Lost our rec championship game by a run.
Critical moment was runners on 1st and 2nd two out. Our batter knocks one to the outfield. I wave my running in to score easily but 3rd baseman is blocking the bag big time. Delays my runner a lot. OF makes good throw, by the time my runner is heading home she is going to be out, the catcher is about to catch ball way ahead of her.
So runner heads back to third.
Home plate ump calls obstruction at that moment when she just starts heading back. I am relieved. However, he says he is sending the runner back to third. I say she would have made it home. I thought this was pretty cookie cutter case. The runner is awarded the base the ump thought she could have reached if the obstruction hadn't occurred, right?
That runner never scored.
He explains it like this:
* when obstruction occurred, he immediately put his arm up
* I, the 3rd base coach, was supposed to notice this signal by him, and also in the 1 second or so be able to yell something to my 9 year old player that would instruct her to run home and not worry about being tagged out, even if the throw was way ahead of her
* since I did not do this, he say the runner is allowed to go safely to the base she was headed to, which was 3rd
I was not aware of any such rules, nor can I find any such requirements placed on coaches or runners in the rule book.
What is the deal on this one?
Critical moment was runners on 1st and 2nd two out. Our batter knocks one to the outfield. I wave my running in to score easily but 3rd baseman is blocking the bag big time. Delays my runner a lot. OF makes good throw, by the time my runner is heading home she is going to be out, the catcher is about to catch ball way ahead of her.
So runner heads back to third.
Home plate ump calls obstruction at that moment when she just starts heading back. I am relieved. However, he says he is sending the runner back to third. I say she would have made it home. I thought this was pretty cookie cutter case. The runner is awarded the base the ump thought she could have reached if the obstruction hadn't occurred, right?
That runner never scored.
He explains it like this:
* when obstruction occurred, he immediately put his arm up
* I, the 3rd base coach, was supposed to notice this signal by him, and also in the 1 second or so be able to yell something to my 9 year old player that would instruct her to run home and not worry about being tagged out, even if the throw was way ahead of her
* since I did not do this, he say the runner is allowed to go safely to the base she was headed to, which was 3rd
I was not aware of any such rules, nor can I find any such requirements placed on coaches or runners in the rule book.
What is the deal on this one?