Screwy Play that acually happened

[BretMan]

Originally Posted by youngump

If the pitcher does not deliver the ball then it's dead right? So if the pitcher completes the action of failing to deliver it before the runner leaves the base then the ball was dead and we have no leaving early. On the flip side, if the runner leaves before the pitcher has failed to deliver the pitch, then how do we have an illegal pitch? I'm thinking that if the illegal action is failure to deliver the pitch then we have to only pick one.

That might work if the two violations happened with a significant gap of time between them. But since runners are trying to time their lead off with the exact instant of ball release, you have two practically simultaneous events happening at once. Seems just about impossible to determine which happened first.

Not to mention that you would be trying to judge something "not happening" first. Is that even possible?

Maybe this should be a "Double Foul Do-Over"!

If I was the Softball World Master Rulesmaker...I'd enforce the illegal pitch only when the pitcher fails to release the ball. Why do we make runners hold their base until the ball is released? So that they cannot gain an unfair advantage in advancing toward the next base. If the ball is dead on the illegal pitch, what advantage has the runner gained by leaving early? None, since the dead ball halts her advance.

This would eliminate the possibility of the defense possibly gaining an advantage (an out) by the pitcher purposely violating a rule.