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Originally Posted by tibear
An example of where we all may choose to ignore interference: R1 and two away. The batter hits towards F4 who is playing deep, R1 times his run so that he runs directly in front of F4 a micro-second before the ball arrives. If F4 is unsuccessful to pick up the ball the umpire would have to judge whether R1 was trying to hinder F4 and then call interference. However, if F4 did pick up the ball and turn the double play in all likelihood the umpire will call nothing.
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1. With two outs, F4 can't possibly turn a double play.
2. If F4 fields the ball cleanly and makes a play, then the runner did not hinder him. If your advice is to wait until interference happens before you call it, then I don't see anyone disagreeing with your mostly unhelpful point.
3. If F4 fails to field the ball cleanly, no judgment is required regarding intent. Interference with a fielder's attempt to field a batted ball need not be intentional (can be intentional or negligent).