[just another ref]

Originally Posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

Just Another Ref:

I see a discussion of this play going in two parallel paths: (1) The BU did not see B/R poke F3 in the ribs and (2) BU did see B/R3 poke F3 in the ribs. Your discription also does not say if there were runners on base which would dictate where the BU was at the start of the play and where he would go in order to cover the play at 1B.


Be that as it may, I would consider a forearm shiver in baseball to be malicious contact and the penalty for malicious contact is ejection. Baseball is different from basketball and if I had seen the B/R poke F3 in the ribs, I would have ejected him, a punch is a punch is a punch, and that is malicious contact. I do not think that B/R's poke to F3's ribs can not be ruled anything other than malicious contact, especially if it caused F3 to retaliate in a manner that is easily defined as malicious contact.

I do not have a problem with F3's ejection. I am concerned that the BU did not see B/R's poking F3's ribs; whether he saw it or not is a function of his position at the time of the play.

Regarding the near riot in the stands, that is not the Umpires' concern, let game management take care of the riot. Regarding the fans standing by the fence harassing the BU, who cares. I am a big boy and if I am the BU I would be ignoring them. The only time the Umpires should be concerned about the fans along the fence is if they are making threats of physical violence against the Umpires or any participants (coaches and players) in the game.


Basketball wise: A forearm shiver is always an intentional foul at the least in my opinion, and if it retaliation then you have, by defintion a fight.

MTD, Sr.

There were runners on 2nd and 3rd. The call was made from between 1st and 2nd. If indeed there was a poke by the B/R, I think the ump was straightlined and would not have seen it.