Umpire interference?? Can't find in the book
 

I can't find this in the book or I am not looking the right place!:confused:

Men's slow pitch with stealing allowed. Man on first Pitch hits behind the plate and takes a weird hop past the catcher. I try to get out of the way but as I move to my left it bounces right into me and goes right back to the catcher. The runner on first sees the ball get past the catcher and takes off to 2nd. The catcher now with ball easily throws the runner out. The base umpire calls DEAD BALL because the ball hit the home plate umpire!

Is this correct? My partner said if the pitched ball hits the umpire it has to be called dead because it may give one team advantage over the other depending on how it bounces off of the umpire!

ASA: I think youre gonna be looking for that rule in a holy grail like fashion. :D

You are correct; you can't find this in the rule book.

Umpires are part of the field in all but two narrowly defined instances; this isn't one of them.

Speaking ASA

Your partner is making it up as s/he goes along. The next time you are with this umpire, ask for a reference.

There is no such rule. The ball going off you and right back to the catcher is no different than a good bounce off the backstop on a pass ball.

There is Rule 8-6-f in ASA (and similiar in other organizations), which discusses "when the plate umpire interferes with the catcher's attempt to throw out a runner stealing, or an attempted pick off play."

Even with this rule, if the runner is out, the interference is ignored.

This rule is not about a passed ball hitting an umpire. It also has a specific note excluding situations where the interference with the throw is after a passed ball.

Good quote of an apporpriate rule.
I learned this one the hard way many years back.
In my sitch, I had a passed ball that hit the backstop and then came forward toward me and the catcher.
As the catcher was reaching for the ball, I stepped to clear out of the way and stepped right on top of the ball and then the catchers hand with my other foot. (She was very fast, not that I was that slow in moving)
I got the ruling right (out of luck at the time) and was asked by the UIC after the game how I had come up with the ruling.
I couldn't give a rule reference, but I promise you this, after that happened I never forgot it!

umpire interference
 

since the ump is considered part of the field and runner was thrown out after the intereference anyway then there was no interference and ball was live..Runner is out!!

:rolleyes:

the trolling of late is so lame.

yer kinda grumpy for a human backstop. ;)