Malicious Contact Supercedes Obstruction right?

[Dave Reed]

This is a grey area. FED rules don't define malicious contact, and surprisingly there is no explicit rule against fighting! (There is however a rule against a player leaving the bench or on-deck circle to go to a fight, even if they don't participate.)

So generally we consider fighting to be in the classification of unsportsmanlike conduct, and the penalty is ejection only.

When a batter charges the mound, that is in itself likely USC, since the rules explcitly mention charging an umpire as USC. It seems to me that if the pitcher responds by running toward the batter, that's also USC. And if they start whacking each other, that's fighting.

But if the batter charges the pitcher, generating only a defensive response, and hits the pitcher, that's malicious contact. It's not a fight unless there is an offensive response.

USC-- ejection only. MC--out and ejected. The choice depends on the umpire's judgement of the activities.