Batter bails out of the box

[CPEM]

ASA 8u Rec

Nobody on, nobody out, BR1 takes her place in the box. F1 pitches the ball. BR1 steps backwards out of the box after F1 releases the ball and before it reaches F2 and:
a) batter does not swing at the pitch and the pitch enters the strike zone.
b) batter does not swing at the pitch and the pitch does not enter the strike zone.

What is your call in a) and b), and if they are different, why?

When I umpire, I have been calling the following:
a) strike, because the pitch entered the strike zone.
b) ball, based on ASA 7-3-F.

ASA 7-3-F
After the ball is live, the batter may not step out of the batter's box to stop play unless time has been granted by the umpire.
EFFECT:
1. All play shall continue.
2. The pitch will be judged a ball or strike by the umpire.

This happened to one of my batters this weekend, and when the umpire called the strike, he made it a point to say the strike was called specifically because the batter stepped out. When asked for clarification, he said it is an automatic strike anytime a batter steps out of the box during a pitch, and that it is in the rule book. When asked if the ball was in the strike zone, he replied it didn't matter, the batter was out of the box, and therefore it is an automatic strike. Had he just said the pitch entered the strike zone, I would have no argument, but his insistence on stipulating that it was a strike because she stepped out left the door open. Realizing I wasn't going to get anywhere with this, I filed my protest with the hosting team and play continued. In case it is important to your determination, the batter is a new player afraid of being hit, and not trying to disconcert the pitcher or delay the game.

Going to the rule book, the closest I get to finding this "automatic strike for being out of the box" rule he spoke of was 7-3-C and 7-3-D, but those two rules appear to apply to either the time before a pitch or between pitches.

Am I reading too much into 7-3-F, or is the umpire's explanation incorrect?

 

[Eric F]

You're doing it right.

 

[Sweet Lou]

ASA 8u Rec

Umpire is wrong but I'm sure he felt real big calling a strike on a 7 or 8 year old batter afraid of the ball.

 

[Comp]

The umpire is confusing a NFHS rule with ASA.

 

[Eric F]

Umpire is wrong but I'm sure he felt real big calling a strike on a 7 or 8 year old batter afraid of the ball.

Even little girls need to be taught the harsh reality of the real world, even if rules have to be made up to do it. That'll learn ya, little girl!!! Enjoyment of the game is so over-rated.


(Still looking for the sarcasm font...)

 

[marriard]

You are doing it right (it is just a strike or a ball as with any normal pitch).

If a batter is bailing out unnecessarily though, I think everyone believes the umpires expand their zone and close calls are going to be strikes. That doesn't make it a rule however.

 

[mike s]

Agree with marriard, had a player who was not new but would bail on any tight inside pitch. Got a lot of strikes called on her and we never argued the calls. So in my experience the strike zone gets expanded a lot when batters bail, I have no problem with this. Could never get her to stay in.

 

[BretMan]

Agree with Comp....

The "automatic strike" for stepping out of the box- no matter where the pitch is in relation to the strike zone- is a high school (NFHS) rule. For ASA, call the pitch as you would any other (ball or strike).

 

[SoCal_Dad]

ASA 7-3-F
After the ball is live, the batter may not step out of the batter's box to stop play unless time has been granted by the umpire.
EFFECT:
1. All play shall continue.
2. The pitch will be judged a ball or strike by the umpire.
...
Going to the rule book, the closest I get to finding this "automatic strike for being out of the box" rule he spoke of was 7-3-C and 7-3-D, but those two rules appear to apply to either the time before a pitch or between pitches.

Am I reading too much into 7-3-F, or is the umpire's explanation incorrect?

Probably yes to both.

I don't think your batter is trying to stop play, so 7-3-F doesn't apply. The normal situation is the batter steps out while trying to call time before the pitcher releases the ball.

7-3-D would only apply if the umpire thinks your batter is delaying play by stepping out of the box. Slappers frequently step outside the box without swinging at the pitch.

 

[Momo'sDad]

You protested a rec game? In 8u?

By ASA rule, the umpire was mistaken, however, when all is said and done, a 'strike' is anything that the umpire says it is and it's my opinion that it's never too early for softball players - and coaches/parents - to learn this. As Marriard noted, though, it's common for umpires to expand the strike zone when a batter bails out, so I'm never surprised at a strike call when they do.