Rule Interpretation, please.

[gdc25]

Man am I glad I found this place, I only wonder why I haven't looked sooner.

Adult Men's Slow Pitch Softball - ASA.

Runner on 1b, 1 out.

BR hits ground ball to F6. F6 tags 2b with glove while holding the ball with his bare hand. Is this a force out or not? Why?

Over the past 2 days I've heard every interpretation (all professing to be "experts").

I'm at work (shhh. don't tell on me) and don't have a rule book handy, but this is bugging me enough that I want to know the ruling.

[mcrowder]

In tagging a base, it doesn't matter which hand the ball is in, and it doesn't matter what part of your body touches the base. Your sitch is an out.

(Note that if you're tagging the RUNNER, and you do so with the glove while the ball is in the bare hand, this is not a tag).

[gdc25]

That's what I thought. However there was quite a rucus about that, which resulted in an ejection just to get the came completed.

thanks for the response. I can be productive now.

[Dakota]

Just to elaborate on this...

Think about it; for the normal force out, where is the ball? (hand or glove).
What is the fielder tagging the base with? (shoe)

Why would it be an out to tag the base with the shoe but not with the glove?

[greymule]

It's not surprising that the general public is confused about this. Once in a televised college game the announcers went on and on about the blown call at 2B where F6 tagged the base with an empty glove on a force play. They showed the replay again and again.

It struck me as strange that the announcers never once considered the fact that absolutely nobody questioned the call.

all professing to be "experts"

Two bits of advice, gdc25. (1) Do not take at face value the statement from anyone that he is an umpire. I've had guys tell me, "I'm an umpire, and right in the book it says runners have to slide." Remember, all it takes to be an official umpire in certain organizations is an internet connection and a charge card number. (2) Do not take as authoritative anything that broadcasters say about rules.

In a reverse insane interpretation, years ago I had a play in which F4 fielded a ground ball and tagged, with an empty glove, the runner forced to 2B. Safe, of course. But the coach argued that since it was a force play, the runner is treated like the base, and any touch by the fielder constitutes an out. He also told me he was an umpire.

[gdc25]

Thanks for the help guys...

I was a casual observer and glad about it, I was only curious about this because of the massive amounts of confusion that it caused.

I know all about "I'm an umpire guy". He's my favorite of all the types. We all know that the true player/umpires simply give a "good call" and walk away, no matter if it's a blown call or not.

It's easier to become an "Official Umpire" in my area than even having a credit card number. Most parks here simply take the fee out of your 1st check.