obstruction

[mbyron]

Obstruction is a judgment call:

OBSTRUCTION is the act of a fielder who, while not in possession of the ball and not in the act of fielding the ball, impedes the progress of any runner.

If you judge that the fielder impeded the runner in this play, then you'd have (in OBR, Type B) obstruction. There's nothing in the rule about the fielder being in the base path: if the fielder impeded the runner, then you've got obstruction. Use your judgment about whether the runner went looking to be impeded, but I'd say that if he had to slow down to get around a fielder standing near the base or on, then I'd have obstruction.

If you don't think the runner had to slow down, then no obstruction. It's not a question of whether he should have to slow down, but rather whether he was impeded. There is no "automatic" obstruction: it's a judgment call every time.

I don't like little games that fielders play to try to slow up runners. Get the heck out of the way.

[Edited by mbyron on Apr 17th, 2005 at 10:24 AM]