Fastpitch softball coach's guide to scoring a game

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Ken Krause

Administrator
Admin
May 7, 2008
3,911
113
Mundelein, IL
Here is one scored as an error on my dd. Go ahead run on 2nd and runner on 1st 6th inning. Bunt to 3rd and DD is covering 1st but is 1st baseman. 3B fields ball and throws it in the dirt but hard in dirt about 8 feet short of 1st and it will skip two times. DD dives in front of ball and blocks like a catcher and throw is borderline for what she can stretch for. Blocks ball and prevents run. Team will get out of inning and eventually win in 7th. After game, dd leans she is given an error. I still can't understand that decision. Was told that she gave up the base.:confused:

Yeah, I don't get that one either. Wouldn't they have yelled at her if she held the base and let the ball go by? I know I always tell my first basemen to protect the ball first, even if that means you have to jump or come off the base. Sounds like a throwing error to me. Guess they like the 3B better!
 

Coach-n-Dad

Crazy Daddy
Oct 31, 2008
1,010
0
12U game. Nobody on. Batter jammed and hits a weak fly ball, travelling 30 feet down the third base line, in fair territory by 2 feet. Third baseman pauses before breaking for the ball. Ball grances off her outreached glove. If third baseman breaks for the ball without pausing, it would be an easy out. Hit or error?

This is definately HTBT, but a mental error isn't an "error"; if she had to break for the play (late or not) and was running to try to make the catch I would score as a hit.
 
Jul 28, 2008
1,088
0
This is definately HTBT, but a mental error isn't an "error"; if she had to break for the play (late or not) and was running to try to make the catch I would score as a hit.

Me, too.

We had a play a week ago. Batter bunts ball towards the 5-6 hole. F5 fields the ball and comes up firing to 1st. F4 is watching the whole play and forgets to cover the bag. F9 must have been busy watching F4, because she was nowhere to back anything up. Unfortunately, I had to score the error to F5 and she was the only one doing the right thing. :(

BTW, R1 and batter both scored on this sac bunt, both were unearned. We lost by 1. I also gave my own DD her 1st loss of the year in the circle. Scoring should know no favorites.
 
Mar 31, 2012
25
0
Green, Ohio
Can we get more detail on passed balls? My wife is the score keeper for our dd's JV team and is uncertain when to rule as a PB or WP. We have at least 5 balls per inning in the dirt that hit the screen. The catcher is yelling at the pitcher to get 'em outta the dirt. But honestly, I think most are balls that should be blocked and a chunk of them are Drop Balls which have a tendency to hit dirt before the catcher. The catcher should be charged with a passed ball. Am I correct? Just an FYI, my kid plays SS, 2nd, and Left so no bias on our part. This is strictly to make sure the right player is getting their due call.
 

Greenmonsters

Wannabe Duck Boat Owner
Feb 21, 2009
6,168
38
New England
Can we get more detail on passed balls? My wife is the score keeper for our dd's JV team and is uncertain when to rule as a PB or WP. We have at least 5 balls per inning in the dirt that hit the screen. The catcher is yelling at the pitcher to get 'em outta the dirt. But honestly, I think most are balls that should be blocked and a chunk of them are Drop Balls which have a tendency to hit dirt before the catcher. The catcher should be charged with a passed ball. Am I correct? Just an FYI, my kid plays SS, 2nd, and Left so no bias on our part. This is strictly to make sure the right player is getting their due call.

If it could've been stopped with normal effort, then PB; if not then WP. Scorekeeper has to define normal effort, which will vary by age/level of play. For HS a general rule of thumb you can use for balls down the middle that get by the catcher is its a WP if it bounces on or in front of the plate and a PB if it hits the dirt behind the plate. Try to adjust in some consistent fashion to account for balls that get to the backstop that were further away from the plate (laterally). Two things I'd point out 1) you need to be consistent or else your PB/WP stats mean absolutely nothing and the P and/or C can't tell if they are improving game to game and 2) the catcher's objective is to block everything and allow 0 PBs AND 0 WPs.
 
Mar 31, 2012
25
0
Green, Ohio
If it could've been stopped with normal effort, then PB; if not then WP. Scorekeeper has to define normal effort, which will vary by age/level of play. For HS a general rule of thumb you can use for balls down the middle that get by the catcher is its a WP if it bounces on or in front of the plate and a PB if it hits the dirt behind the plate. Try to adjust in some consistent fashion to account for balls that get to the backstop that were further away from the plate (laterally). Two things I'd point out 1) you need to be consistent or else your PB/WP stats mean absolutely nothing and the P and/or C can't tell if they are improving game to game and 2) the catcher's objective is to block everything and allow 0 PBs AND 0 WPs.

Thanks. I felt pretty much ok with the lateral stuff. It was the stuff down the middle that had me wondering.
 
Aug 2, 2008
553
0
Scoring should know no favorites.


I agree, thats why I use my time tested dummies guide to offensive scoring.

If you put the ball in play.......reach base safely.......you get a hit.

Defensively we are a lot tougher.
 

Cannonball

Ex "Expert"
Feb 25, 2009
4,854
113
Yeah, I don't get that one either. Wouldn't they have yelled at her if she held the base and let the ball go by? I know I always tell my first basemen to protect the ball first, even if that means you have to jump or come off the base. Sounds like a throwing error to me. Guess they like the 3B better!

Ken, this was an away game and our first tournament in Alabama. Actually, the 3B was apologizing to her and so dd was shocked that it was an error on 1st. My dd had 8 errors on the year including that one with 400 putouts and so, still not a bad fielding percentage.
 

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