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Originally Posted by blueskysblue
Interesting ! So, NJ has amended all those different formally published rules? In ASA (and NFHS, as well), the batter can actually carry the bat all the way around the bases, as long as there is no interference with any play as a result.
Over the past several years, I have weaned myself from picking up any equipment while play is live. I will, on occasion, pickup the catcher's head gear, if the play is dead; and I will at times pick up a bat, after the end of an inning, and hand it to a base coach passing by.
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This is how it should be handled:
Atty: Mr. Umpire, did you see the bat lying on the ground next to home plate when my client was running home?
Umpire: No, sir, I did not
Atty: Why not?
Umpire: Because I was watching the play.
Atty: Why were you watching the play and not concerned with the bat?
Umpire: That is the purpose of my being on the field and the instruction received from the association under whose rules this league chose to play.
Atty: "Mr. Umpire, did you consider moving that bat away from the base path?"
Umpire: What bat would that be? As I previously stated, I was watching the play.
Atty: If you are not responsible for the bat, who is?
Umpire: I would think that would be the owner of the bat, sir.
Atty: So, you expect the owner of the bat to come back to pick it up after they use it? Are you just going to ignore the bat they leave on the ground?
Umpire: Sir, the player doesn't need to drop or leave the bat. That's just what she has been instructed to do by the coach, not the umpire.
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