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Watch highlight films of games from the 1940s and 1950s and you won't have to wait long to see non-calls on plays far more obvious even than the one last night. Runners grab fielders' arms, crash fielders 15 feet out of the baseline, stay on their feet and collide past 2B, "slide" into the fielder without even touching the ground. I suspect that if a runner didn't do at least a rolling block, he'd get chewed out by his manager.
I don't know what a runner would have had to do to get called for interference in the old days. It would be interesting to know how often 7.09(f) was invoked (if it ever was). I wonder if Cobb was ever called for it.
Justin Upton claims it was merely a pop-up slide:
"I told him [the umpire] I was close enough to the bag," Upton said. "When I slide, I put one hand down, and then I pop up. That's what you're supposed to do."
Right, Justin.
__________________
greymule
More whiskey—and fresh horses for my men!
Roll Tide!
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