Proper Mechanics - Infield Fly / 2-Man Crew

[Manny A]

In the USA Softball Umpire Manual, under General Responsibilities Both Slow Pitch and Fast Pitch, the first section on Infield Fly says, "It is the plate umpire's responsibility to call the Infield Fly." Nothing is provided in that section that tells the BU what he/she can/should/must do if the PU fails to call it. And because of that, you have some umpire trainers and evaluators insist that the BU is not allowed to say or do anything, period.

In the NCAA CCA Manual, on the other hand, under the Signals section (with all of the PlayPics showing approved umpire mechanics, it states, "If the plate umpire does not make the call (forgets or is not certain of the call) and a base umpire, after eye contact communication with the plate umpire, is certain the ball is an infield fly, the base umpire should then verbalize, 'Infield Fly'."

So I guess unless you do college ball, you really need to reach out to your powers-that-be to understand what the BU should do in this situation, because it really depends how those folks feel about it. Some will say it's okay to make the call, others will say the BU should help by pointing up to key his/her PU partner to call it, and yet others will say the BU has no business doing anything.