[BigTex]

Originally Posted by jdmara

Hit to F6 and BR takes off down to 1B. SS makes a wild throw towards F3 that pulls him off the bag and into the running path of BR. The throw then goes over F3 and to the fence.

{Pause}

At this point, I have NOTHING. I would then gather other information about the play. Is F2 backing up 1B? Since I've already seen the ball reach the fence, that is easy information to obtain.

If F2 is backing up 1B, would BR have a legitimate attempt to reach 2B, if he had not been obstructed? In most cases (of course this is a matter of opinion), he would not have a legitimate attempt to reach 2B! Of course that depends on the field, where the ball ends up, etc...

If F2 is not backing up 1B, would BR have a legitimate attempt to reach 2B, if he had not been obstructed? In most cases (of course this is a matter of opinion), he would have a legitimate attempt to reach 2B! Of course that depends on the field, where the ball ends up, etc...

(For example, if the ball bounces off the fence directly back to F3 there is no need for F2 to be backing up. BR did not have a legitimate attempt to reach 2B.)

In other words, with the information provided in the original post, you have to assume a lot of things. You MUST see the play unfold to properly assess whether obstruction occurs. The runner must have a legitimate attempt to advance. The fact that the runner had to veer around F3 does not entitle him to run as far as we wants to advance, it is up to the judgment of the umpire to determine how far he would have advanced if he had not been obstructed

If you see obstruction, call obstruction, then figure out where to place runners. The criteria for calling OBS does not include wether or not he had a chance to go to second, or advance to another base. If he is obstructed, call it and then let things play out. If at the end of the play, the runner did not attain what you felt he would have without the obstruction, then award appropriately.