Batter squares to bunt has fingers of right hand around barrel (picture fingers facing pitcher) offers at the pitch, makes contact on those exposed fingers.... what do you have?????

I may have blown it but in making a quick decision I called HBP and awarded first. All those threads about the hands not being part of the bat were stuck in my head...

BTW, the kid ended up leaving the game with a finger full of pretty colors and about twice it's original size...

The batter offerred at the pitch and was hit on the hands? It's a strike, dead ball.

It depends. Were his hands in the strike zone when he was hit? If so, strike. If not, hit batsman and first.

Hang on. Let's do umpire math with rules in play here. What is a strike? 1) Any pitch that crosses over the plate between the knees and half way between the batter's waist and armpits in their natural batting stance. 2) Any pitch that the batter offers to hit with the bat. Okay, here the batter "offers" at a pitched ball...strike. Now comes another rule. Any pitched ball becomes dead once it strikes a batter or his clothing. Wether or not the batter is awarded a base is just a sub-article of this rule. Now, lets look at the play and use these rules. Pitched ball is offered at by batter. Pitched ball strikes batter in the hand...ball becomes dead. Now, batter is offering as pitch crosses the plate...strike. Dead ball, runners return to base at time of pitch and batter has a strike. Does not happen often, and I had twice in a week a few years back. Sounds funny at first, but makes all kind of sense later. JOHN

David:

Make sure you know that if the batter offers at the pitch
(swing or bunt), it is a STRIKE no matter what. This includes if he is also hit by the ball. This includes
if the ball is out of the strike zone.

You guys are right. I went back and read 6.08b which states that a batter gets first base if he "is touched by a pitched ball which the batter is not attempting to hit."

I had not realized that a swinging strike obviates the possibility of a nit batsman.

Thanks, Marty