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Did not witness this, but two of my fellow umpires whom I sent to the Men's A East in Dothan a few years ago couldn't wait to tell me about it. This gentleman is out of the FL panhandle and I have since met and worked games with him which can be a trip in itself. He's a very nice guy and some of you on here may know him.
The story I got was:
This gentleman was working 1B in a 3-ump system. Apparently, on a ground ball, F3 took exception to how close the runner came to colliding with him as he crossed the base and got in his face.
Well, this guy pulls out a yellow penalty flag, throws it in the air and announces "unsportsmanlike conduct, 15 yards". The players apparently just stared at him and then broke up and went back to their respective position/dugout.
Great job breaking up a situation that probably wasn't going to get better by itself. I'm all for a bit of levity on the field, but a penalty flag at a National? I don't think I'm ready for that.
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The bat issue in softball is as much about liability, insurance and litigation as it is about competition, inflated egos and softball.
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