luv baseball posted:
The pesky "Ordinary Effort" comes in here. Rule 10.13 ....An error will be charged for each misplay (fumble, muff or wild throw) that prolongs the time at bat of a batter, that prolongs the life of a runner......Add to that from comment 2 of the rule: ....in the scorer's judgement the fielder could have handled the ball with ordinary effort.....
For practical purposes I agree with CabbageDad's approach to these plays. If it is a clean one hopper in the knee to chest area then there can be an E. It would be unusual to charge the error on these plays though. It would have to be a real good throw and a really clear play that the catcher basically butchered. IMO if the runner is 15 feet+/- from the plate or closer (or about 2 strides) when the ball reaches the catcher - no error. If he kicks a good throw with a runner 30 feet up the line...then I can see hanging an E on him.
Another angle on this play is the failure to stop the throw where a stopped runner then scores. Now you have to give an error to someone. It then becomes the judgement of the scorer if the throw was wild or if the catcher should have stopped it. For any throw that bounces, that error is going to the guy who threw the ball with the exception being if the base was left uncovered by a defender that should have been there. For example a throw that goes into CF on a SB when neither 2B or SS cover the bag.
Please allow me to get something straight before moving on. In 2016 OBR change the numbering system in the rulebook and did away with rule 10, so there is no more rule 10.13. That being said, the new number for 10.13 is 9.13.
The definition for Ordinary Effort is now in the “Definition of Terms” section. Unfortunately, in the current edition of OBR which is the 2016 edition, in that comment, the references didn’t get updated. I suggest that anyone who really is interested in the rules download the current version. The 2017 edition should be out soon.
This discussion is a recurring one because it shows the difference between what makes sense to someone who knows the game and what the rulebook requires. The quotes are accurate, but unfortunately there’s another rule that comes into play further down in that comment. See below.
OBR Rule 9.12(a )(1) Comment: Slow handling of the ball that does not involve mechanical misplay shall not be construed as an error. For example, the official scorer shall not charge a fielder with an error if such fielder fields a ground ball cleanly but does not throw to first base in time to retire the batter. It is not necessary that the fielder touch the ball to be charged with an error. If a ground ball goes through a fielder’s legs or a fly ball falls untouched and, in the scorer’s judgment, the fielder could have handled the ball with ordinary effort, the official scorer shall charge such fielder with an error. For example, the official scorer shall charge an infielder with an error when a ground ball passes to either side of such infielder if, in the official scorer’s judgment, a fielder at that position making ordinary effort would have fielded such ground ball and retired a runner. The official scorer shall charge an outfielder with an error if such outfielder allows a fly ball to drop to the ground if, in the official scorer’s judgment, an outfielder at that position making ordinary effort would have caught such fly ball. If a throw is low, wide or high, or strikes the ground, and a runner reaches base who otherwise would have been put out by such throw, the official scorer shall charge the player making the throw with an error.
This is exactly the same thing as what happens on a wild pitch:
OBR 9.13(a) The official scorer shall charge a pitcher with a wild pitch when a legally delivered ball is so high, so wide or so low that the catcher does not stop and control the ball by ordinary effort, thereby permitting a runner or runners to advance. The official scorer shall charge a pitcher with a wild pitch when a legally delivered ball touches the ground or home plate before reaching the catcher and is not handled by the catcher, thereby permitting a runner or runners to advance.
The ball touching the ground in these circumstances relieves the receiving fielder of any responsibility for catching the ball UNDER THE RULES which is not the same thing as what he and/or others may believe.
So, “If it is a clean one-hop that comes up early for an easy catch and clearly beats the runner”, as someone who has played the game and watched it for many decades, I’m mad at the receiving fielder. But as a scorer who takes pride in trying to abide by the rules of the game, the receiving fielder is never gonna get popped with an E on that play for not catching the ball.
I try to keep this in mind: OBR Rule 9.12(a)(7) Comment: The official scorer shall apply this
rule even when it appears to be an injustice to a fielder whose throw was accurate. For example, the official scorer shall charge an error to an outfielder whose accurate throw to second base hits the base and caroms back into the outfield, thereby permitting a runner or runners to advance, because every base advanced by a runner must be accounted for.