Did another 10U game yesterday. Had this play.

Runner coming home on a batted ball. Pitcher comes in to take the throw, even though the catcher was already there.

Pitcher catches the ball about 3 feet up the line. Catcher is right behind her, ahead of the plate, too. Runner comes in and runs a bit wide (still legal, though) to attempt to avoid the players standing at the plate and also misses the plate. Pitcher turns and tags the runner before she can step sideways onto the plate.

I called the runner out on the tag, ruling that the runner was avoiding the tag, not the catcher. Coach wanted OBS on the catcher.

What do you think?

I think it is a HTBT play, I could see it going either way. It is your judgement and no coach can argue that!! Like I said depending on the runners actions it could have been obs, if the runner ran around (still within 3 feet) the fielder with the ball and then started to run back to the base but had to go wide again because of the catcher then I would have OBS. If the runner went wide to avoid the tag and stayed wide as a result of her actions to avoid the tag and never noticed the catcher then no OBS. This is just my opinion, or judgement which again can not be protested!!!

I will answer with what I think is a very good article written
by one of our [officialforum] members.

OBS - a handy place to start is in the rule book definition section.
OBS is defined as an act of a fielder which impedes the progress of a runner
or BR who is legally running the bases. Contact is not necessary to impede
the progress. To impede the progress means that the runner does not make
the same progress (speed, direction, distance from A to B etc) as she would have
made had it not been for OBS. It is not necessary to know the ultimate effect on
the play to call OBS; It is only necessary to see the impeding of progress.

Forcing a runner to go wide or go over fielder's dropped knee to get back to base
on a pickoff attempt is impeding.

<b>Forcing a runner to take a more indirect route from A to B is impeding the progress
of the runner.</b>

Causing the runner to slow down to avoid collision is impeding the progress of
the runner.

Did any of the above occur? I believe the bold line may have, but then I was not
there.

Gosh, Glen, I wonder who wrote that? ;) Whoever he was, it was brilliant!

IMJ, the catcher was completely screened by the pitcher, and the runner was impeded by the pitcher attempting to apply a tag (legal to impede). The catcher was just standing there and didn't seem to cause the runner to do anything.

I think the coach was hoping for the call because she was in the "base path" without the ball. Of course, the runner would have had to run through the pitcher to get to her.

If anything, the catcher impeded the pitcher trying to get back to make the tag.

Tom,

Sounds like a great call. I know in 10U you had more
time to get a really good look.

It was a good article, wasn't it? :D