We had only one winner in this first-ever Interp of the Week - - Umpyre007.
Partial credit goes to Buster Light, Rich Ives, and Pete Booth.
Quote:
PLAY: Runner on first. B1 laces a liner to the gap in right-center. R1 rounds second, is going full speed for third, and looks as though he's going for home.
The third base coach moves down the line, in the runner's projected path, with his hands raised over his head. R1 rounds third and crashes into his coach, both of them falling to the ground.
In the meantime, the BR had rounded first and was steaming toward second. He reached second and rounded it a bit too far. F9 had retrieved the ball, and fired his relay to F4. F4 turned, saw R1 and his coach collide and fall to the ground, and then fired to second just in time for F6 to tag out the BR diving back to second.
F6 turns and fires to F5. R1 scrambles back to third just in time before F5's tag touches him on his back.
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RULING: Double play. R1 is out for coacher's interference and the BR is out on the play.
Even though the coacher's actions seemed to have been a hindrance to R1, what he did does indeed qualify as physically assisting the runner. He kept the runner from probably being thrown out at home plate. R1 should have been declared out at the time of the infraction, and play kept alive. Since play is allowed to continue, the defense's out achieved on the BR is allowed to stand.
Here are the interpretations from which I developed this play:
Quote:
Case Play from Jim Evans Official Baseball Rules Annotated:
PLAY: Runner on 1st. The batter smacks a line drive base hit into the gap in left center. The runner flies around 2nd and is determined to score on the play. The 3rd base coach is pointing for the runner to stop at 3rd. Seeing the runner is not going to stop, the coach gets in the runner's path home and is run over by his charging player. Both fall to the ground. The runner gets up and barely gets back to the base ahead of a tag. What's the call?
RULING: The coach's action should be considered physically assisting. He probably prevented his player from being thrown out at home. However, the runner is called out for his coach's actions. The B-R returns to the base last touched at the time of the collision.
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Quote:
Jim Evans Official Baseball Rules Annotated
7.09(i) Professional Interpretation: When a play is being made on the assisted runner, the umpire should call "Time" and enforce the penalty. The runner is out and all runners return to the bases occupied at the time of the interference (assistance).
If no play is being made on the assisted runner, the umpire shall signal that the runner is out and allow the ball to remain alive. This enforcement principle permits the defensive team to make plays on other runners if possible. It is also consistent with other enforcement principles in the Official Baseball Rules in which you have a "delayed dead ball": 7.06(b) - Obstruction with no play being made on the obstructed runner; and 7.08(h) - Runner declared out for passing a preceding runner.
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