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Originally Posted by sbatten
Hi, all -- I'm an inexperienced ASA slow pitch umpire looking for a second opinion on an adult rec game I called yesterday.
Two outs, R1 on 2B, R2 on 1B. Batter hits a grounder up the middle, actually a little to the left side of the pitcher's circle, and F1 makes a stab for it, but the ball continues through (untouched).
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You had a pitcher's circle in a SP game? You have some strange local rule?
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R1 and F6 then collide as F6 is preparing to pick up the grounder. Ball bounces off F6 and rolls to the side.
I immediately called interference on R1 for the third out of the inning.
R1 argued that since F1 had attempted to make a play on the ball, R1 should be given a clear path to 3B and F6 should not have been in his way. R1's argument, as I understand it, was that he didn't feel interference applied because F6 was not making an attempt to field the ball at the time of the collision, F1 was.
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R1 is wrong. If, IYJ, F6 had the opportunity to make an out, it is INT. 8.7.J.1
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I explained to R1 that I didn't see F1 touch the ball -- which might have changed how I ruled on the collision (it did not look like intentional contact on R1's part). Absent any deflection, I explained, R1 had to give F6 a chance to field the ball.
Comments? It was a friendly game and while R1 was certain he was right, nobody broke any blood vessels in their brain arguing over it. I'm just looking for a more experienced point of view -- I know most INT/OBS calls are HTBT, but could I have ruled that the runner was protected (not the fielder) in this case, by virtue of his impression that R1 was fielding the ball?
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If R1 fielded the ball, that is definitely INT!
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And a hypothetical scenario (pretty much unrelated to the original question) -- if F1 had successfully picked up the grounder, then R1 and F6 collided, and F1 threw to F5 for an apparent force out, would you agree that I would be justified in awarding R1 third base? I've called obstruction a handful of times but usually when runners are advancing on base hits; I've never had to deal with it on a play in the infield.
Scott
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It is OBS and you must place the runner someplace. Seems to me that 3B is the only open base.