batter/runner unintentionally kicks blocked pitch
 

What's the ruling?

--Batter swings and misses at pitch that bounces for strike three with two outs.
--Batter/runner takes off toward first base
--Catcher successfully blocks the bounced pitch, but the ricochet off his gear pops into the stride of the running batter/runner
--The ricochet is unintentionally kicked out into the infield grass by the batter/runner
--The defensive pitcher and first baseman are unable to successfully field the ball.
--Runner arrives at first base safely.

The ruling at this game was SAFE. No penalty. Were they correct?

Can someone provide a case play that covers this sitch?

This was a 1-1 game at the time. Two batters later, a 3-run blast. Now 4-1.

If it's unintentional, then there's no call to be made. The umpires got it right.

Another way to look at it is the batter was doing what he was supposed to and a ricochet got in front of him and was unable to avoid it. It appears that you are a basketball referee so use your instinct here. How can you rule against the offense? You can't so you don't.

Had one like this in a college game where the batter actually kicked the ball (unintentionally) INTO THE DUGOUT. Sort that one out! I'll share the end results later in the thread....

JJ

I would say one base from the time of the pitch. What else is there?

One from the rubber. Two from the field.

JJ,

Had the batter become a runner on the uncaught third strike?

If yes, all runners, including the BR, are awarded two bases, TOP.

If no, the ball is dead and runners return.

JM

Wouldn't the runners get 2 anyway? Just like if the catcher kicked it into the dugout chasing it down. They'd get at least one base b/c the pitch went into DBT. I don't see them returning.

Darien,

The NCAA rule book contains the following Approved Ruling following it's third strike not caught rule:

JM

OK - well that's there in black and white, huh :confused::eek:

My take on the "if not" portion was along the lines of it wasn't an uncaught 3rd strike - it was "just a pitch" - I wasn't thinking about the DK3 with less than 2 outs and 1B occupied as I read it.

Mis-read, my bad.

You only give 2 from time of deflection if it either a) hits the backstop, goes back into the catcher, and then into DBT; b) the ball comes to rest and is then kicked in by the catcher; or c) the catcher intentionally kicks it into DBT. In a, the reasoning is once it kicks back into play it is no longer a pitched ball. In b, once it comes to rest, no longer a pitched ball. And in c, the catcher intentionally makes contact with a pitched ball, making him liable for whatever happens to it after that point.

If it is off the batter, I don't see how we can have anything but one base TOP. Same as if it never hit him. Its a pitched ball going into DBT. The ball hitting the batter after hitting the catcher on a 3rd strike does not change the status of the ball. It is still a pitched ball.

The ruling on the field, after much huddling and consulting of the rule book, was everyone was advanced 2 bases from the TOP. The book doesn't actually address this specific situation, but the logic was it was an unintentionally deflected pitch (as opposed to a pitch that had stopped rolling and was THEN kicked into DBT).
Neither coach argued - because nobody had ever seen it before and didn't know what the correct ruling was!

JJ

How could the logic be that it was a deflected pitch, so they get 2??? :confused::confused::confused: Deflected pitch is still a pitch, so its 1 TOP.

I didn't say it was RIGHT, I said this was the ruling on the field. I posted the incident hoping to gain more insight into what the correct ruling might have been. Of course you're correct that a deflected pitch is still a pitch, but the impetus for the ball going into the dugout was the kick, not the momentum of the pitch itself. That's why, when I had the incident described to me, I thought, "Hmmmm"...

JJ

It does not matter that the batter unintentionally made contact with it causing it to go out of play.

If we had a play at third and a thrown ball hit a sliding runner instead of being caught by the 3B, and then deflected into DBT, we still have a thrown ball out of play. This is no different, except it started as a pitched ball, and it remains, a pitched ball until it becomes either batted or thrown.

There's a difference between a pitch that is deirectly deflected out of play (1 base, TOP), and a pitch which is missed and is subsequently deflected out of play. There, the award is two bases, but might be TOP or TOT, depending on the circumstances.

In OBR, see 7.05(h) AR (that's from an old book, so the numbering mayhave changed).

NCAA has a similar rule (8-3.0(4)). Althought it talks only about a fielder deflecting the pitch, I'd apply it to the batter deflecting the pitch.