Obstruction

[Rita C]

Originally Posted by The Stiff

I am a coach looking for some guidance on calling obstruction. Situation was: I had runner on second with two outs. Bloop single to center field. Shortstop is in the baseline, and my runner and the shorstop do the hokey pokey before my runner gets past. I see the umpire put his fist out, so I waive my runner home figuring that, if she is out, the call won't stand because of the obstruction call. She was in fact out, and the out stood as I was told that the obstruction call only got her to the next base (which at the time was third). Is that the correct call?

Seems odd to me since she would have easily scored had the shortstop not obstructed her. If that is the correct call, why not have your shortstop do that on all base hits?

Thanks in advance for any interpretations here.

There is one thing that the other umpires are NOT catching that I see.

What if the umpire meant just what he said? That the player only gets the next base? It is entirely possible that he meant just that. It is entirely possible that this umpire doesn't understand that sometimes the umpire is supposed to protect the runner to the base he or she would have reached without the obstruction. It is entirely possible that this umpire thought that one base was the MAXIMUM award possible.

If this is what he meant, then Coach, you had grounds for a protest. If a play is being made on a runner who is obstructed, there is a MINIMUM award of one base in most codes. Your umpire may have misunderstood this and thought it was a maximum.

By the description of your play, if I had judged what you saw, she would have been awarded home.

Rita

[x-tremeump]

+1 Rita

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally Posted by Rita C

There is one thing that the other umpires are NOT catching that I see.

What if the umpire meant just what he said? That the player only gets the next base? It is entirely possible that he meant just that. It is entirely possible that this umpire doesn't understand that sometimes the umpire is supposed to protect the runner to the base he or she would have reached without the obstruction. It is entirely possible that this umpire thought that one base was the MAXIMUM award possible.

If this is what he meant, then Coach, you had grounds for a protest. If a play is being made on a runner who is obstructed, there is a MINIMUM award of one base in most codes. Your umpire may have misunderstood this and thought it was a maximum.

By the description of your play, if I had judged what you saw, she would have been awarded home.

Well, Dave did touch on this in an early post, but you are absolutely correct. If may have been worth the coach's time to explore this with a follow-up question to the umpire as to what he saw that made him believe it was only one base. If he believed that was THE RULE, a protest is certainly a viable path. Another favorite faux pas on this rule is the, "they have to attempt to advance to get the base". I would love to know where people come up with this stuff, especially "trained" umpires.

The coach may have been correct to send the runner, but for the wrong reason. This is a simple rule that offers the umpire almost carte blanche authority to undo the damage done. Sometimes I wonder if that simplicity is the reason people try to out think the rule.

[BretMan]

Originally Posted by Rita C

If a play is being made on a runner who is obstructed, there is a MINIMUM award of one base in most codes.

This isn't true for any softball rule set that I'm aware of.

Might it be the case for Little League, where some of their softball rules are baseball-based? Other than that, what would be another?

[IRISHMAFIA]

Originally Posted by BretMan

This isn't true for any softball rule set that I'm aware of.

Might it be the case for Little League, where some of their softball rules are baseball-based? Other than that, what would be another?

ASA, NFHS, NCAA & ISF all award the base(s) the OBS runner would have attained safely had the OBS not occurred. It is possible that award could be the base behind the runner.

[x-tremeump]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

ASA, NFHS, NCAA & ISF all award the base(s) the OBS runner would have attained safely had the OBS not occurred. It is possible that award could be the base behind the runner.

+1 even behind the runner.

[Rita C]

Originally Posted by BretMan

This isn't true for any softball rule set that I'm aware of.

Might it be the case for Little League, where some of their softball rules are baseball-based? Other than that, what would be another?

You are correct. But I do baseball and softball, Little League and otherwise. So most codes for me. But not most softball codes.

In any case, I think the umpire could have made the mistake I said.