Umpires. Would you call interference on this play?

[Northball]

Either she is quite slow or the kid on 3B took her sweet time breaking for home..Once it took that first hop she should have been gone even if she wasn’t going on contact. Oh...and no interference. Now if the kid had done this:





different story..

Also a great physics lesson for high schoolers. You can see all three of Newton's laws in action, and that he should have had a 4th law: Get in the way of a large body in motion, and you will be pummelled.

 

[_MIA_]

Also a great physics lesson for high schoolers. You can see all three of Newton's laws in action, and that he should have had a 4th law: Get in the way of a large body in motion, and you will be pummelled.

Anybody else but Belle and that would have initiated a brawl..nobody wanted to mess with that crackpot...lol

 

[Westwind]

I can tell who watches a lot NCAA softball and who watches slower than molasses low level tb and high school base running by the comments. Plus, NCAA is a completely different rule set when it comes to base running. I guess that’s why there is three pages of cogitating over the NCAA rules.

The purpose of the pop up slide isn’t to be in the way. This isn’t some baboon 10u coach teaching some kid to drop the bat in front of the plate “to be in the way of the catcher”. This is a player going hard into the bag and getting stopped because she wants to beat the throw and wants to be on the bag on case there is a bobble or poor footwork to get the force. She not only gets stopped this way but she is back up and ready to run if the fielder makes the mistake of throwing the ball somewhere else. She plans on advancing not standing on the bag waving to her mom. A missed opportunity to advance or a base running error at this level is a quick trip to the bench.

ETA: Don’t read too much into her final position. Where she ends up may not have anything to do with her intent. Thats a pretty dynamic move, a lot of variables.

That ball isn’t a double play ball in high level college softball. It’s a chopper hanging in the air. I wish there was wide view of the field so you could see what I mean. There also is no chance of a play at home- MAYBE an absolute top middle infield with a quicker perfect feed to the front of the bag and a cannon arm second baseman and perfect throw… Thats a lot of “ands”.

A ball fielded behind the bag or in the hole is one out at this level. It’s a bonus is to stop the other runners.

Thats why the Duke hc stayed in the dugout.

An obstruction call would have caused an uproar in this situation.

 

[_MIA_]

There also is no chance of a play at home- MAYBE an absolute top middle infield with a quicker perfect feed to the front of the bag and a cannon arm second baseman and perfect throw… Thats a lot of “ands”.

I think the 2B probably caught the ball the way she did because she figured she had no chance at home and was surprised when somebody yelled "4!". Like I said, I am surprised the kid on third didn't score standing up on that. She probably waited to see the ball get past the pitcher to go when in reality she should have read that first hop..

 

[Westwind]

Agree @pattar.

She really did receive that ball like she thought it was pretty much the end of the play. And she was right!

The only good thing about where her throw went is it was like a pitchout and the runner on 1 didn’t advance.

ETA: some base runners would have advanced on that from first depending on team culture/mindset and whether they read it as a “round the bag” situation or where they were after crossing first.

 

[The Man In Blue]

ETA: Don’t read too much into her final position. Where she ends up may not have anything to do with her intent. Thats a pretty dynamic move, a lot of variables.

You could make an argument that it was a bad slide or that it was designed, but I disagree that where she ends up has nothing to do with her intent. See the reference above to Newton. You don't intend to be ready to move by moving in the wrong direction. Whether she did it on purpose or not is irrelevant though. She was in the fielder's way. Also, keep in mind she is not a runner. She is a retired runner.

That ball isn’t a double play ball in high level college softball. It’s a chopper hanging in the air. I wish there was wide view of the field so you could see what I mean. There also is no chance of a play at home- MAYBE an absolute top middle infield with a quicker perfect feed to the front of the bag and a cannon arm second baseman and perfect throw… Thats a lot of “ands”.

I won't disagree, but again, not relevant. Just because it isn't a routine double-play ball doesn't mean anything. The play was not at first base (if it was, I agree, we have nothing). Just because her throw goes errant doesn't mean anything if there was a play to be made (not a guaranteed out to be had). The offense cannot deprive the defense of a "reasonable opportunity" by NCAA standard.

A ball fielded behind the bag or in the hole is one out at this level. It’s a bonus is to stop the other runners.

Thats why the Duke hc stayed in the dugout.

An obstruction call would have caused an uproar in this situation.

Again, we are not talking about a dynamic double-play ball. We are talking a force out and a developing play at the plate. When the fielder sees that, she has to move around the retired runner. As you know, a retired runner has even less protection than a runner. Did we have the defense making a play on an active runner? Yes. Did we have a retired runner in the way? Yes. (We could get into the whole "Why is a retired runner using a pop-up slide?" debate, but it is also irrelevant.)

12.17.3.1 An offensive player, who no longer has status (a retired runner or a runner who has scored), may not interfere with a defensive player making a play on an active runner.

EFFECT—(12.17.3.1 and 12.17.3.2)—The ball is dead, and the runner closest to home plate at the time of the interference shall be declared out. Each base runner must return to the last base legally touched at the time of the interference, unless forced to advance.

Yes, an obstruction call would have caused one heck of an uproar since the defense didn't get in a runner's way.

 

[Westwind]

I believe these umpires got this call right and I think we agree more than disagree.

The offense cannot deprive the defense of a "reasonable opportunity" by NCAA standard.

There is no reasonable opportunity deprived here- that’s my argument.

We are talking a force out and a developing play at the plate.

There is no play to be made at the plate. That deal was over. A wide view of the field would show this better I believe.

Yes, an obstruction call would have caused one heck of an uproar since the defense didn't get in a runner's way.

Because it would be the wrong call.

Again, I’m totally arguing that these umpires got this call right.

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When the fielder sees that, she has to move around the retired runner.

IDK about this.…. IF it mattered, (and you have said it doesn’t), the runner has to assume she isn’t retired until the umpire signals that she is out. Not only can she not assume she is out, but she makes her sliding decision long before she has an inkling that she will be out.