Saugerties Little League Rule Of the Week

ituation - Little League Baseball. Runner on first takes off for second before the ball reaches homeplate. The catcher throws down to second base and the second baseman tags him before reaching the bag. The umpire calls the runner out. Shouldn’t he have been sent back to first base?

nswer: The ump is correct. See rule 7.13(a) which specifically addresses this scenario. “If a play is made on the runner and the runner is out, the out stands. If said runner safely the base to which the runners is advancing, the runner must be returned to the base occupied before the pitch was made, and no out results.”

ituation - Runner on first base…the batter hits a single into right field. The runner advances to third but misses second base on his/her way. The second baseman takes the throw from the right fielder and kicks the second base bag in disgust. IS THE RUNNER STANDING ON THIRD OUT FOR MISSING THE BASE?

nswer: 2.00/7.10. This is an appeal play. Appeals must be made by verbal request or in an unmistakable manner. The runner is NOT out at this time.

ituation - The batter hits a short fly ball to center field. The second baseman and centerfielder converge on the pop-up. At the last second….the infielder lunges for the ball and deflects it into the umpire. The alert centerfielder catches the ball before it touches the ground. IS THIS AN OUT?

nswer: This is NOT a legal catch since the ball touched the umpire. The ball is alive and in play. See Rule 2.00 CATCH.

ituation - The top of the seventh…one out…runner on first. A left-handed pitcher is brought in to face the left-handed hitter. This new hurler picks off the runner on his/her second toss to first. The offensive manager brings in a right-handed pinch hitter for his/her left hander. MAY THE DEFENSIVE MANAGER CHANGE PITCHERS?

nswer: - No. The new pitcher in the top of the seventh must pitch to at least on hitter or retire the side before he/she can be replaced.

: In last night’s Girls Majors game, the opposing pitcher attempted a pitch with one foot on the pitcher’s plate and one foot behind it. I thought you had to begin with both feet on the pitching plate? The ump said it was OK.

: The Umpire is Correct. It is her choice whether to have one or two feet on the pitching plate. See Softball Rule 8.01 (d). Prior to starting the delivery of the pitch, the pitcher shall take position with the pivot foot on or partially on the top surface of the pitcher’s plate, the non-pivot foot in contact with or behind the pitcher’s plate.

: I've seen this tactic employed by two teams and the coaches using it seem very confident they were correct. When a player is issued a base on balls, they give the ball to the first baseman and if the batter-runner steps beyond first, but did not make an attempt to go to second, they try to tag the player out. They support the claim by saying a batter cannot over run first base when awarded a walk.

: Incorrect. Not Only can the player over run first base on a hit or walk, it also Makes No Difference whether the batter-runner turns toward second or the foul line. Any player who has walked or hit and reached safely can over-run first base - however - they must immediately return to the base after doing so. If, in the umpire’s judgement, there is an attempt to advance to second, the player can be tagged out if off the bag.

ule C of 7.08 is pretty clear - Any Runner is out when: (c) that runner is tagged, when the ball is alive, while off a base.

xception: A batter-runner cannot be tagged out after over running or over sliding first base if said batter-runner returns immediately to the base.

: Is a Pitched Ball Ruled Dead on a Foul-Tip?

: A FOUL TIP IS LIVE. A foul-tip, by definition, is a ball that goes sharp and direct from the bat to the catcher’s glove, and is Caught. If it is not caught, it is a Foul Ball and the ball is dead. If it IS caught, it is a strike and the ball is live. See Rule 2.00 FOUL TIP.

: One out with runners on First and Second. Batter smashes a double to left. Runner from second scores easily, but the runner from first is thrown out at the plate. The batter advances to second safely but is called out on appeal for missing first base. Does the run score?

: NO RUN SCORED. Take a looke at Rule 4.09 where it states: A run is not scored if the runner advances to home base during a play in which the third out is made: 1. By the batter/runner before he/she touches first base. Because the runner NEVER touched first base, you almost have to look at this as if it was any standard inning ending forceout. The defense touched first base with the ball in hand before the runner did.

: With a runner on first, the pitch was hit to the second baseman. The second baseman stepped into the path of the runner to field the ball, picked up the ball and awaited to tag the runner. The runner ran into the second baseman dislodging the ball. The umpire awarded the runner second base because the second baseman dropped the ball.

: This was an incorrect call by the umpire. Rule 7.08 (A)-3 - says a runner Must Slide or Attempt to Get Around a fielder who has the ball and is waiting to make a tag. … This rule applies not just at the bases - but between all bases. Because the runner going from first base to second base is going to be met in the baseline by the second baseman, who has the ball and is waiting to make the tag, the runner is out for violation of this rule. The ball remains live. The runner should have attempted to go around the fielder who had the ball and was waiting to make the tag, even though this meant the runner might run out of the baseline and be called out for doing so. Remember, however, that if the fielder does NOT have the ball AND is NOT waiting to make a tag, the runner is not required to slide or attempt to get around the fielder – even if the play is at home plate.

omment: There is no “must slide rule”. The rule is “Slide or Attempt to Get Around.” The key in this situation is “fielder has the ball and is waiting to make tag.” If any fielder does NOT have the ball, you CANNOT automaitcally call the Runner Out if there is a collision unless the Runner interefered with a fielder’s ability to make a play on a batted ball. However, if the umpire determines that the runner deliberately attempted to injure the fielder, he may eject the runner for unsporstmanlike conduct. The key to this rule are the fielder having the ball, and the umpire’s judgment as to whether or not the fielder is waiting to make the tag.

: During the 6th inning of last night’s game, our #8 hitter stepped in to bat - but it was actually the #7 hitter’s spot in the order. It was discovered after the batter already had a 3-1 count. The umpire sent the #8 hitter back to the bench and put the #7 hitter in her place but claimed the count was still 3-1. The opposing manger came on to the field declaring that the batter should be out. Who is right?

: The umpire was correct. A batter who bats out of order can only be called out when the incorrect batter has completed the at-bat and the defensive team appeals it immediately - BEFORE a pitch to the next batter. If the defensive team appeals after a pitch to the next batter, it is too late and the at bat, even out of order, becomes legalized. See Section 6.00 - The Batter and the Batting Out of Turn Approved Rulings that follows on page 66 of the 2008 Rule Book. An at bat is complete when the ball is put in play and a defensive play is made or if the batter walks or strikes out.

: With bases full, the batter bunts the ball and reaches first safely, however the umpire calls the runner on third out for leaving early. Is this the right call?

: No. The rules regarding a runner leaving early usually result in the runner - or multiple runners - being sent back to the closest bag when such a violation occurs depending on where the ball was hit. However, because this is the one case where there is no place to send the runner back to - and the ball DID NOT reach the Outfield - the runner is removed, no run is counted and no out is counted.

f the ball is hit to the outfield and the runner reaches safely, the run would count. If any play results in a putout with bases loaded and a runner leaving early, the player would then go back to third base. See the Examples Section of Rule 7.13 for specific scenarios and how they apply.