Quote:
Originally posted by greymule
In in ASA tournament about 20 years ago, I saw a team give up 10 runs in the top of the first inning but then hold the other team and scratch back to 10-9 in the bottom of the seventh. Bases loaded, two out, guy gets a hit to left, driving in two runs to win the game. Everybody piles on the guy in celebration, but when the noise dies down they find the umpire waving everything off and calling the guy out for being out of the box. He claimed that the batter (who had not run up but had planted his right foot and taken the normal one step with his left) had stepped beyond the BACK SIDE line of the box. This with the typical sandy batter's box and no visible lines whatsoever. A "discussion" followed.
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A poor job by the umpire to begin with. If he felt the back foot, which in your example never moved, started outside the box and was flagrant enough to warrant an infraction, then he should have corrected the issue
before the pitch.
I can't comment on softball, but if a batter leaves the box to hit the ball in hardball then the umpire should kill the play immediately and call the infraction. In your example it's likely you had a $hithou$e for 3 reasons:
- Since he could have corrected the issue before the pitch, then he should have done so
- It was not immediately called (since you said they celebrated after the score) but should have been
- Because there were no drawn lines, making the judgment aspects of the play even more controversial.
I was once told the primary purpose of the rule was to keep a batter from stepping across on an intentional walk and attempting to hit the ball. I don't know the truth of that statement, but it makes sense to me. Otherwise, the box rule seems very nitpicky.
In actuality, it generally needs to be "without a doubt" for me to call that infraction. I have called it on several occasions with no box drawn. Once was on a guy bunting who took several steps forward on an offspeed pitch before the ball arrived. He was close to the grass cutout when he made contact---obviously outside the box. I've had other times when a batter's back foot on a bunt attempt leaves the box and is on the ground totally on or behind the plate, meaning he COULD NOT still be in the box.
One main difference in Fed vs. OBR is that in Fed, the foot touching the plate is an infraction, while in OBR it's not. OBR merely states the foot totally out of the box. Therefore, it's possible Mr. Bigfoot in OBR could still be within the box and touching the plate---not an infraction in OBR but that is an infraction in Fed.
Also, many new officials think it must be a fair ball, but any ball hit while outside the box---fair or foul---is an infraction. That's true for all sets of rules.
Finally, like Jim, I don't adjust any batter when no lines are drawn without the defense requesting it UNLESS he gets so close to the plate that he's almost touching it. That makes it tough on me, so I merely tell him he needs to be 6 inches off the plate----still, I don't draw a line unless requested by offense or defense.
Just my opinion,
Freix