You all have been great -- I've learned quite a bit since I discovered this site last week!!!

We had this happen last night. Runner on third base was taking a healthy lead off after each pitch. Each time, the catcher would catch the ball and walk up the baseline to chase the runner back to third.

On one of those plays, the runner wouldn't go back. The catcher decided to throw the ball to the third baseman. As soon as she threw the ball the runner broke for home. The catcher was on the baseline, approixmately 5 feet up the line from home plate. When the runner reached her she had to go around her (outside of the path) to get to the plate.

The catcher was waiting for the throw from the third baseman. The throw got to her after the runner was by her. The tag and the runner touching home plate was a bang-bang play -- with the umpire calling her safe...that's an argument for another time! :)

Ok, here's the question -- is the catcher committing interference by being on the baseline? What would / would not constitute interference?

As always -- thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions!!!!

"Ok, here's the question -- is the catcher committing interference by being on the baseline? What would / would not constitute interference?"

Yes - and no! Yes, the catcher has committed a crime; no, it is not interference. It is called obstruction. Interference is an illegal act by offensive players; obstruction an illegal act by defensive players.

If the catcher has the ball then she can legally block the basepath to make a play on the runner. The runner is obligated to avoid contact, other than by a legal slide. If she runs 3' outside her basepath to avoid contact she will be called out. (Note: basepath is direct line between runner and home plate - has nothing to do with the chalked foul line.)

In your case the catcher did not have the ball and forced to runner to alter her path. Without the ball the catcher is obligated to step aside and allow the runner a clear path to the base. The catcher should have been charged with obstruction; the umpire would have "protected" the runner to the base she should have obtained had the obstruction not occured. Thus the runner would score. Even if the runner had been called out on the tag at home plate. The obstruction call would supercede the out call and the runner would score.

What is the proper call when an obstructed runner is put out?
Do you call the runner out, time, then safe on obstruction?

If the obstructed runner is put out beyond the base she was being protected to, then she is just out, live ball, play on. I just throw that in there to be more complete in the answer...

In the situation presented, if the obstruction had been called, it is a delayed dead ball. Suppose the runner had been tagged out at home (as it sounds like she may have been - at least in stripes opinion!), then the call is DEAD BALL, RUNNER SAFE ON THE OBSTRUCTION, and return other runners to their last base (actually the rule of thumb is they should be placed on the next base if they were more than 1/2 way to the next base at the time the ball was declared dead).

EDITORIAL REMARK: This complete call (obstruction, safe on the obstruction) is much preferred to not calling it and then letting it slide with a SAFE call. Even though the result of THIS play is the same (or nearly the same, depending on other runners), the result on the game is not the same. The defense thinks they can get away with stuff, and the offense thinks the umpire is not protecting the runners from obstruction.

Actually, I thought the runner was safe. The tag was applied after the runner touched home. I was the umpire. Our league did not schedule an ump for that game, not realizing there were games that night! Since I am an official, and know a bit about softball, I umped the game.

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply anything... it is just that I inferred from your "argument for another time" that there was a bit more to the story than that the runner was safe.

DEAD BALL! Then rule on the play.

No problem Dakota!