Is this interference?

Doesn't look like it to me.

Runner seems to veer away from the fielder and toward the base as the ball gets there. The throw seems to be off-line, causing the fielder to reach into the runner's path and that caused the contact.

Would like to hear umpire's reasoning for his call.

I'd have to ask the coach because I didn't hear it. But I'm correct in saying just because she's inside the line doesn't make it interference - I mean she caught the ball...

The runner did not use the runners lane that is clearly marked on the field. The runner was 3'+ inside foul line the entire way down the baseline till she had to veer to the right to be able to step on the base.

The umpire got the call right.

Odd play and hard to tell exactly what happened at 1B. This is what I see.
- F3 got her foot near/touching base and caught the ball before B-R arrived.
- B-R approaches in fair ground and makes late movement to foul side of base - opposite of what she's supposed to do.
- BU throws arms up - apparently calling her safe because he keeps watching the 1B area.
- PU throws arms up (calling time) and calls B-R out.

Seems like BU would have called B-R out if F3 is touching 1B. So I'm guessing she wasn't.

B-R would be guilty of interference if she interfered with F3 making the catch while outside 3-foot running lane, but she caught the ball.

Then there's the possibility the video is mistitled and they're wondering why OBS wasn't called.

Perhaps OP can clarify what happened.

The view of first base is kind of small on my screen. Doesn't the fielder catch the ball?

If the runner's presence out of the three foot running lane prevents the fielder from getting the throw, then it's interference. If it doesn't...then it's not.

Just the act of being out of the lane alone is not illegal and doesn't justify an interference call. You have to be out of the lane AND prevent the catch.

SoCal pretty much has it right - BU called her out and PU overruled him. Runner made a late headfirst dive when she saw catch being made in front of bag. I'm with Bret - if she caught the ball where's the interference?

1B catches the ball standing in the field of play, and the runner is clearly in fair territory until veering over the bag at the last moment. It appears to me that the runner is trying to get as close to the throw as she can, possibly to intentionally distract 1B from catching the ball. It also appears to me that 1B catches the ball AND has her foot on the near-corner of the bag, making the BU's call wrong. However, the BU's call doesn't matter here.

What we can't see clearly is whether there's contact between the runner and 1B. However, contact is not necessary for an interference call. If the runner is outside the running lane and contacts 1B making a catch in the field of play, or if the umpire thinks the runner otherwise interfered with the 1B, the runner is out for that reason alone (See ASA rule 8, section 2E). When 1B is in the field of play making a catch like that, there is no way she will be called for obstruction, and the runner needs to be in the running lane to prevent an interference call.

Interference is not a "delayed dead ball" call, like "obstruction", that can be made moot by the outcome of the play. It's an immediate "dead ball", and the rule is applied. The PU calls her out, apparently for contact / deliberate interference, because he overrules the BU "safe" call without any conversation, which doesn't happen on a pure judgement call. He also appears to make a secondary motion making me think he ejected the runner from the game.

Interference is not a "delayed dead ball" call, like "obstruction", that can be made moot by the outcome of the play. It's an immediate "dead ball", and the rule is applied. The PU calls her out, apparently for contact / deliberate interference, because he overrules the BU "safe" call without any conversation, which doesn't happen on a pure judgement call. He also appears to make a secondary motion making me think he ejected the runner from the game.

Click to expand...

If you stop the video at the :11 mark you can see 1B has her foot on the corner of the bag. The ball is coming over the runners left shoulder. The runner's left foot close to 4' in fair territory and she is now leaning towards the bag. The plate umpire has positioned himself to watch the runner heading down the line. He is even with the foul line so he knows exactly where she is running at. He called her out and signaled out multiple times, but I don't think he made an ejection. I didn't see anything in the play that was malicious. She didn't blast the defensive player.

Actually, neither one of these umpires is where he's supposed to be, not by the umpire manual.

Plate umpire should be trailing the batter-runner up the line, not standing in foul ground behind the plate. When the B/R hits the bag, plate umpire is still in the right-hand batter's box. He should be at least 10-15 feet up the line by that point.

The base umpire signals..."something?"...by raising both hands over his head. Is that a safe signal or is he calling a dead ball? He's about 15 feet farther away from the base than he's supposed to be, too far in toward the baseline, and- my favorite part- while he makes his mystery signal he is jumping in the air while running backwards!

Not exactly textbook mechanics and not exactly a textbook call.