I'll take your word, Mike, that softball does not recognize "last time by" (I can't recall any case plays dealing wiht it in softball, and don't have any references with me today)but that makes the appeal process pretty interesting then.
Given this play with an addition that the runner wasn't standing on 3rd when the play ended, but instead through some other misplay had advanced home to score we are faced with this problem.
The runner who has scored has passed 3rd base 3 times, (1)first time by advancing=miss number 1; (2) second time by retreating=miss number 2; (3)third time by advancing=touch number 1.
Now for the appeal, F5 in possession of the ball touches 3rd base and appeals that the runner missed 3rd.
Do we now:
Ask which time or pick out the time ourslelves?
If we ask which time, at what point do we stop letting F5 guess which time we observed?
If we just honor the appeal without making any distinction on which time by is being appealed, how do we maintian any creditability with the observers and participants who only observed the runner clearly tag 3rd base on her way to score?
I'm not trying to argue that the interpertation of "last time by" is applied to softball, just that by not adopting this interp that the "other game" has, we may be opening up a can of worms that I won't have to deal with when doing those "other games"
Roger Greene
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