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You make the call on the ball as it passes the bag. You don't take into account where it bounces next. Bob had the right timing, and went with his best guess. He guessed wrong, it's that simple.
I don't blame him for bailing out on that shin burner. On balls like this, that thing is rotating toward you. Just look where it went down the line. That's a hard, hard call to make. See that bounce before the bag? It's really close to the line. Normally, that thing is spinning foul, and probably is foul at the base. But that's not what happened. Heck, it was several inches fair near the outfield grass bounce. That made no sense, but there it was. No doubt it passed over the bag.
As far as calling it fair if you have a doubt, are blocked out or have a crappy angle, I learned that from a guy years ago. It made sense. And although I may only employ it every couple years or so, it's still sound logic. Give the benefit of the doubt to the guy who hit the ball, and if you can sort it out with a second set of eyes later, so be it.
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