Obstruction

[MD Longhorn]

Originally Posted by Manny A

Ding Ding Ding! That's what I've been trying to say all along!



I can agree with that. Perhaps my reference to 15 feet was not extreme enough. I was just trying to compare two scenarios where it is obvious that the obstruction affected the result of one and not the other.

Honestly... even your reference to inches was not appropriate.

Any actions by the fielder, other than simply playing the ball (as alluded to by both Mike and Dakota), are affected by where the runner is ... and where the runner is is affected by the OBS. It's not the strength of the outfielder's arm that I was alluding to - it was the urgency of getting the ball in.

What I was trying to say earlier is that if your judgement is good enough that you should be on the field, and you judge the runner to be awarded 2nd - and then subsequently that runner gets thrown out at third (by an eyelash or by 45 feet), they are out at third. The fact that they were thrown out by an eyelash should not affect your call any more than them being thrown out by 45 feet, because the throw (including it's speed, urgency, and where it's thrown to) are affected by the location of the runner when that throw is made.