One for the officials

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Last night we had a boy on my sons team called out on the 3rd strike because he swung at the pitch. The funny thing is that he was jumping out of the balls path and his bat came around, but the ball struck the batter. Is the batter out and the ball dead? Is the batter awarded the base? Or since it was a dropped 3rd strike should it be still live?

 

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Sounds like he should have been awarded first.

 

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I know if the bodypart is in the strikezone you call the pitch where it is strike or ball. There is more info needed. Where did it hit him, and where was that part of the body???? And why wasnt he taught to turn away from the pitch????

Sounds like it was just an odd play and the ump just went by the old thought "when in doubt---Out"

 

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I think the key here is "his bat came around". I don't think it matters whether it was a ball or strike, the umpire obviously was convinced he swung at the pitch - BEFORE the ball hit HIM. Yep... turn AWAY from the pitch. Then if you're hit, take 1st base. Maybe Bret can clarify...

 

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hit him in the foot in the middle of the box

 

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I think sammy may be right. He " in his opinion" thought it was a swing.

 

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He's out. Swing made him out. But if the catcher didn't catch the ball.. the ball is live and the runner should have been allowed to advanced to first base or any more bases until they got him out.

Baseball has a different standard usually than softball with this rule.

 

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These are "universal rules" for all levels of baseball and softball:

- Anytime a pitch touches a batter the ball is immediately dead.

- Anytime a pitch touches a batter who has offered at the pitch (ie: swung at it) it is a strike.

- If this is the third strike the batter is out.

- Whether or not "bringing the bat around" was an attempt to hit the ball, an offer or a swing, however you want to describe it, is at the judgment of the umpire.

Was this a swing or not? Hard to say without seeing it. The umpire could judge the movement of the bat as incidental- just part of the batter's effort to jump out of the way. Then again, it the ball would have hit the bat, this would be a live batted ball, just like any other batted ball. I've also seen batters jumping out of the way try to defensively deflect the ball away from them with the bat. That should definitely be ruled as an attempt to hit the ball, since it's exactly what they were trying to do!

If this was ruled a swing...and the ball hit the batter...and the batter already had two strikes...the correct call is dead ball, strike and the batter is out.

 

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No, the CORRECT call is it is live if it is considered a swing and the ball is not caught by the catcher on the third strike.

Why would it be dead? Just because it hit the batter? If that was the case.. the ball hitting the batter would automatically give the runner first base... even if he did swing at the ball. And that's not a rule. The rule is if you swung at a ball that hit you.. it's a strike.

 

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Tim, are you really serious? This is a basic rule. You must be misreading something or not understand the question.

(High school/NFHS rules) Rule 5-1-1a: A ball becomes immediately dead when...a pitch touches a batter or the batter's clothing.

(NFHS) Rule 7-2-1g: A strike is charged to the batter when...a pitched ball contacts the batter while swinging at the ball or the batter is hit by a pitch that is in the strike zone (dead-ball strike).

(ASA) 7-4-H: A strike is called by the umpire...For each pitched ball swung at and missed which touches any part of the batter. EFFECT: The ball is dead and each runner must return to their base.

I can give you the rule for NSA, USSSA, NCAA, Major League Baseball, High School Baseball, Little League Baseball or any other brand of ball you want and they will ALL be the same.

Anytime a pitch touches a batter the ball is immediately dead.

 

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It's a rec league in Wilmington and playing probally Babe Ruth.

Heck, they might have gotten in the 1990's this year and started playing Knothole.

 

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No Tim the boy is playing a select league out of cincinnati, after catching for his older sister throwing mid 50s at 40 foot, the rec-league pitchers throwing 60 at 60 foot were putting my son to sleep behind the plate.

 

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FWIW,

I'm with Bret. Getting hit swinging is always a dead ball strike, period, all rule sets. Saw a girl get so fooled on a change up she swung early twirled around and got hit on the back with the ball. Same call, strike three, dead ball, runners return, batters out.

You may not agree with the umpire's call of the motion being an offer and a strike, but if in making this motion (moving back and swinging) the batter inadvertantly hit the ball into play with the bat wouldn't you consider it a ball that the defense had to make a play on?

 

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No Tim the boy is playing a select league out of cincinnati, after catching for his older sister throwing mid 50s at 40 foot, the rec-league pitchers throwing 60 at 60 foot were putting my son to sleep behind the plate.

I bet it was putting him to sleep playing rec ball there.

 

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Great job I agree 100%, coaches get confused on a hit batsman many times. "It's always DEAD" and then you have to determine 1). was it a swing and in this cae they ruled it was so therefore it is a strike and dead 2). Did it contact the batter over the strike zone, which again would be a strike. 3). Did the batter lean in to it and therefore it may be a ball based on the position of the ball but, it's dead and the batter is NOT getting 1st base. So, it's ALWAYS DEAD, it can't be anything else.


Analogy: Batter hit with a batted ball, it's always dead sometimes it's foul and DEAD, sometimes it was fair and DEAD and the BR is out, ALWAYS Dead, then figure out the rest of it. Same principles apply no way you could keep it alive.

 

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Bretman, you have it absolutely right.

It drives me crazy when a girl takes a cut, gets hit by a pitch, and the umpire awards her a base.

 

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bret I am giving you the nailed it sign
Dan

 

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Hope I can nail a few out in Whitehall this weekend...if the rain ever stops!

 

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its gonna stop and we gonna play ball