batted ball

[john5396]

I would say by rule, that if the batter has stepped completly out of the box with one foot when the ball hits the knob, then the batter would be out.

I dont beleive I would ever be looking at his feet on an inside pitch like that. I will be watching the ball and the batters hands to determine if the ball hit the hands first (HBP) or the knob of the bat first (fair/foul).

[MD Longhorn]

True. I guess the point I was trying to make was it's not a special case - it's exactly the same if it hits the knob or another other place, or if the batter was or was not trying to hit it. If it hit the bat, it hit the bat. In that latter case, if the batter had one foot fully outside the box and touching the ground when the ball hit the bat, they would be out.

And... like you, I find that situation to be INCREDIBLY hard for an umpire to see - we're watching the ball to see what contacts it. If we're looking at the ball and it hits the knob ... well ... we aren't simultaneously looking at feet. Even if we knew (because of the degree of bailing out of the box) that he was not in the box ... do we know he was in contact with the ground at that instant? Probably not.