This play happened in my practice last night. 8U, very young team, we need a lot of work but we're getting better. Playing a little 6 on 6 scrimmage just to get them a bit of a feel for how the game flows. I'm pitching but also trying to call outs so that the girls can start to understand what to expect in our live games.
Runner on 1st, batter hits a decently hard hit grounder between the 1B and 2B. Both of them do break for the ball (which was good to see) but neither could quite make it to it and it gets through. We play quite a bit up in 8U league as we don't get too many hard hits. Runner from 1st get hits by the ball about 2-3 ft behind the fielders, right fielder would not have a play on the ball, if we had a right fielder which we did not in this particular situation.
It's 8U so most of the parents only think they know the rules. I called the play dead, runner safe at 1st and 2nd. A few of the parents were insisting that the runner should be out because she was hit by the ball and was interference. Since the ball couldn't have a play on it, I said it wouldn't be interference. I think I messed up by calling the play dead (no big deal, it's practice and now we get to practice force out at 3rd situation) as I think reading the rules that should actually be a live ball, play on, but I'm pretty sure that it's NOT an automatic out, either.
Am I right about all of the above? And does anyone know if baseball rules are similar? One of the parents has a kid on a club baseball team in our area and he was pretty sure that the runner is automatically out in baseball, but I have no idea. I'm just going by what I think I've been learning by reading on here for the past couple of years.
Second questions, would the ruling change if the player running *kicked* the ball (not on purpose, but just as in her normal stride hit the ball and sent it off in a weird direction?) If it was intentionally kicked, then I have to assume it'd be interference, but an accidental one (in umpire's judgement of course) I wasn't sure what the ruling would be. This didn't happen, just something I started thinking about.
Thanks!
Oh, Third question, this happened a few years ago but I just want to make sure I understand it. Again 8U team (my older daughter's at this point.) Runner on 1st and 2nd. Small pop fly in infield that would've been a tough but possible play for a 2nd basemen to get to. Runner from 1st gets bonked right in the helmet by the ball which sends it way out into right field in the air. Our right fielder SOMEHOW catches the ball that never hit the ground. It's the 3rd out, game is over, we win. We're all going crazy in the dugout because we know the game is over. BUT the question is: the runner was out as soon as she was hit in the situation, right? And if there were less than 2 outs, it's a dead ball situation where the runner is out, but the batter is safe on 1st? I'm not going to tell a 7y/o right fielder that her catch didn't count for the 3rd out, but umpire did let the coaches know that the runner was already out by the time she made the catch and it didn't really matter.
Runner on 1st, batter hits a decently hard hit grounder between the 1B and 2B. Both of them do break for the ball (which was good to see) but neither could quite make it to it and it gets through. We play quite a bit up in 8U league as we don't get too many hard hits. Runner from 1st get hits by the ball about 2-3 ft behind the fielders, right fielder would not have a play on the ball, if we had a right fielder which we did not in this particular situation.
It's 8U so most of the parents only think they know the rules. I called the play dead, runner safe at 1st and 2nd. A few of the parents were insisting that the runner should be out because she was hit by the ball and was interference. Since the ball couldn't have a play on it, I said it wouldn't be interference. I think I messed up by calling the play dead (no big deal, it's practice and now we get to practice force out at 3rd situation) as I think reading the rules that should actually be a live ball, play on, but I'm pretty sure that it's NOT an automatic out, either.
Am I right about all of the above? And does anyone know if baseball rules are similar? One of the parents has a kid on a club baseball team in our area and he was pretty sure that the runner is automatically out in baseball, but I have no idea. I'm just going by what I think I've been learning by reading on here for the past couple of years.
Second questions, would the ruling change if the player running *kicked* the ball (not on purpose, but just as in her normal stride hit the ball and sent it off in a weird direction?) If it was intentionally kicked, then I have to assume it'd be interference, but an accidental one (in umpire's judgement of course) I wasn't sure what the ruling would be. This didn't happen, just something I started thinking about.
Thanks!
Oh, Third question, this happened a few years ago but I just want to make sure I understand it. Again 8U team (my older daughter's at this point.) Runner on 1st and 2nd. Small pop fly in infield that would've been a tough but possible play for a 2nd basemen to get to. Runner from 1st gets bonked right in the helmet by the ball which sends it way out into right field in the air. Our right fielder SOMEHOW catches the ball that never hit the ground. It's the 3rd out, game is over, we win. We're all going crazy in the dugout because we know the game is over. BUT the question is: the runner was out as soon as she was hit in the situation, right? And if there were less than 2 outs, it's a dead ball situation where the runner is out, but the batter is safe on 1st? I'm not going to tell a 7y/o right fielder that her catch didn't count for the 3rd out, but umpire did let the coaches know that the runner was already out by the time she made the catch and it didn't really matter.