Ball hits bat after bunt

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Apr 17, 2019
194
28
This happened last weekend, girl bunted, and dropped the bat in fair territory in front of the plate. The bat hits the ball, forwards the mound and the pitcher fields it and throws the girl out at first. Umps call dead ball and say it’s a dead ball and give the batter a strike. What’s the right call here? Usssa rules.
 
Jun 22, 2008
3,731
113
If the batter drops the bat and it is moving and contacts the ball in fair territory, the ball is dead and the batter is out.

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Aug 29, 2015
26
3
Midwest
Comp is correct as usual. But once the bat stops moving in far territory it becomes part of the field and is no longer an out and is a live ball, correct?
 
Jul 1, 2019
172
43
Same thing happened to DD this weekend. Bat had stopped moving, ball rolled into and came to rest against bat, pitcher fields the ball and fails to throw DD out in time. She was called out for interference and runner advancing to third was sent back to second.
 
Jul 22, 2015
851
93
General rule in fair territory (batter is out of the batter's box), if the ball comes back and hits the bat after it came to rest then it's live, if the moving bat hits the ball it's interference. There may be more complexities I'm missing though.
 
Apr 17, 2019
194
28
General rule in fair territory (batter is out of the batter's box), if the ball comes back and hits the bat after it came to rest then it's live, if the moving bat hits the ball it's interference. There may be more complexities I'm missing though.

What if the batter is out of the box or does that even matter. I don’t remember if she was in or out of the box, but it sounds like the umps made the wrong call, she should have been out both ways.
 
Jun 22, 2008
3,731
113
What if the batter is out of the box or does that even matter. I don’t remember if she was in or out of the box, but it sounds like the umps made the wrong call, she should have been out both ways.

This is where many people get tripped up about the complexities of a batter vs a batter runner. A batter is protected while in the batters box from a batted ball coming back and hitting either the batter or the batters bat. If this happens it is a dead ball foul and a strike assuming less then 2 strikes.

However, once a batted ball is in fair territory, if the batter/runner initiates contact with the batted ball or the batters bat after being discarded makes contact with the ball while the bat is still moving it is a dead ball and the batter runner is out. Once the bat stops moving it becomes part of the playing field and it would be noting if the ball contacts the bat. Nowhere under the batter/runner section of the rulebook is the batters box ever mentioned. The batters box provides no protection to a batter/runner.
 
Apr 17, 2019
194
28
Thanks for the explanation, sounds like either way she was out. If the bat was moving and hit the ball she’s out by interference, if it wasn’t she was thrown out at first anyway.
 
Oct 11, 2018
231
43
Same thing happened to DD this weekend. Bat had stopped moving, ball rolled into and came to rest against bat, pitcher fields the ball and fails to throw DD out in time. She was called out for interference and runner advancing to third was sent back to second.

That appears to be the wrong result. If the bat is not moving and the ball rolls into the bat, the play stays live and all runners keep advancing at their own risk. As others mentioned, if the bat rolls into the ball, then it is a dead ball and batter is out.
 
Mar 20, 2019
115
28
This is where many people get tripped up about the complexities of a batter vs a batter runner. A batter is protected while in the batters box from a batted ball coming back and hitting either the batter or the batters bat. If this happens it is a dead ball foul and a strike assuming less then 2 strikes.

However, once a batted ball is in fair territory, if the batter/runner initiates contact with the batted ball or the batters bat after being discarded makes contact with the ball while the bat is still moving it is a dead ball and the batter runner is out. Once the bat stops moving it becomes part of the playing field and it would be noting if the ball contacts the bat. Nowhere under the batter/runner section of the rulebook is the batters box ever mentioned. The batters box provides no protection to a batter/runner.

Isn't part of the batters box in fair territory?

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