Interference?

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

That's worse. I guess given the two choices, running around with your arm sticking out looking silly is superior to not verbalizing or signaling!

And probably slightly better than one partner I worked with for the first time who yelled "obstruction at first!!!!" so loud that everyone - fielders, runners, coaches, even me - stopped what they were doing to see what he was yelling about.

Anyway... verbalize, and signal for long enough that others have a chance to see it.

There are a LOT of umpires out there who seem to think (or worse ... teach) that you should hold your arm out until the moment the runner gets to the base you were going to protect them to (even if that means all the way from first to home). This is wrong. 2 seconds or so is probably plenty.

There is nothing that says it must be dropped, but it doesn't have to be held throughout the play. Personally, if there is a possibility that the runner may run out of protection. Then again, I don't "run" around like an idiot. My steps across the field are slow and very calculated. If I need to kick it up, yeah, I'm not running around with my arm out.

What I find and have experienced as problematic is the "verbal" instruction. I have never had a situation where the verbal did not distract the players. But being the good guy, I verbalize in a very low voice.

IMO, verbalizing makes it more likely that the players and coaches will begin playing to the call, not the game in front of them.