Blocking home plate

[Thomas Van den Eynde]

Situation: Men's game MLB-rules

R2 and R3, ball hit the LF, R3 scores, but then...

R2 rounds 3th base while the throw from P7 gets to the catcher. No arguments raised by anyone that the throw beat the runner. The argument arose because the coach complains that the catcher was blocking home plate, I called R2 'out'. What happend was this: catcher was standing, ball in hand well up the 3th baseline about 2 meters (I'm European you see), so that would be around 7 feet (?). R2 deviaded from his running line to avoid the tag( unsuccesfully), catcher was standing with both feet on fair ground.

So now (finally) my question: would this be 'illegaly blocking the plate' or is the runner out on the tag?

The coach said that because the runner had to change his running line because of the catcher, he should be called 'safe' (obstruction).

(Always hoping my English is correct 😉)

[noumpere]

We need to know the timing of F2 getting the ball and the runner deviating from his path.

[Thomas Van den Eynde]

9 minutes ago, noumpere said:

We need to know the timing of F2 getting the ball and the runner deviating from his path.

F2 was holding the ball before runner deviated from his path.

[Velho]

Likely minor in this case but point of debate in these plays: where did F2 set up before moving to receive the throw?

[Thomas Van den Eynde]

5 minutes ago, Velho said:

Likely minor in this case but point of debate in these plays: where did F2 set up before moving to receive the throw?

He was standing in front of home plate, then moved towards the throw up the 3th base line, but this happend all well before the runner arrived.

[Velho]

15 minutes ago, Thomas Van den Eynde said:

He was standing in front of home plate, then moved towards the throw up the 3th base line, but this happend all well before the runner arrived.

Having the ball well before the runner arrived and would have had to deviated (begin generous to the runner) makes this a very easy no OBS call. You got it perfect. Coach was fishing.

As the doubt in the above increases, where they set up matters. No OBS setup are off the line completely in fair territory or well back in foul territory and off the plate. How they move to catch the ball matters. If the movement is needed to catch the ball and not as an excuse to block the runners path, then no OBS.

Here are some example videos from MLB (yes, we don't always to emulate MLB (and they can be inconsistent) but it's the best OBR examples we have (Little League being a second one).

 

[Tog Gee]

Yeah when getting into OBS, we can't lose sight of the fundamental concept that with possession of the ball, the defender can certainly block, pursue, bump the runner. Just nothing malicious.

If a defender doesn't have the ball and the runner has to slow down or change direction, then it's OBS.

[Tog Gee]

1 hour ago, Thomas Van den Eynde said:

well before the runner arrived.

No OBS.

[SeeingEyeDog]

@Thomas Van den Eynde, our brothers have given the correct information here...100%!

This is the kind of play where the BEST thing you can do for yourself and your partners on the field and ultimately The Game is to LEARN the verbiage in the rule book. Maybe the coach knows the rule (unlikely) and maybe he doesn't (likely). This kind of play is a play where you are using both INTERPRETATION/APPLICATION of the rule AND your judgement about what happened and when it happened.

By learning the verbiage of the rule itself you can then use this in your brief, BRIEF discussion with the coach. You're not there to conduct a rules clinic but by reciting the verbiage in the rule book, that gives the coach ZERO discussion leverage to try and talk you into a reversal. Give them the verbiage and walk away...if they continue, warn and eject.

In closing, remember this kind of play has different rules depending on which rules you are playing under so, again in addition to learning the verbiage, we have to of course also make sure we are citing and applying the correct rule(s) for the game and level we are working.

~Dawg