just barely to the right side of dead center. Center fielder catches the ball and falls fully into the stands like the OP play. R1 tagging up all the way.

As soon as ball touches glove, R1 takes off and easily scores and is at the top of the dugout steps as CF comes back into the field of play as quickly as possible like OP and throws the ball to the cutoff who throws ball in, but the runner is already at the dugout steps. How is making the runner go back to 3rd fair. What a cheap way to hold the runner to one base, that everyone in the park knows is going to score when the fielder falls in. So, just catch the ball and make it look good falling into the stands.

What about an interpretation like FI. Where the umpire thinks the runner would have made it, had the fielder not fallen out of play, but at least a minimum of 1 base.

[mstaylor]

It does make it fair. The defense made a play but fell OOP. They have now lost their chance to make any outs. If the defense tries to put it in dead ball on purpose then it is two bases. Sometimes by being consistent one team or the other gets screwed. 

Two examples: R2, I was in C. Hard grounder and I got hit in the toe. I killed the ball, awarded BR first and brought the R2, that was two steps from third, back to second. Second example, MiLB, R1, LH pitcher. He starts him motion, steps to first attempting to pick the runner. He overthrows the F3, ball rolls down the wall, runner advances to third. The ball hits the tarp and bounces out of play. The PU killed the ball and returned the runner to second. In both cases the offense got screwed but that is sometimes what happens. 

[CentralOhioUmp30]

Just another example of greatness from someone associated with The Ohio State University!

[grayhawk]

Saw it live last night.  Great play by Shuck!  My first thought was - they need to put R1 on second.  Took a while, but they did it.