- Apr 23, 2019
- 17
- 3
Situation: 8u Fastpitch game, SS throws to first base for force out on batter-runner and the ball beats batter-runner but hits first baseman’s glove palm and rolls up the glove. Batter-runner crosses the base before first baseman squeezes the ball and stops its movement, but it never lost contact with her glove and when she squeezed it, it was secured in the web, not even a snow cone.
I called batter-runner out and coach pointed out she hadn’t fully secured the ball when b-r crossed base. I told him I understood why he was asking and I’d get him the verbatim rule later, but I’d never ruled a runner safe when ball is in glove and not trapped.
We use NSA rules and I posted that below. I also reference NFHS rules because NSA rules are often poorly worded by comparison. The fist line of the rule says a catch is a “legally caught ball that occurs when a fielder secures a…thrown ball with his/her hand or glove.” But further down it says “In establishing a valid catch, the fielder shall have complete control of the ball…”
NFHS doesn’t really illuminate the situation as it just uses the word “securely gains possession…”
So, how do you guys interpret “secures, complete control, or securely gains possession”? Would you apply a different standard at different age levels? At 8u, where good defensive plays and outs can be hard to come by, I’m inclined to always call it the way I did. Ball in glove is a catch.
But I also call Middle School ball. Would you keep that same standard or would you require the ball to be securely squeezed without movement, like a football catch? I’m pretty adamant about calling the rules as written, fan reaction be damned, but I feel like scrutinizing how securely a ball is held at 8u is gonna open me up to constant scrutiny as on alot of tags, I wouldn’t necessarily say the ball is securely held, but you bet I’m calling an out unless the ball pops loose.
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I called batter-runner out and coach pointed out she hadn’t fully secured the ball when b-r crossed base. I told him I understood why he was asking and I’d get him the verbatim rule later, but I’d never ruled a runner safe when ball is in glove and not trapped.
We use NSA rules and I posted that below. I also reference NFHS rules because NSA rules are often poorly worded by comparison. The fist line of the rule says a catch is a “legally caught ball that occurs when a fielder secures a…thrown ball with his/her hand or glove.” But further down it says “In establishing a valid catch, the fielder shall have complete control of the ball…”
NFHS doesn’t really illuminate the situation as it just uses the word “securely gains possession…”
So, how do you guys interpret “secures, complete control, or securely gains possession”? Would you apply a different standard at different age levels? At 8u, where good defensive plays and outs can be hard to come by, I’m inclined to always call it the way I did. Ball in glove is a catch.
But I also call Middle School ball. Would you keep that same standard or would you require the ball to be securely squeezed without movement, like a football catch? I’m pretty adamant about calling the rules as written, fan reaction be damned, but I feel like scrutinizing how securely a ball is held at 8u is gonna open me up to constant scrutiny as on alot of tags, I wouldn’t necessarily say the ball is securely held, but you bet I’m calling an out unless the ball pops loose.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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