Pitch bounces then hits batter

[dbronstein]

What the the actual rule for a pitch that hits the ground then hits the batter? I've had some umps say it's always a HBP. I've had some say it's never a HBP. And I've had some say it's a HBP if the batter made an attempt to avoid it but not a HBP if the batter did not make an attempt to avoid it.

 

[Greatdaytobeawildcat]

The pitch hitting the ground first does not matter. It’s a dead ball whether it hits the ground or doesn’t.

Whether the batter attempts to avoid, depends on rule set.

 

[Crabby_Bob]

What's the ball status? It's still a pitch, albeit wild.

 

[PJR202]

You can fairly hit a ball that bounces in, so you can certainly be hit BY it and take your base.

 

[3girls]

Yep, doesn’t matter if it hits the ground or not. Same rules apply.

 

[The Man In Blue]

The ONLY thing a pitch that bounces before the plate CANNOT be is a called strike. Well, it can be, but that was only because the guy I was working with last week was incompetent. It SHOULDN'T be.

Other than that, it can be (1) a ball (live), (2) a ball that hits a batter (dead), or even (3) a ball that is hit by the batter and put into play or fouled off (I've only seen this once, on turf, for a double).

Whether a ball that hits the batter is a hit-by-pitch which entitles the batter to first base depends on the rule set's requirements on the batter. For example, USA still requires an attempt to move while NFHS does not.

That said ... some house leagues (mainly rec) will write into their house rules an exception to HBP for a ball that bounces/rolls into the batter. This is because of the atrocious level of pitching and to try to encourage more batting.

If an umpire is telling you a bounced pitch cannot be a HBP, then I would guess that umpire mainly works a local rec-level league as that does NOT exist in any of the major codes.

 

[PJR202]

(3) a ball that is hit by the batter and put into play or fouled off (I've only seen this once, on turf, for a double).

I've only been involved in softball for 5 years or so and have already seen it. I think my daughter was actually the pitcher, on a well-maintained natural infield. Girl sent it hard up the middle for a single. I'm pretty sure she was gonna take it as a ball until it popped up and she just reacted. It was probably 10 - 12 inches off the ground. Someone swinging off a bounce had never even occurred to me as a possibility, much less whether it was a live ball or not.

 

[flash277]

USSSA you don't have to move.

 

[The Man In Blue]

USSSA you don't have to move.

Thank you! I couldn't remember off the top of my head and I was too lazy to look it up at that moment.

 

[MoJo]

What the the actual rule for a pitch that hits the ground then hits the batter? I've had some umps say it's always a HBP. I've had some say it's never a HBP. And I've had some say it's a HBP if the batter made an attempt to avoid it but not a HBP if the batter did not make an attempt to avoid it.

It's such a bummer to hear stories like these. 99.9% of umps should get this right. I didn't say 100% cause...you know...humans aren't perfect.