[BretMan]

There was a debate about this here last year. Somewhere in the midst of it, I emailed "a top ranking national ASA official". The answer I got was almost verbatim the same as the interpretation offered above...as was the scenario I presented with the "jumping fielder"...except that it pre-dated the publishing of that clarification by a little over a month. Apparently, my email may have been the impetus for the topic being discussed on their web site.

What was strange was that, at the time, this interpretation was contrary to previously published case book interpretations that said the fielder had to drawn completely off the base and completely into foul ground, such that touching the white base would require crossing over the colored one, before being allowed to use the orange bag.

If that's the way they want it called...then that's the way we'll call it. But this really does seem to be a "rule change" precipitated by a "regime change" among the ASA powers-that-be. They kind of slipped this one in there on us while nobody was looking!