bunted foul ball caught

[shipwreck]

This seems like an easy question but........if a bunted ball is foul and goes up some but not higher than the batter's head, is the batter out or is it a foul tip? I have had 2 people around here tell me 2 different things. If it is an out, please reference rule(ASA or Fed.) Dave

[Dakota]

Speaking ASA...

The rule is ASA 1-FOUL TIP.

To be a foul tip, a batted ball must meet three criteria:

1) It must go directly from the bat to the catcher's hands or glove, and
2) It must not go higher than the batter's head, and
3) It must be legally caught by the catcher.

Note that it must meet all three criteria. Many times people put more emphasis on the "higher than the batter's head" than it deserves... it the batted ball does not meet the other two criteria, it is not a foul tip, even if it goes no higher than the batter's head. The criteria most often missed by fans and coaches is number 1), above. If the catcher took a step, or lunged, or otherwise made an active play on the ball, then the ball did not go directly from the bat to her glove.

If it does not meet all three criteria, it is not a foul tip.

[SamNVa]

Dakota said it all... or most of it.

Too many people get hung up on the ball going above the batter's head. What the rule says is that if the ball goes above the batter's head, it can't be a foul tip. It does not say that if it does not go above the batter's head that it can't be a caught foul ball. As Dakota said, all three criteria must be met for the batted ball to be considered a foul tip. If any of the three criteria is not met, then you have a caught batted ball in-flight and the batter is out, with the exception of the batted ball that goes sharp and direct to some part of the catcher's body other than her hand or glove and is subsequently caught. This ball is specifically declared to be a foul ball.

While I'm up here (on the soapbox) I would also like to say that a batted ball which is caught inflight over foul territory is NOT a foul ball; it is a caught fly ball. The important distinction is that a foul ball is a dead ball whereas a caught fly is a live ball. Thus the ball described above is a foul ball (dead ball) by rule even though it was caught inflight.

--Sam

[Dakota]

Originally posted by SamNVa

While I'm up here (on the soapbox) I would also like to say that a batted ball which is caught inflight over foul territory is NOT a foul ball; it is a caught fly ball.

Sam,

I'd like to push my soapbox right up next to yours on this one! ASA rules explicitly state this - (ASA 1-FOUL BALL-E).

[Dakota]

BTW,

To be a foul tip, the ball needs to go directly from the bat to the catcher's hands or glove, but it does not need to be directly caught, only legally caught. In other words, it can rebound off her hands / glove, and then she can move, lunge, etc., to catch the rebound. If she misses - foul ball. If she catches it - foul tip & strike & live ball.

[Steve M]

Originally posted by Dakota
BTW,

To be a foul tip, the ball needs to go directly from the bat to the catcher's hands or glove, but it does not need to be directly caught, only legally caught. In other words, it can rebound off her hands / glove, and then she can move, lunge, etc., to catch the rebound. If she misses - foul ball. If she catches it - foul tip & strike & live ball.

Dakota,
Just 1 short clarification here - the tipped ball must be caught by the catcher. We had some folks around here who thought that once the batted ball went to the catcher's glove... it could then rebound off the cather into the air & be caught by another fielder. We even had some others who argued that the above was no longer a foul tip, but a foul ball - and they wanted to get an out on this.

[Dakota]

Thanks, Steve. You're quite right. A foul tip must be caught by the catcher, not another fielder.

If it rebounds off the catcher's glove & is caught by another fielder, it IS a foul ball, isn't it? (ASA 1-FOUL BALL-G)

[Steve M]

Originally posted by Dakota
Thanks, Steve. You're quite right. A foul tip must be caught by the catcher, not another fielder.

If it rebounds off the catcher's glove & is caught by another fielder, it IS a foul ball, isn't it? (ASA 1-FOUL BALL-G)

Yeah, that's just a foul and I'm going to have a dead ball, too. I've never seen this, but one of the high school guys did early this year and I think he called the batter out.

[Roger Greene]

Must have been a Fed baseball umpire. In Fed baseball a foul tip can be caught by any fielder. (I've never seen it happen.)

Roger Greene,
Member UT

[bluezebra]

"Must have been a Fed baseball umpire. In Fed baseball a foul tip can be caught by any fielder. (I've never seen it happen.)

Roger Greene,
Member UT"

Where did you find this rule? Certainly not in the 2001 Fed Softball book. 2.8.2.d. States the ball must be caught by the catcher to be a foul tip. CASE BOOK 2.8.2 SITUATION A States the same thing. 2.8.2. SITUATION D States if another fielder catches the ball, it is not a foul tip, but is a foul ball.

In FED baseball, the ball may be caught by a fielder after rebounding from the catcher's hand s. 2.16.2.

Don't get the two books confused. They are different in many ways.

Bob

[Roger Greene]

Exactly what I sad, Bob. Fed Baseball is the only set of rules that I'm aware of that alow someone other than the catcher to catch a foul tip.

Roger Greene

[bluezebra]

Sorry about that Rog. I was caught up in the softball aspect and didn't notice you mentioned FED baseball. Back to Remedial Reading 101.

Bob