A (Somewhat) Rhetorical Rules Question

[BretMan]

Another umpire (whose opinion I value and who checks in on these boards) and I got into a discussion on another message board about the old ASA "not higher than the batter's head" requirement for a foul tip.

Discussing the old rule was kind of a moot exercise, since ASA removed the "not higher than..." requirement in 2006. But, some associations still have that requirement on their books- NSA and USSSA, for example.

Imagine you're back in 2005 and calling an ASA game, or calling an NSA game today, and the "not higher than the batter's head" is still included in the definition of a foul tip. Let me throw out some sample plays- you tell me what you have.

Just to narrow it down, here are your three choices for each of the questions:

a) A foul tip & a live ball.
b) A caught fly ball for an out & a live ball.
c) A foul ball & a dead ball.

1) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball goes sharply and directly to the catcher's hands, not higher than the batter's head, and is caught. What do you have?

2) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball goes sharply and directly to the catcher's hands, going higher than the batter's head, and is caught. What do you have?

3) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball comes off the bat in an arcing path, not higher than the batter's head, and is caught by F2. What do you have?

4) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball comes off the bat in an arcing path, going higher than the batter's head, and is caught by F2. What do you have?

5) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball goes sharply and directly to the catcher's hands, not higher than the batter's head, then rebounds and is caught by another fielder. What do you have?

6) Batter swings and barely nicks the ball. The ball goes sharply and directly to the catcher's hands, going higher than the batter's head, then rebounds and is caught by another fielder. What do you have?