[greymule]

Full count, bases loaded, 2 out, tie score, bottom of last inning. Batter starts to swing at an inside pitch but then tries to check. Sounds as if it hits metal so you call foul. The batter then clutches the index finger of his top hand in obvious pain.

Is it foul, so we have another pitch?

Did he swing and it hit him, so the game goes extra innings?

Did he not swing and it hit him, so his team wins?

That happened to me once. The ball obviously made contact with his finger, but I stuck with the foul call, claiming that the ball hit the bat before it hit his finger.

The kid got a hit on the next pitch, and his team won.

Tougher call if the ball is grounded into the infield as the batter stands in the box grasping his injured hand.

I'm not really sure what to call when the batter swings and the ball hits both hand and bat and is put into play. There are those cases. You definitely hear ball against metal, but the kid also has a clear injury. When it's a fair ball on a swing, I've let it go.