This is more of a scoring question than an officiating question. There is a runner on third, less than 2 outs. The batter hits a ground ball to an infielder. The infielder makes the play at first but the run scores. Is this ruled a sacrifice? My interpretation of the sacrifice rule is it's a ground out and an RBI, no sacrifice.

You got it! RBI...no sacrifice.

My interpretation of the rule is it must either be a fly ball to the outfield or a bunt. You must also be intending to sacrifice yourself in order to advnace a runner. You can't just swing away and if you get a hit then good but if you don't get a hit and the run scores it's a sac.

Im still confused? How can we "tell" what thier intent is? Can this be changed AFTER the game, if we find out that the guy intended to "sacrifice" or not?

Thats why I NEVER mess with that dingdang scorebook!

:)

In order for a ground ball to be a sacrifice, it must be bunted. And the official scorer believes the batter was bunting to advance the runner, and not for a base hit. Before you ask, an EXPERIENCED scorer can tell the difference. And so can ANY experienced baseball fan.

Bob

I apoligize that I have not reached your level of greatness in this sport.

Scorekeepers make judgement calls all the time on errors. Same for the described "sacrifice".

thank you

gmckinney was correct that Official Rule 10.00 requires a sacrifice to be a fly ball or a bunt, although there are sections that are worded in a way that might make you think a regular hit ball could be a sacrifice.

Speaking of intent, I think bluezebra meant that you can tell from the game situation (not from body language, crowd reaction, overheard comments, or mind reading) whether or not a player bunted in an intent to sacrifice or not.

After Rule 10.00 states that the Official Scorer must judge the 'intent' of the batter, it goes on to add a caveat: the scorer should always give the benefit of the doubt to the batter.

I score a good bit of Little League in addition to 'older' games, so here's how I apply that rule:

1. Little Leaguers age 12 and under play on a 60' diamond. On a field that size, considering the speed of runners compared to the average skill level of the fielders, players have a reasonable chance of bunting for a hit, and often do.

Therefore, if a batter bunts the ball and runs hard to first, I'll score the play as though the batter was trying for a hit. If the batter achieves a base hit, I'll score it as a hit. If the result of the play is anything else (putout, fielder's choice, error, etc.) and there were fewer than 2 outs when the player came to bat, then, if the batter successfully advanced a runner AND no other runners were put out, I'll score it as a sac bunt.

2. For games on a 90' diamond (i.e., age 13 and up), a bunt will rarely result in a base hit. Therefore, I assume the batter is attempting a sacrifice bunt if there are fewer than 2 outs and there is a runner on first base or third base. [Naturally, the batter had to advance a runner AND no other runner was put out.] Players rarely try to sacrifice to advance a runner from second to third (since the runner is already in 'scoring position'), so I normally won't score a sac bunt in that situation unless I have some other evidence that the player intended to sacrifice.

I hope this helps.

Sacrifice
 

What about this? Runner on third with no outs, batter sacrifice bunts and infielder throws home but the runner is safe. What does the batter get, FC, SAC or base hit?

Wouldn't it depend on if he is SAFE due to an error?

Re: Sacrifice
 

If the scorer judges that a "perfect play" would not have retired the runner at first, score a hit.

If the scorer judges that the runner was safe on error, score a FC.

If the scorer judges that the batter was bunting for a hit, score a hit.

If the scorer judges that the runner was safe without an error, score a sacrifice.