[DownTownTonyBrown]

This is a creative play and requires an equally creative call. What day of the week was it? From what direction was the wind blowing? What color of socks was F4 wearing... and R1? Had the offensive coach ever been to Minnesota?

In seriousness, there was surely some body language associated with R1 going back beyond 2nd into center field. Perhaps abandonment is the correct call - right then. This allows R2 to legally attempt an advance to 3rd. Throw into dead ball territory advances him to home. Or it likely would have kept R2 at 2nd and ended the play.

If the body language didn't say abandonment then I might consider R1 still in jeopardy of being tagged and basically at 2nd base (having not retreated towards 1st). If R2 now takes off for 3rd, I would have him passing R1 and he is out. R2 still in jeopardy and likely to be tagged before returning to 2nd.

If I didn't call R1 out for abandonment then I have set myself up for a continually worsening scenario. R1 is off the base. R2 is on 2nd. F4 arrives at the base with the ball and tags R2 (no call). F4 and ump wait for R1 to return... oh God it's getting worse!

Sometimes we create our own problems by not making immediate calls... and sometimes we make problems by calling them too soon but not in this case.

I vote for immediately calling R1 out and selling the fact that he obviously had given up his right to be at 2nd base. This, to me would create the least confusion.

I would think that seeing the play rather than trying to write about it would have made our decisions easier.