NFHS. Runner on third coming home on grounder to second. Throw comes home, catcher has ball, blocking the plate. Runner does not attempt to slide, barrels into catcher, ball comes loose. Umpire rules safe. Is that the correct call?
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Uh....nope.....out...and should have been ejected
Runner out... ball dead, all other runners return to previous base unless forced, and offending runner ejected.
No.....
But I have run into umpires who feel thats just "old time hard nosed baseball".........and they are wrong......and should not be calling NFHS baseball....
If you dont agree with the rules of a level, dont do that level...........
OP was classic NFHS malicious contact.......out and ejected..........
I agree with the above answers, as the play is described.
However, one man's "barrels into" is another's "fails to make a legal attempt to avoid" so the EJ might not happen.
Originally Posted by noumpere:
I agree with the above answers, as the play is described.
However, one man's "barrels into" is another's "fails to make a legal attempt to avoid" so the EJ might not happen.
Noumpere makes a great point........as we answer, we mostly have to take the situation as it is related to us from the point of the poster as fact....that may or may not be the case.....there is always another point of view....
But if we dont then every question would have to be answered "HTBT"....which means "had to be there".....
Originally Posted by Uncle T:
NFHS. Runner on third coming home on grounder to second. Throw comes home, catcher has ball, blocking the plate. Runner does not attempt to slide, barrels into catcher, ball comes loose. Umpire rules safe. Is that the correct call?
A slightly different scenario: The runner coming home is huge. He does a head first slide into the catcher who is blocking the plate and knocks the ball loose.
Thoughts?
Originally Posted by Dadofa17:
A slightly different scenario: The runner coming home is huge. He does a head first slide into the catcher who is blocking the plate and knocks the ball loose.
Thoughts?
Assuming it really was a slide / attempt to reach the plate and not just taking out the catcher (even though head first) or attempting to dislodge the ball, this is legal.
Contact is inevitable in any baseball....including NFHS officiaited ball.....there will be times when runners/fielders and the ball will all have to occupy the same space.... the question then comes into is it legal or illegal contact and is such contact malicious.
Agreed with Noumpere, the second scenario given is legal.....all particiapnts in this scenario seem to be doing what they are expected to do within the rules.....contact is permissable...
The size issue is worth mentioning if not for just the fact that itshould not be a consideration in the scenario posted above. IN HS baseball, the players in question can be anywhere from a 5'5" 150 freshman to a 6'2' 218 Senior.....however in situations involing players, there always seem to be extra angst when the sliding player is larger than the catcher... and never the other way around....
Rule on the play....legal slide or not...malicious contact or not....simple as that....