My association addressed the bucket issue in this way.
During the talk at the plate, after we exhange lineups and ground rules, we address sportsmanship, jewelry, and buckets. The most common pitch I have heard is "Coach, keep everyone inside the dugout except one on-deck batter. Coach, I don't have a problem with you being on your bucket. But, if you or your bucket gets tied up with a ball, you are not going to like my call."
We only had one time this year that we had to deal with this and it was in my game. R1, Texas league single into right field, F9 comes in and makes a MLB catch and fires a shot to F3 to pick off R1. The throw goes high and wide and hits a gaggle of players standing outside the dugout. If they had not been standing there, the ball would have gone into DBT. Instead of killing it, I let the play continue and the catcher plays the rebound and throws R1 out at 2nd. Coach comes out to argue, I remind of him of our conversation before the game, he goes back to the dugout and makes everyone get inside, even his assistant.
LOL!
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Alan Roper
Stand your ground. Don't fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here - CPT John Parker, April 19, 1775, Lexington, Mass
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