[UmpJM]

Dave Reed,

Interesting theory, but I'm not buying it.

The change made to the wording of 7.08(a)(1) was simply a clarification of the proper interpretation of the phrase "his baseline" - namely that it is not the straight line between the bases, but rather a straight line between the runner being played on and the base he is trying to reach.

Whether that base provides a "safe haven" to said runner is NOT relevant to the proper application of 7.08(a)(1). The point is that he's heading to a base and trying to reach it without being tagged (i.e., "safely"), not that the base will provide him protection.

No different if a runner is retreating to a base he has been "forced from" (e.g. an R1 retreating to 1B after the F4 fields a grounder in "front" of him) or a runner is advancing to a base that is occupied by an entitled preceding runner.

The defense does not earn an out by getting a runner to move in the direction of a base that does not provide him sanctuary - they have to tag him. Home plate is a "special case" in that, by long-established official interpretation, a BR retreating toward home when he touches/passes home.

The clarification of the "his baseline" language doesn't change that.

In the immortal words of Crash Davis, "Don't think too much. It can only hurt the team."

JM