[RPatrino]

I think the Doc hit the nail on the head.

Now, to directly answer Windy's question. If the fence clearer misses first by an inch, you may get away with calling him safe on appeal. If he misses first completely, by a great margin, clearly visible for all who care to pay attention, you might have an out. Why "might"? I've seen those appeals called "safe".

My point is, just because a runner misses a base, you don't have an out. Some other human being with eyes, ears and feelings has to complete that feedback loop. The subjective aspect of what we do rears its ugly little head, when we begin to ask ourselves questions like, "Do I want to open this can of whoopa*&?" I generally answer yes, and sometimes against my better judgement.

To steal a phrase, "the romantic wants to call everything he sees, regardless of outcome, because its the "correct" thing to do". The realist might not make that call, because its the "right" thing to do.

Bob P.