An interesting obstruction situation

[scrounge]

R3, outs don't matter (I think - in any case, there were 0 outs in this case).

Batter hits a dribbler to the pitcher that starts to die in the long grass, but it's clearly the pitcher's ball. Catcher steps forward right behind runner, who wasn't too fast, and they're both running parallel. About 1/3 of the way up the line, a couple meters beyond the batters' box, the catcher takes a right turn to back up the throw to 1B and just runs over the b/r (not maliciously, just a big ole tangle). By this time, pitcher has the ball, I loudly yell "Obstruction", they throw to 1B, and we put the b/r on 1B. They didn't look back the runner, so R3 easily made it to home about the time they threw to 1B.

So coach wanted R3 to return. I did pause a few seconds to think it through, but as I reasoned it out on the spot, since OBS is delayed dead ball, the runner is live and it was analogous to a fielder's choice, they could have tried on him but they didn't (understandably), they threw to 1B. But the B/R was awarded 1B on the obstruction so no out. And it wasn't 2 outs anyway so even if they got the out, R3 was scoring. Now, with the books packed somewhere, I'm slightly second-guessing.

Was it right to score the run? Would it have mattered if there were 2 outs.

[grayhawk]

Unless this was a Fed game, this was type 1 obstruction (immediate dead ball) since the BR was obstructed before first base.  Call time, announce the obstruction and award the BR first.  If, in your judgment, R3 would have scored, then award him home.  Can't let the defense benefit from their own infraction.

No, the outs don't matter.

[Richvee]

I'd say the run scores. However, in OBR, OBS before 1B on a ground ball to the infield is an immediate dead ball. FED it would be DDB.

MLBUM states in this situation other runners would be awarded bases they would have reached had no obstruction occurred. 

 

 

[scrounge]

Oops,sorry....Fed

[maven]

grayhawk provided the correct answer.

I'll just amplify his point that we can't allow the defense to benefit from their infraction. People sometimes get hung up on OBS vs INT: where the offense hinders, we send runners back, so that the offense does not benefit from their infraction.

If we automatically sent runners back after OBS, then the defense would have an incentive to obstruct some runner to keep R3 from scoring. We don't want that.

To point specifically to the rules: the penalty for OBS is to award bases to nullify the act of obstruction. We may award bases to any runner, not only the obstructed runner. If R3 would have scored without the OBS, then by rule we must award him HP.

The awards for the OP will be the same in all codes: the codes differ only in whether obstructing the BR makes the ball dead immediately.