defensive-player-out-of-play-balk

[RBIbaseball]

So I was gonna try to resurrect the above thread to ask this, but a 1 year time limit

 

It seemed clear that in NFHS you only need 1 foot in fair territory to be considered "in play"

 

I did a USSSA game and ran into a coach asking for a balk for this.

 

In OBR I don't see anything that addresses this, and the Google machine answers seem to suggest both feet do indeed need to be within the fair lines.

 

It seems as though NCAA might align with high school.

 

anyways, not necessarily interested in the philosophy behind whether this can/should be called - practically (as that was already well said in previous thread) - but can anyone clarify the OBR ruling on this, please?

[Jimurray]

19 minutes ago, RBIbaseball said:

So I was gonna try to resurrect the above thread to ask this, but a 1 year time limit

 

It seemed clear that in NFHS you only need 1 foot in fair territory to be considered "in play"

 

I did a USSSA game and ran into a coach asking for a balk for this.

 

In OBR I don't see anything that addresses this, and the Google machine answers seem to suggest both feet do indeed need to be within the fair lines.

 

It seems as though NCAA might align with high school.

 

anyways, not necessarily interested in the philosophy behind whether this can/should be called - practically (as that was already well said in previous thread) - but can anyone clarify the OBR ruling on this, please?

If this is regarding F3, both feet do have to be in fair territory except if F3 is playing in foul territory interps allow it to be  ignored unless noticed or brought to the attention of the umpire. There is no penalty other than ejection for refusal to comply if directed by the umpire. Most umpires do not "notice" it unless the other team complains. In the past faulty indentation of the "balk penalty" caused some literal umpires to call the "fielders balk" which does not exist. Notice the indentation of the "penalty" below. There are other ramifications when other fielders are not in fair territory which I will leave unaddressed.

"5.02 Fielding Positions When the ball is put in play at the start of, or during a game, all fielders other than the catcher shall be on fair territory.

        (a)  The catcher shall station himself directly back of the plate. He may leave his position at                      any time to catch a pitch or make a play except that when the batter is being given an                      intentional base on balls, the catcher must stand with both feet within the lines of the                        catcher’s box until the ball leaves the pitcher’s hand.

                PENALTY: Balk.

         (b)  The pitcher, while in the act of delivering the ball to the batter, shall take his legal                              position;

             (c) Infielder  Positioning

                   Any fielder other than the pitcher and the catcher may station himself anywhere in fair                       territory, except as described below:"

[Senor Azul]

From the 2021 Minor League Baseball Umpire Manual (section 5.2, p. 52):

...When holding a runner on at first or third base, a fielder sometimes positions one foot in foul territory. Though no penalty is specified in the Official Baseball Rules, the umpire shall instruct the fielder to position both feet in fair territory if brought to his attention. From that point in the game, strict enforcement shall apply for both teams...