Looking for a little help on this one. Could not find it in the rule book. Here's the situation: 1 out, runner on 3rd, batter hits a line drive that strikes the pitcher's plate without contacting the ground, runner on 3rd coming home, ball rebounds to the catcher on the fly who is straddling the plate. Catcher catches the ball in foul territory and tags the runner. Fair, Foul, Safe, Out ??? I'm looking for the pro rule and the high school interpretation of this one. Thanks a lot! New to the board - UmpireFour

If, in the umpire's judgement, the ball was over foul territory when touched by the catcher (regardless of the position of the catcher himself), it is a foul ball. The fact that it touched the rubber before the catch makes it in effect a ground ball. Dead ball, runners return.
However, if it's coming down directly over the plate, it should be called fair.

[Edited by Joe Kupka on Oct 12th, 2001 at 12:24 PM]

You won't find this "case" in the FED Case Book, nor will you find it in the Pro book. The answer lies in the definition of Fair/Foul. This is a ground ball as soon as it hits the rubber. The book(s) say it's fair if it passes first or third (which are 90 feet from home plate)or is touched by a player or settles on fair ground before it reaches first or third. Since the rubber is only 60'6", and the ball is caught by the catcher in FOUL ground, it's a foul ball.

In 20 years I've had this kind of play happen twice. First time it bounced UNTOUCHED into foul ground; second time, with the bases loaded and two out, it bounced back to the catcher who stepped up in FRONT of home plate, THEN caught the ball and stepped on home plate for the third out of the inning. When I asked him if he knew what he did, he said, "Nope..I just figured I'd catch it and try to get somebody out IF it was fair".

I actually do have this case explained in a Knotty Problems book from 1971 - it was recently posed to me and I scanned the page and sent it to the questioning umpire. I told him it was one of those situations that makes the rounds every couple of years...

GBA

I have won enough cups of coffee regarding the ball hitting the pitcher's plate to keep them working overtime in Brazil.

bob

JJ - and others. This absolutely positively is in the pro book. It is in a comment following the definition of "foul" in rule 2.00

ty, Rich...the Pro book I glanced at was the 1971 version...my current book was out in the car, and since it was down in the 50's that day I deemed it too cold to go get it...

GBA

<i> Originally posted by umpirefour </i>

<b> Looking for a little help on this one. Could not find it in the rule book. Here's the situation: 1 out, runner on 3rd, batter hits a line drive that strikes the pitcher's plate without contacting the ground, runner on 3rd coming home, ball rebounds to the catcher on the fly who is straddling the plate. Catcher catches the ball in foul territory and tags the runner. Fair, Foul, Safe, Out ??? I'm looking for the pro rule and the high school interpretation of this one. Thanks a lot! New to the board - UmpireFour </b>

Look in OBR for definition of Foul. This definition is also the same in FED (HS rules)


<i> A FOUL BALL is a batted ball that settles on foul territory between home and first base, or between home and third base, or that bounds past first or third base on or over foul territory, or that first falls on foul territory beyond first or third base, or that, while on or over foul territory, touches the person of an umpire or player, or any object foreign to the natural ground.

<b> A batted ball not touched by a fielder, which hits the pitcher's rubber and rebounds into foul territory, between home and first, or between home and third base is a foul ball. </i> </b>

<b> F2 catches the ball in foul territory and tags the runner. Fair, Foul, Safe, Out </b>

It doesn't matter where F2 is. It's where the ball is.

As far as safe or out goes, that's judgement on the part of the umpire.

Pete Booth

Pete, as I said in my post, the case of the ball hitting the rubber is NOT in the FED definition of "Foul"...and you're the second one to point out it's in the Pro book...thanks!

GBA