Jurisdiction of call

[kchamp]

Sit:
I'm UIC, and the batter just swung at the third strike and took 4 or 5 steps to the dugout when she realizes that the pitch was not caught by F2 an then bolts for 1st. Now the BU chimes in calling the BR out for a) abandonment (wrong) or b) not running in the lane (again wrong).

At this point, what does the UIC do?
Issues I'm thinking about:
a. It's my call
b. Do no critisize or reverse another umpires call
c. Let offensive coach initiate appeal

Thanks
Kent

[Steve M]

Kent,
Interesting potential case here. If all involved players "ignore" the call, let the play continue. If, however, any/all involved players stop, live with the call and that ration of stuff that comes from the coach. Like baseball, you can't have a "do-over". After the game, ask somebody to help remove your entire leg & foot from partner's backside. Then explain to partner what constitutes abandonment - this is determined by who's rules you're playing under - and the purpose of the running lane.

[IRISHMAFIA]

Kent,

You do not do a thing until the offended team announces they are playing the game under protest.

At this point, the umpires on the field should call you over. Walk with the umpire who made the call to an isolated area. Have his partner keep your discussion private by acting as a barrier from the participants.

Quietly listen to the umpires thoughts, tell him the proper ruling (if necessary, which in this case it is). At this point, the proper ruling should be announced by the umpire. If requested, you can make this announcement for him, but keep him by your side.

The problem with this play is that what do you do with the runner. When a protest is upheld, you correct the situation and continue to (re)play the game from that point. The error by the umpire was made AFTER the 3rd strike had been called, but before the runner or the ball reached 1B.

I think the solution would be left in the judgement of the umpire as to whether the runner would have had a chance to reach 1B safely. And no matter what you rule, you are going to hear it. So, unless the defense was already in the act of making a play on the BR when the umpire killed the play, I would put the BR on first and move on.

Mike

[SamNVa]

First of all, I hope the BR continued to 1st and stayed there. Secondly I hope the offensive coach calls time and protests the call because that is the only way that the PU is going to legitimately get involved in this play. Barring either of these two occurances, I personally don't think there is much you can do.

[Gulf Coast Blue]

Agreed.........

Your partner got ya'll both into a definate FUBAR.

As someone once stated.......you can't unring the bell. Once your partner killed the play and called the runner out....you were kinda stuck.

Unless officially protested there is not much you can do.

I did like Steve's suggestion to "ask somebody to help remove your entire leg & foot from partner's backside".

I have had partners blow calls....even rule interpretations.......ONCE.....I even fixed the problem.....but that is another story.

Go over it politely with your partner after the game.....if he won't listen, let your UIC know what happened.

Also.......now is the time to get your yearly game diary together. Make notes after all of your games after you get home and any situations that came up and how they were handled. Also.....you might make notes on what rules were applied/mis-applied etc.

It really helps so you won't make mistakes more than once.

Joel

[IRISHMAFIA]

Joel,

Kent was the UIC, not an umpire on the field.

Mike

[Gulf Coast Blue]

Mike......

My understanding by Kent saying he was UIC was that he was PU....

Joel

[kchamp]

Mike + Joel

By calling myself UIC, I was referring to UIC on the field (the PU), not UIC of our association. Did I misspeak?

Kent

[IRISHMAFIA]

Then that was my misunderstanding Kent. In my part of the world, the UIC is the overseer of the games, not an official on the field. That should explain my response to your scenario to you.

In ASA ball, both umpires have equal responsibilities with a slight semantic edge going to the plate umpire to correct any errors which may take place.

As we all know, sometimes it is the veteran, sometimes the guy/gal who takes it more seriously, that takes control on the field.

[bluezebra]

Why wasn't this discussed at your pregame? The PU takes calls up to 1B. Was the BU an overexhuberant rookie?

Bob

[kchamp]

Bob

Probably the better venue, rather than the pregame, would be at the next association meeting so all would be on the same page. Some members, I hate to say, have way more experience than I. Unfortunatly much of their learning was by way of grandfathering, or hearsay of their mentors. Correcting them tactfully is difficult and uneasy.

Kent

[bluezebra]

Kent:

It boggles my mind that your association doesn't cover these basics at the meetings. And I know what you mean about these "know-it-alls". Tough to get through to them, even if you show them the book. Hand in there.

Bob