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Old Fri Aug 15, 2003, 01:58pm
IRISHMAFIA IRISHMAFIA is offline
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Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: USA
Posts: 14,565
It all comes down to this one thing. Why would a player stop playing unless they heard "out", "dead ball" or "time"?

My little story from Wednesday night. Bases loaded, one out. Short pop to RC field. R3 has a good angle and sees the ball is going to drop and proceeds to 2B while the other runners are holding to see if the ball is caught. He rounds 2B only to see R2 returning to 2B, puts his hands out to push him back towards 3B and then returns to 2B.

After a couple of seconds while F4, F9 & F10 stand around deciding who is going to pick up the ball and return it to the infield, F6 takes a short-hop throw to 2B. R3 is just standing on the base. F6 literally backs into him and turns toward 3B wrapping around R3 and never really tagging him with the glove or ball. He sees the confusion and 3B and fires the ball in that direction. Only problem was, F5 was just as confused as the runners and the ball goes out of play.

Of course, this was all my fault. Why? Glad you asked!

The defense blamed me because I made no call at 2B. I didn't feel there was a play since the runner had been standing there and was never tagged, but only backed into. They INSISTED that I'm required to make a call anytime a defender touches a runner. I tried to explain that umpires make a call when there is a play. If it is obvious there is no play, why would I add to any of the already existing confusion making a totally unnecessary call.

Then came the next argument that, ...STANDBY FOR NEW MYTH OF SOFTBALL..., anytime a runner touches the runner in front of him, he is out.

News to me. I must have missed that rules change. Of course, my partner and I became idiots and the worst umpires in the world. That's right, we cost that team the game. Forget the fact the the #1 seed is about to get 12-runned by the #8 seed for the league championship as I'm sure they don't think the 16+ walks and multiple errors had anything to do with their downfall.

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The bat issue in softball is as much about liability, insurance and litigation as it is about competition, inflated egos and softball.
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