Babe Ruth Contact Rule
 

My Babe Ruth rule book is from 2005. I need to know if the contact rule has changed. In the 2005 manual, it is on page 61 read as follows:


Babe Ruth 6.05 A batter is out when ----

(m) A preceding runner shall, in the umpire's judgment, intentionally interfere with a fielder who is attempting to catch a thrown ball or to throw a ball in an attempt to complete any play;


The objective of this rule is to penalize the offensive team for deliberate, unwarranted, unsportsmanlike action by the runner in leaving the baseline for the obvious purpose of crashing the pivot man on a double play, rather than trying to reach the base. Obviously this is an umpire's judgment play.


CONTACT RULE (All Babe Ruth and Cat Ripken Baseball Divisions) — If a runner attempting to reach home plate intentionally and maliciously runs into a defensive player in the area of home plate, he will be called out on the play and ejected from the game. The objective of this rule is to penalize the offensive team for crashing the defensive player, rather than trying to reach home plate. Obviously, this is an umpire's judgment call.

I will be doing some tournament work over the next couple of weeks and I have already had a disagreement with the UIC. He wants to allow full MLB rules - no slide or avoid, any contact is okay. I disagree.

The rule is the same for 2007 as it was in 2005 and 2006. You should note that the contact rule while poorly worded also applies to bases other than homeplate.


Tim.

Thanks Tim. I pretty much figured that what happens at the plate pertains to the bases also. Guess I have to have a meeting with the UIC.

You'd be surprised what a mess was created by the way the contact rule was worded. Last season for the Ohio Valley Regional f we had to get a hard line clarification from Mark Watkins and Tom Wright that it did in fact apply to all bases.


Tim.