Ah yes! January is just around the corner and the baseball season is about to begin in Northern California. And of course, so are the trouble calls and controversy. I did a "warm up" game for a couple of American Legion teams that are just being put together, 18U. In the heat of the summer, I get stuck behind the dish. In winter, I'm watching the bases and freezing my tail off.

I have R1 who is trying to get a good lead. F3 keeps moving out from the base in front of R1, intentionally trying to block his view of the pitcher. F1 never tried to pick first base, but R1 is noticably annoyed. The first base coach calls for time, and begins to complain that F3 is obstructing his runner. He wants me to call obstruction. I couldn't agree, but I did call UIC and the two managers together (it's a warm up game for me too), and I explained that it did not seem like an obstruction. I would not give R1 second base. It didn't look to me like F3 was "impeding the progress of the runner." I offered to look at a specific rule if any of the four men had one.

They didn't so I said, "let's play ball."

What is the correct call and the OBR rule for it.

IMHO you made the correct call.

Taking "a lead" is not, by definition, an attempt to advance so the runner's progress cannot be illegally impeded while you adjudge the runner to be engaged solely in that act.

OTOH, if there had been an attempt to pick off R1 and in your judgement the F3's actions hindered the runner's timely return to the base THEN you <i>might</i> have obstruction under OBR 7.06(a).

In order to make that call, I believe that F3 would need to be doing something beside just standing between the pitcher and the runner though - eg. waving his arms about or otherwise deliberately attempting to block the runner's vision of the pick off attempt.

Infielder's are entitled, under rule 4.03(c), to take up any position in the infield that they wish - including between the pitcher and 1st base or R1. I've never seen obstruction called for that reason, but I can certainly imagine an argument for such a call in <i>extreme</i> circumstances.

FWIW, the situation you describe sounds like its "<i>just baseball</i>" to me.

Hope this helps

Cheers

Thank you Warren. Your reply put the issue in logical and unerstandable terms. I feel better now -- not that I ever felt bad about the call, ha,ha, but I do feel better.