Fair or foul??

RHBatter pulls a ground ball down the 3rd base line, ball is bouncing in fair territory, it hops directly over the third base bag but lands in foul territory beyond the bag?

I have a Coke bet on this.

Which way did you bet?


Over the bag = fair ball.

fair ball. depends on how you ruled, but if you said fair do I get 50% of the drink? Dave

Because it's a right-handed batter, that is a fair ball.

Seriously, though, what you describe is a fair ball, no matter if the batter is right or left handed.

A bounding ball (one that has bounced) in fair territory that goes directly over first or third base, and then lands in foul territory is a fair ball.

It is a fair ball when any portion of the ball bounds over the front edge of first/third base, where the base meets the foul/fair edge of the foul line. If the ball bounds into foul territory before passing these points, that would be a foul ball.

Bluefoot, the ball can bound in foul ground and then cross over third or first base and this would be a FAIR ball not a foul ball. Dave

Yes, except...
 

Except for the !@#$heads who call it foul the instant it first touches the ground in foul territory...and of course once it is called foul by the umpire, it's foul...

where is that beating a dead horse animation when I need it...

Ship, reread the post. If it lands in foul territory, it must be in fair territory just prior to crossing the base.

I had this exact play last night. Righty pulls it down the 3rd base line, it curves over the 3rd base bag sideways, never actually making it past the bag into the OF before hitting foul territory. Fortunately, earlier that day, I remembered specifically reading in Rule 1 "Fair Territory".

"A fair ball is a legally batted ball that:

B. Bounds over or past 1st or 3rd, which is in fair territory, regardless of where the ball hits after going over the base."


Since it doesn't specify, I hoped I was right in including "Bounds over the base sideways into foul territory". Looks like I was, phew.

[Edited by Alameda on Apr 8th, 2005 at 02:59 PM]

Over the base is just that, over the base. Like the strike zone, think of a column of smoke rising directly up from the base. If the ball disturbs the smoke it is fair.

Mike I like that visual, nice touch. One question would it be a line of smoke only on the front of the base, or a square of the whole base? Here is my anal point, (not that I can see that good anyway, I'm a blue for goodness sake!) but if I remember it is the position of the ball as it crosses 1st or 3rd base. What part of the base? Is it as you described any part, being a square cylinder going into space, or is it a plane at the front of the base as the strike zone is? If it is foul and then bounds over the back corner into fair territory is it foul or fair?