Quote:
Originally posted by kellerumps
The emphasis in College Softball is to get the call right.....PERIOD.
|
I think that is pretty much the emphasis at all levels... and all sports.
So the question becomes, is the "neighborhood call" right period or wrong period?
In my personal opinion, if the throw is good (it doesn't cause the player to leave the bag in order to make the catch), and the footwork at the bag is smooth (no obvious attempt to touch a bag that the fielder felt was missed), and there is some motion toward and in close proximity of the bag (a foot drag or a step within inches of the base)... the fielder is going to get the call. And it is the right call... period.
Forcing the fielder to stand on the bag, look away from the play to find the bag, stomp in the middle of the bag, or any other action that could cause a collision (because the base runner is also coming at the bag) is wrong... period.
Now I realize there is some area of judgement between these two situations and that is where the umpire earns their money. Part of this judgement area is "Where is the runner?" Are they going to be well out or are they going to be close... or safe. What is "proximity" - is that 3 inches or a foot? More judgement.
If using the term "neighborhood call" is a round-about way of asking "If the fielder misses the base are you going to call the runner out?" The answer is an emphatic NO!
IF the fielder doesn't fulfill the smooth continuous motion close to the bag as decribed above, they shouldn't get the call.
Of course each umpire has there own abilities and understanding of the game and these are just my opinions. The fact of the matter is that for the runner to be out, the fielder has gotta touch the base. If I can't reasonably say the fielder touched the base, then the runner is going to be safe.
