You make the Call!

[Chin Music]

Runners on first and second 1 out. Batter hits a towering pop fly to first. Ump calls infield fly. 1B misjudges ball badly and never touches it and the ball bounces in fair territory and goes foul (in front of the bag). Runner @ 2B gets caught off the base and is tagged. Ump called double play. Our argument was the runner @ 2B should not be out because the ball went foul. Umps meet and to make themselves look correct saying the 1st baseman touched the ball. She wasn't close. If they determined she didn't touch the ball, What's the call?

[thedoanezone]

In cases where an umpire sees that a ball may be foul, I have actually heard them say "Infield Fly, if fair. Batter is out" . So I would think that the IFR applies only on fair balls and a ball that hits fair and goes foul is a foul ball. Batter returns to bat and runners return to bases occupied at TOP. Just because the IFR is invoked, this doesn't change the definition of a fair/foul ball.

I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong!

[Chin Music]

ASA Rule 1, definitions

Infield fly: A fair fly ball....

On a side note, how did the runner on second get caught off the base. By the time the ball fell, bounced, rolled foul, and was picked up by a player she couldn't get back to the bag?

She believed the ball was dropped, hesitated w/ all the confusion and tried to advance to 3rd

[Bretman]

If the ball becomes foul, then it is just that- a foul ball. The Infield Fly Rule does not apply when the ball becomes foul. Just like any other foul ball, the batter is not out, the ball is dead and runners can neither advance or be put out.

Why the exception to the rule for foul balls on Infield Flies? Because on a foul ball the batter does not become a batter-runner. There are no force outs to be had and there is no possibility of the defense gaining multiple, unearned outs through deception.

[wadeintothem]

Sounds like a DMR.

Dumb Move Runner.

IF the ball was foul, it would have been a foul ball. IFF must be fair. But it wasnt foul, it was fair so it was a good call.

The 1B coach should be ashamed of him/herself for allowing that to happen in either case. There is no reason for that runner to be off the bag, fair or foul.

[Colo Blue]

"On a side note, how did the runner on second get caught off the base. By the time the ball fell, bounced, rolled foul, and was picked up by a player she couldn't get back to the bag?"


"She believed the ball was dropped, hesitated w/ all the confusion and tried to advance to 3rd"

Is it possible that the ball was dropped or touched in fair territory? That would have made it a fair ball, the infield fly would still be in effect, and the ball would still be live, allowing the defense to play on the other runners. Just asking because if the runner thought it was dropped, then maybe the umpires did as well.

[BeyondTheScoreBoard]

If they determined she didn't touch the ball, What's the call?

Foul Ball

[Sam]

Sounds like a DMR.

Dumb Move Runner.

IF the ball was foul, it would have been a foul ball. IFF must be fair. But it wasnt foul, it was fair so it was a good call.

The 1B coach should be ashamed of him/herself for allowing that to happen in either case. There is no reason for that runner to be off the bag, fair or foul.

Its not the 1B coach's job....the R1 at 2B belongs to the 3B coach.

[Softballshouldbefun]

As long as she didn't touch the ball while it was fair, it should be a foul ball and the runner on 2B should be allowed to return to the base. If the umpire was moving into a better position during the play he might have had a better angle than anyone else and he could have seen the fielder touch it (or it could have touched her).