Gotta agree with Oz on this one, buckets don't belong on the field period. If a coach can't stand up for two hours, tough, we do, every day, every game. Get the buckets off the field. Then again, nor do giving signs at that age IMHO... try putting this in you plate meeting... no buckets on the field. You won't have a problem with this again.

In travel ball, TD's are in it for the money and if a coach wants to bucket sit, they usually accomodate. We played one team with four dads on buckets outside of the dugout (one calling pitches and the others yelling at just their own kids).

The kids do have pitches, fastball, offspeed and they hit a spot occasionally. Coaches would argue the kids aren't too young to start learning.

Appreciate the responses, but I'm still unclear on how to handle, or how to address in the pre-game. To me the most reasonable option would be to treat hitting the bucket the same as the ball entering the dugout. A dead ball zone (if runners have to return to last base occupied) would award the defense for an error. I like the detached equipment idea though.

I agree kids are never too young to learn but my response to a coach telling me that would be, "Great point! The catcher can learn to call the pitches!" In reality, I would never say anything like that but if a young pitcher can throw an assortment of pitches with accurate location, the catcher is mature enough to call the game as well.

FED 1-3-7 penalty

If loose equipment interferes with play, the umpire may call an out(s), award bases or return runners, based on his judgment and the circumstances concerning the play

-Josh

Well I do agree with Oz and Just that the buckets don't belong, I think there are more important issues that take priority. So that is why I let both coaches know up front what the penalty will be. And Ran, considering them as equipment instead of a dead ball zone allows you to penalize the team that left the equipment there rather than automatically awarding bases to the offense even if it was the offense's bucket that caused the problem.

In a situation at least tangentially related to thrown balls hitting a coach's bucket, I once saw a thrown bucket hit a coach's, well . . .

The bucket issue was solved for me at a game Tuesday night where the offense lined a foul down first base to the dugout that nearly took the head of their own coach who was sitting on the bucket in the prescribed dead ball area. I asked if he was okay and he moved his bucket back inside the door of his own accord. Two batters later, another one drilled the same spot with a foul.

Coach was real jumpy after that. :D