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Originally Posted by DTQ_Blue
In a 14 Y/O travel game today, I was BU. A throw to first on an infield grounder pulled F3 off the bag and into the runners path about 5 feet down the line toward home. The ball was thrown too high for F3 to catch and after it sailed over his head to the 8 foot high fence, the batter-runner collided with F3 and BR falls to the ground gasping for air because the wind was knocked out of him.
I called obstruction at the time of the collision, then I immediately call time because I thought that BR may have been seriously hurt (which fortunately was not the case).
My partner who has much more experience than I, and who I respect alot, said that since F3 was going for the ball there should have been no obstruction call.
I told him that I called obstruction so I could award BR first base in case he had gotten tagged while laying on the ground. My reasoning is that if the BR gets leveled in a collision on a play like that, he belongs on first base and the only way I can do that is to call obstruction. That way if a fielder picks up the ball and tags the BR out while lying on the ground, I award him first base.
Should I have called obstruction?
BTW we were playing High School rules, which I admittedly don't know very well.
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From the OBR 2.00 definition of OBSTRUCTION:
After a fielder has made an attempt to field a ball and missed, he can no longer be in the "act of fielding" the ball. For example: an infielder dives at a ground ball and the ball passes him and he continues to lie on the ground and delays the progress of the runner, he very likely has obstructed the runner.
Based on the information in your post that I have boldfaced above, and this citation from the OBR definition of obstruction, I would say you were perfectly justified in judging (and obstruction IS a judgment call) obstruction and awarding the obstructed runner 1B. You have not only rulebook support for the judgment, as I've noted, it's also the CS&FP (common sense and fair play) call, given the circumstances you described. The defense shouldn't expect it can butcher a play that badly, knock the runner senseless in the process, and pull an out out of the rabbit's hat.