Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul L
PONY pony game. PONY is a youth league that uses OBR with few additions, not including a FPSR or other sliding contact provisions. Its pony division is 13-14yo's.
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While PONY uses Official Rules of Baseball, every league and tournament I have ever worked or read about has adopted rules prohiting crashing into fielders in a malicious manner. It usually reads "slide or avoid collision." This is always discussed at the ground rules, for the very reason that there is no provision in OBR for such enforcement. But you cannot barrel over the catcher in PONY baseball, despite not being stated in the national, official PONY rules.
Here is an example from one Pony League's local rules:
MALICIOUS CONTACT RULE
A player / runner not only can be called out but also ejected from the game for making contact in a malicious manner. Example: A runner knocks over a defensive player in an attempt to dislodge the ball to avoid being called out. Malicious contact will be in the sole judgment of the umpire. The penalty for malicious contact is also the sole judgment of the umpire.
Here is another example from a different Pony League:
Any runner is out when he/she:
4.1.1. Fails to slide or to take other evasive action(s) to avoid contact with the defensive player. A defensive player may not interfere with the advancement of the runner to any base. A defensive player may not position himself in the base path unless he is making a play on the ball. Such a position, which results, in the opinion of the umpire, in impeding the progress of the runner to a subsequent base, shall necessitate the umpire awarding an additional base to the runner. A catcher may not block the plate in violation of Official Baseball Rule 7.06(b)(note). For example, a runner will be awarded the base to which he or she is advancing if, in the determination of the umpire, the runner used evasive techniques that included going outside of the base path to avoid a collision or contact with the defensive player.
This rule is intended at a minimum to end intentional decisions by a runner to collide with a defensive player in order to dislodge the ball or cause sufficient injury or pain to cause the defensive player to release the ball. The umpire will determine violation of this rule. Should the umpire determine mat the runner has violated the rule, the runner will be called out, however, and the ball will remain live. In the event the failure to slide or to take evasive action(s) causes the defensive player, in the determination of the umpire, to be unable to complete a double play, the umpire may determine that both runners involved in the double play are out. All the decisions of the umpire, with regard to this rule, shall be final and cannot be appealed. PENALTY: The umpire shall eject the player determined to have violated the rule for the remainder of the game in which the violation of the rule took place and shall warn the Manager and the bench and shall report the violation to the NSBA 1st VP within 24 hours of the ejection.