How do you handle this
 

Had this one last summer with the UIC observing me. We were playing a league game (adult Co-Rec slow pitch, single umpire), not championship play. ASA rules with league modifications.

Team A is at bat, and is up a rather large margin (game ended under our 20 after 3 rule).

Bases loaded, Ground ball to 3rd, throw comes to first (no attempt to get the runner at home, 3rd or second). Throw is way off and hits the batter runner, who is in the running lane at the time. When it hits her, she kicks it (unintentionally) into right field. I am letting play continue and she keeps running as do her team mates. The coach (a player not currently in the game), comes off the bench and starts stating his opinion of the non-call while the runners are still running the bases. (The BR is a former state placing sprinter in track that I coached). As play continues, the RF finally gets to the ball throws it to the cut-off and he just wheels and throws home. As the coach was stating his opinion I told him to get out off the field. He refused. The cut-off man threw home and catches his "manager" in the lower region. The 3 runners, and the BR all scored on the play. Which gave the team the 20 run lead and thus ended the game.

How do you handle this, without laughing your butt off because of his misfortune. I just checked to make sure he wasn't too seriously injured and left the field, allowing his team mates to tend to him.

He had been told to get off the field, and I couldn't pay too much attention to him because I had live ball play to watch.

If entering playable territory, ejected

If any did not score, I would have killed the play, ruled a blocked ball when it hit him, and awarded all runners two bases from the time of the throw. But he will have plenty of time putting ice in his lap while he is sitting in his car in the parking lot.

Eject the defensive coach

Don't acknowledge his existence by giving him instruction during the play --- you have stuff to do. The instant play is over, eject the clown.

Had it not ended up being the last play of the game, I would have ejected the idiot. I won't say I felt bad for him getting hit (he brought it on himself), but I do think he got enough "punishment" on that play so I didn't eject him. I just left the field trying not to laugh all the way to my car. My UIC saw everything and we didn't say anything to each other until we got to my car, then we both started laughing.

Why wait? :cool:

[war story]

Men's D States, loser's final. Two umpires the game, both with multiple NC with Excellent ratings. Defensive team resided in the dugout on the 1st base side of the field.

The umpires "camped out" on the side of a hill overlooking left field, so there were a handful of us watching the game, including the tournament UIC.

There is a play @ 1st where F3 never got a handle on the throw from F4 and scrambled across the bases trying to get possession of the ball as the BR is closing on the base. In scrambling for the ball, he stirs up a small dust storm. The BU moves toward the line to get a better view of F3 trying to pick-up the ball and obviously hasn't made a call yet.

This all happened pretty quick and the coach and sub came flying out of the dugout screaming at the BU for not making a call because the ball clearly beat the runner, but they did not see the ball on the ground.

PU who was dutifully trailing the runner sees them rush onto the field and before they get near the foul line has dumped both of them. The eventual call was "safe" as F3 never gained possession of the ball.

The LF who knew we were watching screams to us in shock that the PU ejected those two:

LF: He threw them out of the game!
Umpires: Yes, he did.
LF: It was a live ball!
Umpires: Yeah, it was.
LF: But he threw them out while it was a live ball!
Umpires: Yeah, he sure did.
LF: He can't do that!
Umpires: Oh, yeah, he can, he did and he was right.

As they were heading toward the parking lot, the player was pissed, but the coach just looked at us and said he couldn't believe we got ejected. I asked him if he understood why and he said, "Oh, yeah. He ejected us for running out on the field during a play. He was right, I just don't believe it." The player started to open his mouth and the coach told him to shut up and keep walking.

Sometimes I wonder if we should give them some of the money back when they provide such great entertainment.:D

[/war story]

Wonderful story.

Fair enough. Although ... in most leagues and tourneys, there is a punishment for a coach getting ejected, and to my mind this guy needed to serve it - whatever it may be. Managers don't get freebies just because a game is over, and most of us here have (rarely, of course) had to eject someone after the game was over.

You do it for no other reason than document the event. If there is an applicable penalty set by the tournament/conference/league, that is between the coach and them.

Fair enough. I felt, in my opinion, that getting nailed the way he did would teach him more of a lesson than a 1 game suspension (league rule) would have.

We, by league rule, are required to document, any unusual situation that occurs during a game. In this case our supervisor of officials got three reports. One from me, one from the UIC who was watching the game, and a third from the coach who was hit.

Our league rules specify that the penalty for an ejection shall be 1 game, unless a different penalty is determined by the supervisor of officials or his staff. In this case, the three of us all felt his actions and resulting punishment (getting nailed) were enough punishment.

We also have a rule in our league that we don't eject after a game concludes. This is covered under a different section of the rules, which is post-game conduct. Once the game ends, the post-game conduct rule applies. Since the game ended and he spoke no additional words after the game ended (when the runner touched home), I did not invoke that rule.

Had this been the first game of a DH, or a tourney game, he would have been ejected, and out for the next game at a minimum.

Until the last sentence, all you had was double-talk as you attempted to justify your inaction. If the appropriate penalty would be an ejection had he NOT been hit by the ball, then that would still be the appropriate penalty despite being hit by the ball. So far, you taught him to stay out of the line of the throw, NOT that he cannot run on the field during live play, and NOT that he cannot disregard the umpire's directions under the rules. Because you allowed there to be no consequence.

And, until the last sentence, I (and I suspect the vast majority of readers) simply disagreed with how you handled it. Now you make it clear that you really just don't get how to manage his actions, since you admit applying your own double standard.

Good luck.

Please tell me that if she was out of the lane, you weren't going to call her out, were you?

.... pot stirrer ....

Trying to learn softball. Doesn't the runner's lane only come into play on throws coming from the plate area? I know in that's the case in BB but what about SB?

It's the same.