Question Batters Box

[bobloblaw]

So here is a question for all the experienced coaches and umpires. If batters go up and wipe the front chalk lines then proceed to set up in batting stance without load/toetap whatever you want to call it, with back foot even with or in front of front edge (closest to Pitcher) of home plate. How can they possibly be in the box when they make contact with the ball? Thoughts, musings.......

[etx bd]

You answered your own question. The box gets really big if the lines are gone. Usually, I... uh...the base coach drags a foot on the way past the plate.

[Bretman]

Well, if it was a high school game, the first thing that happens is that the batter is penalized for intentionally wiping out the line! A strike is added to her count and a team warning is issued. If a member of that team repeats this offense, the penalty strike is called (if on offense, or penalty ball, if on defense) and both the offender and coach are restricted to the dugout.

For rule sets that don't have this rule...

If the batter is positioned as described, she still has some room up there in front of the plate to work with- 39.5 inches, to be exact. She might be more likely to step out of the box, if she strides toward the pitch, but it isn't a given.

Even when a line is wiped out, all of the rules pertaining to that line are still in effect. The only difference is that instead of a nice chalked line to help him make the call, the boundry of the box will now be entirely at the umpire's judgment and discretion. There are reference points that can help him make this call, like the opposite batter's box line, if it hasn't been wiped out or the end points of the sides of the box that might still be there. Without those, we just have to visually estimate "a little bit more than three feet".

Generally, if the lines have been wiped out through normal game play, umpires are instructed not to "nit pick" this call. Only call the batter for being out of the box if it is blatant or obvious. We are to give every benefit of the doubt to the batter.

Now, if the batter herself had just intentionally wiped out the line, in the hope of gaining some sort of advantage, I might just go the other way and give the benefit of the doubt to the defense. But you don't guess at the call. You still need to judge that the batter was more likely than not out of the box.

[MTR]

So here is a question for all the experienced coaches and umpires. If batters go up and wipe the front chalk lines then proceed to set up in batting stance without load/toetap whatever you want to call it,

Wouldn't know what to call it since I have no idea what your are talking about.

with back foot even with or in front of front edge (closest to Pitcher) of home plate. How can they possbly be in the box when they make contact with the ball? Thoughts, musings.......

The box is always there whether the line is or not. It just means the umpire has to work a little more applying their judgment. And, as already posted, that box may be bigger in the umpires' memory than when it is actually lined