A First Time for Everything

[dash_riprock]

A fight breaks out at 2nd base after a hard slide. Players pop out of the dugout to get a better view of the action, but go no farther. They obviously have no intention of joining the fray. Are you dumping all of them?

[yawetag]

Originally Posted by dash_riprock

A fight breaks out at 2nd base after a hard slide. Players pop out of the dugout to get a better view of the action, but go no farther. They obviously have no intention of joining the fray. Are you dumping all of them?

Define "pop out." Just outside the bench and doing nothing else? Of course not. They're not "advancing toward the fight."

I assumed (possibly incorrectly) that OP's benches cleared and a lot of players came out on the field -- an assumption that was made clear by those of us on the ejection side, and one that hasn't been denied by OP.

[dash_riprock]

Then I think we're on the same page.

From one of your posts: "The rules prescribe all players that leave their fielding position or the bench area are to be ejected. There is no leeway."

I inferred (incorrectly, I guess) that you would eject anyone who left the bench regardless of their intent or subsequent actions (if any). That would be contrary to the rule.

[scarolinablue]

First, to yawetag: Sorry for my abrupt response(s) - I was (and to some degree) still hyped up about this sitch.

Overall, we certainly erred in our leniency, and certainly will handle it much more punitively next time as several of you rightly suggested. After the benefit of video review (not by me, by the state association), multiple players from each team have been suspended. My partner and I have been sufficiently admonished, but not suspended as of this writing. Our local association might still weigh in on this, and I'm OK with whatever they decide.

In retrospect, as these situations often do, it happened very quickly - probably less than 30 seconds from the initial collision to the emptying of the benches to the coaches regaining control of their teams and heading them back to the dugouts. During that time, I had pulled out my lineup card and began writing down numbers, but literally only got three numbers written down before the coaches got into the fray and began separating the players.

The best course of action I could have taken was to suspend the game immediately - as Bob Jenkins mentioned in his early post. We did not do this. Even in the absence of multiple ejections, this would have made for a better handling of the overall situation. Let the administrative types sort it out, because there's always somebody with video these days.

It's these types of situations that ultimately make us better equipped to handle other situations. A lifetime of learning. I'll continue to kick myself for kicking this one, at least in terms of game management.

On a twist of irony, I get these teams again this week - one Friday, one Saturday. Not that the sitch was my fault to begin with. I am interested to see what one of the coaches has to say after his comments in the paper.

[mbyron]

That's a great post, SCB. You've clearly had a lot to deal with and reflected on the lessons of your case. Thank you for posting it!

[Adam]

Originally Posted by scarolinablue

First, to yawetag: Sorry for my abrupt response(s) - I was (and to some degree) still hyped up about this sitch.

Overall, we certainly erred in our leniency, and certainly will handle it much more punitively next time as several of you rightly suggested. After the benefit of video review (not by me, by the state association), multiple players from each team have been suspended. My partner and I have been sufficiently admonished, but not suspended as of this writing. Our local association might still weigh in on this, and I'm OK with whatever they decide.

In retrospect, as these situations often do, it happened very quickly - probably less than 30 seconds from the initial collision to the emptying of the benches to the coaches regaining control of their teams and heading them back to the dugouts. During that time, I had pulled out my lineup card and began writing down numbers, but literally only got three numbers written down before the coaches got into the fray and began separating the players.

The best course of action I could have taken was to suspend the game immediately - as Bob Jenkins mentioned in his early post. We did not do this. Even in the absence of multiple ejections, this would have made for a better handling of the overall situation. Let the administrative types sort it out, because there's always somebody with video these days.

It's these types of situations that ultimately make us better equipped to handle other situations. A lifetime of learning. I'll continue to kick myself for kicking this one, at least in terms of game management.

On a twist of irony, I get these teams again this week - one Friday, one Saturday. Not that the sitch was my fault to begin with. I am interested to see what one of the coaches has to say after his comments in the paper.

Always tough to swallow crow; well done. I know full well how it tastes.

[Toadman15241]

For those that want to see a picture of the play that caused the benches clearing brawl and a story on the aftermath, here it is.

Now, while SC suspends players for one or two games TN takes real action on benches clearing brawl. 2 year postseason ban and a nice fat fine for the schools.

[JRutledge]

This is why you cannot go wrong with following the rules as they are written and intended. Glad this was posted and that some reflection was done to realize that an error was made. This is one rule I doubt the OPer will forget for sure. We have all been there on some level. Maybe not with a fight, but with other issues.

Peace