Quote:
Originally Posted by SoftballGuy247
Finally, is it acceptable for an umpire to only point, and not verbalize the infield fly call?
|
Am I the only person who saw this? No Umpire Manual in print for softball, be it USA/ASA, NFHS, or even NCAA (2018 not yet in print) describes the umpire signal for an infield fly as a point. Nor do any show an umpire pointing in their signal pics; it is a raised closed fist!! How did this ever become acceptable?
Yet, in a total statement of "I give up", the 2018 NCAA mechanic will now, for the first time since they have published any guidance, be a point. Quite obviously, with that and the new 2 out and timing play signals, we either need more baseball mechanics, or simply are defeated by those that have continued to use baseball mechanics even when they are not the same.
While the umpire manuals state that the PU is responsible to call the infield fly, none of them specifically state, so far as I am aware, that the BU may not signal. Anyone that has umpires for any length of time has had a partner that either 1) lost track of the outs, or 2) forgot the runners' locations, or 3) lost sight of the ball in the sun, or 4) lost sight of the ball in the lights, or 5) didn't judge the infield fly quickly enough, or 6) simply lost it.
In any realistic scale of good/acceptable/bad/worse/horrible, and as related to the ability to survive, only a total moron would believe it is better for the BU to refuse to bail out the crew in an obvious infield fly rule situation when the PU freezes. This is a case where survival mechanics need to kick in; BU should hesitate to allow the PU the opportunity to make the call when the ball is at it's highest point, but if the ball is coming down and still no call on an
obvious situation, I will at least raise the closed fist, and if possible make a verbal call, too. The teams deserve the right call in a timely manner; and I can promise you they don't care even one little bit which umpire calls or signals if they get the protection they deserve. This procedure is more right than ever wrong no matter which set of mechanics you are supposed to be using.,
What happens if it isn't called at all, by either? In all but NCAA, the umpires should retroactively apply the infield fly rule as long as the failure to call it is not judgment of routine versus difficult. The BU signal, added to the standard responsibility of both teams to know the situation, even when the umpire err's, is enough to enforce the infield fly rule; the batter is out, the runners' attempts to advance is at their own risk. If both umpires FULLY blow it, retroactively want to apply the rule, and that failure puts either or both teams in jeopardy; well, there's a rule for that, too.
In the NCAA, if the infield fly is not called while the ball is in flight, then it isn't an infield fly. Again, the signal is sufficient to enforce the rule (I have
never seen a case where both teams and fans are so silent that you could not say you called it with the signal, but I guess you didn't hear me over everyone else). Coaches are watching, too, not just listening; it is their responsibility to direct their runners, not the umpires' responsibility.