infield fly "if fair"

[BretMan]

That's an odd one.

Do you consider a catcher going from a squat, running back 15-20 feet, stationed right next to the fence and, apparently, having to reach out to "feel" the fence to gauge where it is as "routine effort"? Sight unseen, I'd tend to say it's not.

If you do, then you don't really have any other choice but to call this an infield fly if the ball does eventually become fair, as all requirements of the rule would have been met.

Admittedly, this probably isn't the sort of situation they had in mind when the infield fly rule was crafted. But if it did roll fair, wouldn't the runners already on base deserve the protection that the infield fly rule is designed to afford them?

Here's one on the other end of the spectrum. Infield fly situation. Batter hits high pop up toward F4. F4 is camped under it waiting for it to come down. Umpire calls the infield fly. Ball lands a foot behind the fielder, then shoots out into centerfield. Batter keeps running and winds up on second base.

You're probably going to get some sort of argument from the offensive coach, who thinks that you just robbed his batter of "a double". But all the requirements of the rule were met and you don't really have any choice other than to enforce the out and remove the retired batter from the bases.

This play and your play are at two opposite ends of the spectrum. There is a vast array of possible infield fly scenarios in between...most of them that actually resemble plays that the rule was designed to cover. On the fringes, you get this kind of "Twilight Zone" stuff.