Quote:
Originally posted by tkistre
Just curious about this, since I do not own a rule book. My daughter plays ASA Fastpitch Softball in the 10 & under league. At a recent game, a girl (who had been hit previously in the batter's box) was scared when she got up to bat. She jumped out of the box every pitch whether it was a ball or strike. She actually ran out of the box about 6-7 feet away. Is there any rule pertaining to this? Our coach claims each pitch should have been a strike since she jumped out of the box. Another coach claimed that she can turn cart-wheels because there is no rule pertaining to the batter jumping out of the box. The umpire called them as they were. But the next time she got up to bat, our coach made comment to the umpire calling and then the girl was called strikes on till she was out. It doesn't seem right that she could do this because then all players could just stand out of the box, but I don't know the rules and that's why I posted here.
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
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To start with, that batter probably should have been removed from the game by the coach. JMHO.
The umpire calls the pitch as they see the pitch. IT IS NOT AUTOMATICALLY A STRIKE.
However, the batter is forbidden from totally leaving the box between pitches except under certain circumstances. When this occurs, the umpire may call a strike or warn the batter. There is no limit on the number of warnings or strikes an umpire may call on each batter. Please note, an umpire may continue to warn the batter. A called strike is not mandated by the rules though I believe it would be prudent if this action continued after the warnings.