fair ball!

[refjef40]

This one ended up okay but made me think.A runner at second and nobody out and I'm out in the hole with freshman fed. ball.The batter hits a small pop in front of the plate and the catcher touches it but doesn't catch it and scoops it up in front of the plate.It is clearly a fair ball but no one reacts all the players obviously think its a foul.My partner is only in his second year but he hasn't yelled foul and niether have I,he looks at me and mouths fair and I nod yes so he is pointing fair and the catcher throws back to the pitcher thinking strike one.The batter stands there when finally her coach yells run and she takes off while the pitcher stares at her and I call her safe at first with no throw.My question is what would we do if the pitcher went ahead and threw a pitch?Someone said the batter is out for not running but I say she never abandoned the field.Dumb coaching for sure though!

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally posted by refjef40
This one ended up okay but made me think.A runner at second and nobody out and I'm out in the hole with freshman fed. ball.The batter hits a small pop in front of the plate and the catcher touches it but doesn't catch it and scoops it up in front of the plate.It is clearly a fair ball but no one reacts all the players obviously think its a foul.My partner is only in his second year but he hasn't yelled foul and niether have I,he looks at me and mouths fair and I nod yes so he is pointing fair and the catcher throws back to the pitcher thinking strike one.The batter stands there when finally her coach yells run and she takes off while the pitcher stares at her and I call her safe at first with no throw.My question is what would we do if the pitcher went ahead and threw a pitch?Someone said the batter is out for not running but I say she never abandoned the field.Dumb coaching for sure though!

I doubt the pitcher would throw another pitch if your partner was about 10' up the 1B line pointing fair.

[CecilOne]

Originally posted by refjef40
... snip ... My question is what would we do if the pitcher went ahead and threw a pitch?Someone said the batter is out for not running but I say she never abandoned the field.Dumb coaching for sure though!

As the question says if, I'll try to answer even though I agree the PU should keep signaling fair and not returning to a position behind the plate. As the PU is only 2nd year and the players might only be 1st year, anything can happen. I have often seen pitchers "pitch" when the PU was not behind the plate.
The BU can do nothing, of course, and the PU should say nothing. I would try to be sure the batter-runner and fielders see my signal by moving and being more emphatic and then moving more and being dramatic.
A "pitch" thrown at this point would actually only be a throw, because the batted ball is still in play. As long as the pitcher and catcher continue throwing back and forth, the play is still on and the game is in a kind of limbo until either the batter-runner or one of the fielders does something.
If the batter-runner moves away from the plate, especially toward the dugout or 3rd base coach, then I might call the "abandonment out", if I've exhausted my ability to make the signal clear.

[oppool]

I had a similiar play this week on a dropped 3rd K. The batter just stayed in the box the catcher threw the ball back to the pitcher. I stood down the 3rd base line and 3 times announced "Strike 3" after at least 2 minutes the 3rd base coach comes down the line and ask what is goin on when his batter decides to head back to the dugout. I waited till batter entered dugout and announce the "OUT" and then explained to the coach. It was kinda weird


Don

[WestMichiganBlue]

You never know what the hell might happen, so all you can do is be prepared for the worst, and ride it out. You need to lighten up a little on the rules a bit, and a little coaching doesn't hurt. ("Ladies, we have a FAIR ball here, somebody do something!")

If you can enjoy it, this can be a delightfull game (14 year old girls are fun to be around) and you will add to your collection of war stories to tell.

To those used to 14U JO teams, you can not compare that caliber of play with freshmen H.S. play. That 14U team is make up of top caliber players from several schools. Unless your H.S. is an elete level program, any freshman girl worth her salt is going to move right up to JV or even varsity. Thus the average skill level on a freshman team can be somewhat suspect.

WMB