JCG posted:Thanks for the comment Luv. But in a comment under definition of terms, page 147, there is this: Ordinary effort...is an objective standard in regard to any particular fielder. In other words, even if a fielder makes his best effort, if that effort falls short of what an average fielder at that position in that league would have made in a situation, the official scorer should charge that fielder with an error
I don't call myself an expert, but I've taken that to encompass mental errors. In this case, it would include an F1 failing to cover. In same cases maybe even an F3 failing to cover. Or it would cover a SS failing to get an out on a cleanly fielded ground ball because he took his sweet time making a throw, or a guy throwing to the wrong base, etc.
The definition of error still applies which is the physical misplay of a ball.
This definition would apply if a player goes to make an exceptional play, say a ball hit up the middle that the SS reaches, goes into a full stretch to reach the ball, gets his glove on it, but does not make the play because the ball popped out of his glove. In this case, he went beyond ordinary effort, so an error would not be charged. Another example would be a ball hit slightly to the SS's left. An ordinary SS in his league would have made the play, but this guy didn't. Ball goes through his legs. It's an error because it only took ordinary effort to make the play.
Mental mistakes or errors in judgement do not constitute errors whether the play should ordinarily have been made or not.