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It was a varsity game, so the defense should have known better. The pitch was well out of the strike zone (high), and the batter obviously checked hard. The PU called "ball", and the batter didn't even know the pitch had been dropped when the defense asked for the appeal. I'm not sure who was hollering for the appeal, but I think the only three (maybe four) people in the game who knew the ball was dropped were the catcher, the offensive coach, the plate umpire, (and maybe the base umpire). I can understand WMB's logic. A batter wouldn't normally run on a called ball, and in this case I don't think anyone (including the defense) really thought the base umpire would overrule this call. Also, I have to wonder...if the batter would have taken off running on the check swing (just in case it might have been a dropped third strike on appeal) would this have influenced both umpires into a mindset that if the batter thought it was a swing and a strike and is running, well then, it must have been? Who would honestly call the runner back and insist that they couldn't run on a check swing?
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