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There is no reason an umpire should NOT call OBS when s/he sees it. The old "well, she wasn't going anywhere anyway" BS is a cop-out and not worthy of discussion.
You see it, you call it. We are not mindreaders. None of us really KNOW what's going to happen next. We know what SHOULD happen next, but when that doesn't happen is when we end up posting the play here.
Too many umpires think the "if I don't see it, I don't have to rule on it" attitude gets them by. Another weak excuse for not doing the job. These guys/gals forget that there is no requirement to move runners or make a game-deciding decision, just review the play in your mind and place a runner where you believe they would have advanced/retreated had the OBS not occured.
To the other extreme, you have guys out there looking for a reason to penalize a player. You have umpires thinking "What a putz. I'll teach him not to block the base and give the runner an extra base. Ha! That'll show'em."
Give me a break. This rule is not that hard to recognize or apply. Yeah, there may be a TWP that will require a little extra exercise of the gray matter, but that's why we get paid.
JMHO
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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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